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Just about every single book I've read on the Aztecs, noted that they were heading towards collapse. Tlaxcala was not on the verge of defeat or about to be conquered; Aztec warfare was centered around capturing new sacrifices and resources, not new land.

Also, the comparison with Rome doesn't apply. Rome's enemies were vastly inferior technologically and in terms of organization. While some of the Aztec's enemies were this way as well, others were not. The Aztecs relied on fear and numbers, not always technological advantages, and eventually enough of their tributaries would've risen up.
How old are these books? And which ones exactly? As a rule I tend to be very wary of books on Mesoamerica published before the 21st Century. Old books on Aztec history tended to have certain biases that fed into each other until they were taken as gospel, ignoring less biased sources. Aztec warfare was centered around making enemies into tributaries of their hegemonic empire, captives were just a good bonus. And Rome's enemies were not necessarily so inferior as you claim. The Persians certainly weren't, and the Celts weren't nearly as technologically or societally backwards as is popularly imagined. Many things the Romans borrowed from their enemies, particularly the Celts, who were the ones who invented mail armor.
 
Just about every single book I've read on the Aztecs, noted that they were heading towards collapse. Tlaxcala was not on the verge of defeat or about to be conquered; Aztec warfare was centered around capturing new sacrifices and resources, not new land.

Also, the comparison with Rome doesn't apply. Rome's enemies were vastly inferior technologically and in terms of organization. While some of the Aztec's enemies were this way as well, others were not. The Aztecs relied on fear and numbers, not always technological advantages, and eventually enough of their tributaries would've risen up.

As for the alphabet, I'm not saying that Zapotec writing of OTL would spread enough, but I'm assuming that under a Zapotec state, such writing would advance a change.

However, on your points regarding the Zapotecs as specific choices and religion, perhaps you are right. But, with religion in particular, analyziing how it would change is mostly speculation.

I agree with 9 Fang. The Aztecs were not on the verge of collapse, and the Zapotecs were not going to replace the Nahua speaking civilizations; they were slammed between the Mexica and the Mixtecs. And 9 Fangs religious bit is also accurate. You really can't look at it terms of the European and Near-East concepts of Monotheism and Polytheism. Neither accurately describes these beliefs. Trust me, I've spoken to Nahua elders in Mexico who still hold to these traditions. And Aztecs did not just wage war for religious purposes. That was just one aspect of Mesoamerican warfare. I suggest you read a book called 'Aztec Warfare", it's on google books and relatively recently published (mid-1980s).
 
#13-Bull Moose-
Thanks to the rather untimely death of Woodrew Wilson in the 1912 election, the Democrats divided and Theodore Roosevelt won the election with his Progressive “Bull Moose” Party. America entered World War I in 1915, and thanks to added support, the allies crushed the Germans quicker, and the Russian revolution was held off. Roosevelt’s health improved, and he had a fourth term, before finally dying in 1925.
Today, the United States is rather more lefty than OTL. The territory of Nicaragua briefly joined the nation as a territory, but in the ‘90s was given greater independence (today, it’s roughly at the same level as Puerto Rico). Following the Panama Canal’s return to Panama, a second, bigger, canal has been built in American Nicaragua.
Politically the U.S. is rather different: the country is rather more Left wing than OTL, though some parts are still fairly conservative. The Democratic Party, comprising of both Liberal and Conservative wings, dominates the Deep South (nowadays with support from formerly Republican strongholds in the Great Plains as well). In the North, as well as in states such as North Carolina or Tennessee, politics is divided more along political lines: the Progressive Party favors big government and liberal policies, while Republican Party is more insistent on small government than OTL. In such controversial topics as Gay marriage; the Progressives support its legalization, the Democrats oppose its legalization, and the Republics sometimes oppose it on moral grounds but think that the government has no business in the regulation of marriage. The Republican Party here is rather more ideologically uniform and consistent, and more close to the Libertarian Party of OTL. Thanks to their efforts, the actual size of government is slightly smaller than OTL, but thanks to the Progressives, packs a bigger punch against mega corporations intent on breaking the laws. Washington, D.C. was admitted as a separate state (known simply as ‘Potomac’).
With the U.S. leadership much more angry at Germany than OTL, Germany’s peace terms were even worse. Germany’s economy suffered even worse than OTL, but frequent returns of French and American occupations helped prevent Germany from remilitarizing to the extent that it did OTL. Germany did turn hard reactionary though, and today is much poorer and more conservative than OTL, although it did transition back to democracy firmly in the 80s (after spending fifty years weaving in and out of democracy). Germany’s previous allies- Austria and Portugal- are still hard-right wing fascist.
With the failure of the Russian revolution and the slow move from totalitarian autocracy to dysfunctional capitalist democracy, Russia is both far richer and far poorer than OTL. The Belarus, most of Kazakhstan, and the eastern half of Ukraine, are all part of Russia.
The Socialist International though did become a biggish deal. The core three members are Mexico, Spain, and China (which finally got its act together and was able to unite in 1950, initially with U.S. help to kick out the Japanese). China (still Socialist in practice, as well as in name) controls Mongolia, Hong Kong, and Formosa. Beijing has extended socialist puppets on Nepal and Korea. The fact that Spain is doing okay and leading the socialists, has made next-door Portugal entrench its right-wing dictatorship. A few Nations in Latin America and Africa have joined with the International.

Japan was kicked out of Korea and Formosa by China, but still supports of the nationalist kingdoms of Vietnam, Kampuchea, Siam, and Burma. Laos is a weird sort of 'Buddhist Republic', lead by both a clergy of monks (who are in charge in theory), and by mostly democratically elected civilians (who are in charge in practice).

Italy, with its protectorates over Eritrea (now 30% Italian descended, thanks to settlement programs), and Libya, is a fairly wacky place. Although a democracy, it is usually run by a Socialist, Fascist (unlike the *Fascists in Portugal and Austria, in Italy they’re actually called that) or Integralist Prime Minister. All the major parties in Italy combine a love of Italian nationalism, subtle racism, state-control, Catholicism, and disdain for all foreigners. The Socialists in Italy get along much better with other non-socialist Italians than they do with the International (they’re hardly socialist at all, the only defining characteristic that separates them is their willingness to take care of the poor, so long as they’re catholic). Even the (still mostly Muslim) Eritreans have embraced a sort of Italian-derived egotistical nationalism and superiority complex.
The Ottoman Empire surrendered to Britain long before it was clear that Germany would lose. The collapsing Ottomans and British helped to divide the Middle East rather differently than OTL, resulting in a more peaceful and stable Middle East. Iraq and Israel never existed, but Kurdistan did.
Northern Ireland is united with the South, but more Protestant than OTL.
South Africa, on the other hand, devolved into a messy race war and has since declined in standard of living and divided into several smaller republics. The rest of the world has jointly taken over and occupied the Cape Town area, and it’s doing better than the rest of the former territory.
Indonesia, India, and Egypt are all vibrant democracies that are friendly with the U.S..

The U.S. is, as OTL, number one, exporting its culture through television, radio, and now the ISIS board (the internet; originally used only by scientists, ISIS stands for International Scientific Integration System).
 
#14-Pax Americana
There are some worlds quite like our own, while there are others that feel quite alien. This world is one of the former. The divergence from our own world occured here in the Second World War of 1939-1945. In that world, the Britons and Americans had better cultural relations after the war. In that world, American Football and other American cultural institutions were adopted in Britain, and to a lesser extent in other Western European and Commonwealth countries, and there was the creation of an Anglosphere Cultural Union, which governed affairs in these countrys, and between them. Europe after the Second World War was similar to OTL, except with a surviving Trieste Free State, Poland with more eastern territories, losing some in the west, and an East Prussian Peoples Republic. After the war, there were similar flashpoints, which involved US intervention.

These days, the world is in the midst of its Cold War, pitting the Warsaw Pact against NATO and its allies. The west is dominated by the US of A, Britain, and to a lesser extent France. The US in this world is culturally still in the 1950s. Doo-Wop and Rockabilly music still dominate, Cool Cars with tailfins cruise the strips of every major cities, greasers patrol the sidewalks, while the countryside is continusly shrinking, replaced with Wright-style suburban houses. It is very interesting in that regard. However, there are some downsides. Segregation has loosened, but is still in place, while the threat of Nuclear Destruction occurs everyday. An interesting thing is that in this world, rockets are less prevelant than on our earth, and instead of ICBMs being the transmitters of atomics, the major countries retain massive bomber wings, equipped with Nuclear bombs, patrolling the airs above neutral regions in Doctor Strangelove-esque Maneuvers.

Britain, in this universe, has imitated the US a good bit. They have adopted US Football, but equipped with a system of relegation, and a more community based organization, which has been adopted in the US as well. The US Culture has rubbed off on Britain, where there are Greasers in addition to Mods and Rockers in the US style suburbs. US Style music has come there, although they have created a version of Rock there similar to OTLs British Invasion, which never transferred across the Pond.

Ireland is Pro-US, and experiencing a Gaelic revival, and they really love American Football. France and Western Europe are doing fine, also adopting US Culture, but also considering the formation of a loose Federation. Spain is under a monarchy, restored in the Second Spanish Civil War, which American troops participated in. Africa is still mostly European, although the place is doing decently, and is being modernized, and independence is slowly coming. Egpyt, in this world, is part of the Nile Federation, which includes Cyrenica, Sudan, and Eritrea. The Federation is US supported, and opposes Israel, which is propped up by the EastBloc.

South America in this TL is relatively quiet, although there are coups every so often. Central America is mostly Americanized, and there is a lot of baseball play there.

The Middle East, on the whole, is a lot more stable, and American Friendly than OTL. Irak is still a monarchy, under the House Hashemite. That nation is American friendly. Currently, Iraks ambassador to the US is a man by the name of Saddam Hussein. Iran is also still a monarchy, which is friendly with the British, who purchase alot of oil from them. Saudi Arabia and the northern Arab states are similar to OTL. Turkey in this world is more firmly in the NATO fold, and there was a scare in 1999 over American atomic bombers stationed there. An interesting thing in this world is the fact that the Trucial Sheikhdoms, OTLs United Arab Emirates left the British Empire as independent states rather than forming a single Federation. Afghanistan in this world is currently facing invasion from the USSR. India in this world, is a lot messier than OTL.

The decolonization of India was supposed to create four separate states, Burma, Pakistan, India, and Kashmir, however, the Princes in some areas carved out their own states, so these days, the Punjab, a Sikh state, Hyderabad, the Tamil Republic, and a few other states dot the subcontinent, some enclaves of the Hindustani Republic.

Japan in this TL is similar to the Japan seen in You Only Live Twice with many short buildings and Kaiju movies, and a good bit of baseball. China is under the rule of the CCP, which follows a new doctrine of "Confuco-Maoism", it suffers from Uighur and Tibetian Guerillas, supported by NATO. The Republic of China exists on Taiwan, and is still pissed off at the mainland. Korea is divided into north and south, although the north is not a semi-Monarchy under the Kim-Jongs. In Indochina, Vietnam is split into north and south, the north being Confuco-Maoist, and the south being a military dictatorship with a large percent of the population Caodaiist. Cambodia and Laos are both American supported. Thailand is still a monarchy.

Indonesia in this TL is not united, and that area is divided into states which generally control a single island. In this area, proxy wars between NATO and the Warsaw Pact occur. Australia is still around, and controls former British New Guinea, and is heavily American influenced, with the beachs of the northeast serving as a place for many American retirees. However, it has retained the "White Australia Policy". The north of that country has many American space program facilities. New Zealand is similar.

The USSR is the worlds other superpower. It remains Stalinist, though not under the rule of Stalin himself. The USSR, since the 1960s, has acquired a sort of Technocratic bent, and prizes scientists heavily, which allows it to be on par or a step ahead of the Americans in the space race. The Soviets also, in this world, began the creation of massive canals to irrigate the Central Asian steppe,a plan that basically led to a whole bunch of poor Polish and German farmers winding up in Central Asia, with just as little money later on. Eastern Europe and China are still strong Soviet Allies. Eastern Europe appears to be even more puppet-y than OTL, and, interestingly, East Germany appears to have a large population of ethnic Russian migrant workers.

In this world, proxy wars are common, and currently, there are ones going on in the Nile Federations province of South Sudan, where rebels, supported by the USSR, wage war in an attempt to establish an independant state. In the Punjab Republic, Hindu rebels are propped up by the USSR. In Irak and Iran, Kurdish rebels are USSR supported.
In this world, technology, along with culture is also quite similar to the 1950s. Googie architecture dominates Western cities, while people use jets and even rockets for transport. Television is about, but in the black and white form usually. In this world, the Space Race didnt seem to end, and by 1995, there were US, Soviet, and British colonies on the moon, and by 2010, there were ones on Mars. Astronauts and Cosmonauts have gone as far as the Asteroid Belt and Venus.
 
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#15-Not Quite what You'd Expect It seems that in many worlds, the Nazi party wins the Second World War, becoming a Great Power, or a Hellhole, depending what universe it happens to be in. These Third Reichs have things like Atlantropas, Weird Sciences, and Cold Wars with the Japanese. This world has all of that.
The year is 2025, and this world is in the midst of its Cold War, an era of tensions between the Third Reich and the Greater East Asian Cooperation Sphere. It is quite unlike our cold war, since both sides are comprised of only massive empires, because, in this world, the only places independant of the former Axis are South America and parts of the Pacific and Africa.
First, we will cover the Third Reich. This nation comprises of Europe, Southern Asia, Africa, and parts of North America. The leader is technically Hans Richter, the 4th leader since Adolf Hitler passed away in 1951. The territory they control of divided into a mess of Gaue, the traditional states, Reichsland, government administred states, Ordenstaats, SS Ruled areas, Reich Protectorates, and a plethora of other sorts of regions, all who, roughly, look up to the Fuhrer. In this totalitarian state, a massive bureaucracy rules over the people, as well as the SS, Army, and the GS, or religious division, who feud with each other quite a bit. The population of the Reich is rather higher than in many worlds due to their eventual acceptance of the Celts and French, who, in some cases have been "Germanized". The culture of the Reich is slightly similar, due to attempts by the government to create a uniformily German nation, which is made up of Pre-Nazi German, English, and American culture. All over the Reich, people speak "German", which by now has elements of Dutch and English, and has attempted to purge all non-German words from its lexicon. Though this language is the official language, around the Reich, people speak different dialects, using different slang. In some cases, the government has even attempted to reintroduce dead languages, like Old English, in Gau Northumbria, and Lombard in Gau Lombardei.
The Reich has streched into Africa, damming the Mediterranean, in hopes of creating a new place to settle. Though that process began in 1980, it still is not done, although there are signficant new islands in the Mediterranean. The plan does not include the complete terranization of the sea, but rather the expansion of land, and the keeping of the sea in certain areas, to assist for transport. The water is to be diverted into Central Africa, where a massive ocean will be created, and the Qattara depression. Most of Africa is Reich territory, but only a little of it is actually set aside as "Settler Land", with the rest being administrated colonially, although that does not stop the natives from disappearing. The South is controlled by an Afrikaner-run "Federation of South Africa". Australia is a German supported state, mostly because the locals do not want to be integrated into Japans empire.
South Asia, as in, Arabia through India and parts of Central Asia are also parts of the Reich. In Arabia, the Nazis decided the Arabs were probably Iranians that ended up speaking a Semitic language, and decided to allow them to live as citizens, so some of those regions are now integrated fully into the Reich, but in the Emirates and Iran, the Germans allowed the local Monarchs to keep their positions, and admitted them as "Specially Administered Reich Protectorates", basically just a fancy way of saying they have representation in Berlin, but a monarch. Islam is still around, and there seems to be little objection to that. In India, the Nazis allowed the locals to live, although Dravidian speakers had to go underground. The Sanskrit language from there was even adopted by some Reich leaders, who hailed it as the true script.
The Americas are another area where the Germans have put their stamp. In the 50s, German and Japanese forces began the invasion of North America. The Germans took land east of the Rockies, and the Japanese the West, with a DMZ in the center. The Carribean was made German, with the Japanese and Germans splitting Central America. South America is mostly German puppet states, with Integralist parties in charge. The Former US is a mix of Gau, Ordenstaats, and Protectorates, with some areas having more local control than others. Generally, after the invasion, US English, Germanic, and Celtic peoples aligned with the Germans, seeing them as a best option for the time. The Germans went to work there, getting rid of Jews and other minorities. Because of this, they were received well in the South, which now has its own fully functioning, democratic Gau. In the cities, things were harder, and there are still occasional uprisings. In the Plains, there has been a lot of settlement and weird large environmental projects. The Indians there are apparently being looked at as the descendants of the Iranians.
Religion in the Reich is very undefined. There is no official church, however, the leaders of the country, and indeed the people are split between a few different religions. Christians make up a high proportion of the population, however, Catholics are not viewed as highly as Protestants. There is still a Pope in Rome. Another part of the German population follows reconstructed German paganism. This reconstruction takes into account the old Germanic tales, of Odin and Siegfried, but also integrates in Hindu and Zoroastrian thinking, such as Reincarnation. This religion was created by members of the elites back in the 50s, and they managed to spread it around, but they never established an official hierarchy, so priests are merely people who decide to be one. There are also all manner of people in between, that worship Jesus and Odin, while there are fringe cults, and in the Celtic regions of the Reich, people who have recreated that ancient religion. The German government is currently working on the creation of a Caste System, in which everyone in the Reich will be placed, and will do certain jobs, the leaders will become hereditary then.
Japan is at the center of a vast East Asian Empire, officially called the Greater East Asian Co-Prosperity sphere. This Empire controls Siberia, China, parts of India, Indochina, Indonesia, parts of Oceania, Hawaii, and Eastern North America as well as the heart of the Empire, Japan. This Empire is controlled by the "Greater East Asian Race", Japanized Chinese, Vietnamese, and Koreans. They hold the power in the GEACPs and act as aristocrats, holding shares in the Zaibatsu that dominate that countrys economy. The Japanese government is based around the Cult of the Emperor, and soldiers are fanatically loyal to him. The government is multi-party, although the Imperial Rule Assisstance Association still controls the majority of the government. In Japan, a national religion is held in the form of State Shinto, which has adopted many aspects of Buddhism as the Japanese have expanded.
There are not many areas not under control of the Reich or The Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere. A few islands in the Pacific are populated by former Americans and British, intermarried with the locals, while some parts of Central Africa are under the control of local tribe leaders, or sometimes old Europeans. The area immediatly east of the Urals is controlled by the remenants of the Soviet Union, which carries on the fight against Japan and Germany, although they will never be able do much more than take the mountains there.
 
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