and even then, I'm saying it tentatively--because maybe it WAS a cultural thing. But I think you already got the cause...
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Replying to @380kmh @MrAlAnderson
...which is that China was a (mostly) stable, unified, empire--whereas Europe was in the middle of cultural/political turmoil
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Replying to @380kmh @MrAlAnderson
man it really is amazing the kind of development you can get from an anarchic mass of fairly small states
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Replying to @380kmh
not too small though, and not too anarchic, plus accumulation by a "middle" class is very helpful
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Replying to @MrAlAnderson
a middle class is a prerequisite; they're the ones who are doing the trading
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Replying to @380kmh @MrAlAnderson
Mainly I'm thinking of Renaissance Italy and the city states of Classical Greece
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Replying to @380kmh
well yeah, little trading cities do a lot. Rome was one of those once.
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Replying to @MrAlAnderson @380kmh
I mean, they also tend to get taken over by inland neighbors, but hey, that brings lots of change too
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Replying to @MrAlAnderson
the rest of the time they *are* those inland neighbors, taking over the rest
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Replying to @380kmh
yeah, there's a bit of sloshing back and forth action going there
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I'll excuse myself at this point before I get too Spengler-y
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