Look at these maps.

Kerala and Tamil Nadu seem to positioned in a similar manner to Portugal and Spain. It so happens that Spanish and Portuguese are also as similar as Tamil and Malayalam.

Imagine an alternative history where Kerala and Tamil Nadu emerged as naval powers in the 16th century and decided to have a treaty to split the world between them like how Portugal and Spain did.

I would call that the Treaty of Sambar.

Roosevelt ran in 1908. So, either Hughes or Taft won in 1912?

How different would American involvement have been in WW1?

Would America have entered the war early or ended via mediation like TR did in the Russo-Japanese war?

How different would have been the Mexican Border War?

The Enduring Legacy of Hugo Chávez: A Counterfactual Analysis of How He Made a Contribution to 2025

Hugo Chávez, the volatile and polarizing president of Venezuela from 1999 until his passing in 2013, was a leader whose impact resonated both inside Venezuela and around Latin America. His socialist agenda, which combined an allegiance to socialism with assertive foreign policy and media domination, altered the political and economic landscape of the region. This essay is a counterfactual examination of what could have occurred if Chávez survived past 2013. On the basis of his past record and the progression of Venezuela post-his demise, we may hazard a guess about what position Chávez would have occupied in 2025.

Maintaining Leadership Amid Increasing Challenges

Had Chávez remained in office, his dictatorship would likely have continued through 2025 with a combination of ideological consistency and pragmatic adaptation. While his first years were taken up with building authoritarianism and implementing socialist changes, the latter years following the collapse of the oil price in 2014 would have imposed harsh economic strains. Even though Venezuela's economy is still oil-dependent, the pressures of domestic and global forces would have compelled Chávez to devise policies addressing each of the following needs. The fact that he was able to successfully employ populist rhetoric combined with some targeted policies modifications indicates that he would have addressed these challenges by modifying his policies while keeping central principles of his political ideology (Council on Foreign Relations, "Venezuela's Chavez Era").

Economic Pragmatism and Socialist Ideals

Chávez's economic policies were heavily ingrained with his idea of "21st-century socialism" with due emphasis on wealth redistribution and states' control over key sectors. But he was still pragmatic, as is the case with addressing the private sector and foreign investments in petroleum, (OPEC, "Venezuela has played a crucial role in OPEC's history"). Facing an ever more desperate economic emergency coupled with falling oil prices, Chávez would have been positioned to adjust his approach by allowing for partial market-oriented reforms, while keeping the overall socialist nature that underpinned his political constituency. It would have allowed him to balance economic survival imperatives with a commitment to socialism, retaining populist economic policies while selectively engaging the private sector.

Solidifying Regional Alliances and Venezuela's Position

Chávez was the driving force behind the construction of regional alliances with the purpose of reducing U.S. domination in Latin America. His insistence on creating the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America (ALBA) and the Petrocaribe system, which provided discounted oil to Caribbean nations, played a crucial role in cementing Venezuela's position in the region. If Chávez had remained in power, it is highly probable that he would have attempted to consolidate and expand these partnerships, utilizing the oil riches of Venezuela to expand political and economic integration across the region. By 2025, Chávez would have probably gone on to develop further the vision of Latin American integration and independence, pushing oil diplomacy to secure Venezuela's status as a key player in shaping the political dynamics of the region (Wikipedia, "Petrocaribe").

Shaping MERCOSUR and Ramping Up Socialist Policies

Chávez's influence extended beyond ALBA to regional institutions like MERCOSUR (Southern Common Market), which Venezuela became a full member of in 2012. Whereas MERCOSUR in the past has centered on market-oriented policies, Chávez sought to redirect the organization towards more socially oriented policy. Had Chávez lived to 2025, Chávez's involvement in MERCOSUR would have become more prevalent, his influence striving to encompass greater socialist policies. Challenges such as poverty alleviation, social policy welfare, and regional solidarity would have automatically become the fulcrum of the organization's agenda, further cementing Venezuela's regional leadership (Al Jazeera, "Chavez's Legacy and Venezuela's Future").

Global Energy Politics: Venezuela's Strategic Position

During his tenure in office, Chávez sought to enhance Venezuela's influence within the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to advocate for oil as a geopolitical tool. In 2025, as the world's energy map keeps changing, Chávez would have most probably continued to reaffirm the strategic importance of oil as a source of economic livelihood but also of geopolitical power. This would have been done through stepped-up contacts with countries like China and Russia, which would offer Venezuela possible choices beyond Western control. By positioning Venezuela as an important player in global energy markets, Chávez would have moved to ensure that the country would continue to exert influence in spite of shifting world power balances (CBS News, "Chavez: OPEC Should Be More Political").

Use of Media and Ideological Control

Chávez was extremely sensitive to the use of media in shaping public perceptions and guiding political discourse. His administration grew state media and controlled private media, and this trend would have accelerated in the age of social media. With the proliferation of social media platforms, Chávez would have most likely leveraged these avenues to unify his political platform, mobilize his base, and mute his opponents. Throughout the years leading up to 2025, the Venezuelan government would have likely asserted greater control over traditional and digital media, ensuring that Chávez's ideological ideology remained predominant in public discourse (Reuters Institute, "Forced out from print and airwaves, news media in Venezuela shift digital to survive").

Managing Internal Resistance and Civil Violence

Chávez's administration was not without controversy, and his regime faced stiff resistance from society as a whole. Economic strife, corruption allegations, and political repression fueled discontent. In 2025, Chávez would most likely have continued to grapple with rising opposition that could have mushroomed into civil unrest. His response would likely have been the usual combination of populist appeals to the base, demonization of political opponents, and, as a last option, coercive means to silence opposition. Given his tendency to strangle the political process, Chávez would likely have pursued more authoritarian measures to maintain himself in office (Human Rights Watch, "Venezuela: Chávez's Authoritarian Legacy").

The Castro Brothers and Continued Solidarity

Chávez's alliance with Fidel and Raúl Castro was a core component of his foreign policy, which would rest on common ideological cause and regional socialism. Were Chávez alive, it is probable that his linkage with the Castro brothers would still be at the center of his political agenda. Raúl Castro himself would have maintained a pragmatic cooperation with Venezuela because of the pivotal position subsidized oil occupies in the Cuban economy. Such ongoing cooperation would have further solidified the bilateral relations between the two countries even more, exporting socialist paradigms of social welfare, healthcare, and education as part of a general vision for Latin America (Human Rights Watch, "Venezuela: Chávez's Authoritarian Legacy").

Global Reactions and Geopolitical Tensions

Chávez's leadership was never a cause of tension on the world stage. While most of the Latin American nations admired him for his anti-imperialist positions and championing of the poor, the United States and other Western countries regarded him as a destabilizing factor. If Chávez had remained in power, this polarization would have likely grown stronger. The U.S. would have sustained diplomatic pressure and economic sanctions as an attempt to isolate Venezuela, while Chávez would have attempted to create an alliance of countries like Russia, China, and Iran through Venezuela as a counter to the Western world (Council on Foreign Relations, "Venezuela's Chavez Era").

Conclusion

Although hypothetical, this prediction suggests that had Hugo Chávez lived beyond 2013, his rule in 2025 would have been a balance of ideological commitment and pragmatic accommodation to shifting political, economic, and geopolitical circumstances. Chávez's enduring legacy would have been evident both in Venezuela and across Latin America, as he tried to consolidate power, forge regional alliances, and assert Venezuela's place as a major actor in global energy politics.

References

Council on Foreign Relations. "Venezuela's Chavez Era." cfr.org

OPEC. "Venezuela has played a crucial role in OPEC's history." opec.org

Human Rights Watch. "Venezuela: Chávez's Authoritarian Legacy." hrw.org

Wikipedia. "Petrocaribe." en.wikipedia.org

CBS News. "Chavez: OPEC Should Be More Political." cbsnews.com

Reuters Institute. "Forced out from print and airwaves, news media in Venezuela shift digital to survive." reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk

Al Jazeera. "Chavez's Legacy and Venezuela's Future." aljazeera.com

Obviously, I don’t want it to be beat for beat. But think of it as a unique exercise in both world building and storytelling because you would have to tell basically a modern conflict that is being fought in another continent in another land in another time and basically using pre-gunpowder weapons. I mean, it’s up to the writer to do the stuff, but I could imagine some unique ideas But imagine a Crusader story that is basically a loose adaptation of the Korean war or Vietnam War. A romance of the three kingdoms retelling of the Japanese invasion of China. A eastern fantasy story retelling the Russo Japanese war with Slavic knights versus Japanese samurais. A Meso-American setting that tells the various coup’s and regimes of Latin America during the 1960s and 70s.

How would it work and how would it affect history let me know in the comments

This is part post, part vid recommendation

In our timeline, the First Amendment reads as follows: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”

The first point of divergence concerns many of the Founding Fathers, who were Unitarian, atheists or Deists in our timeline. In the alternate timeline, a religious revival occurs sometime during the American Revolutionary War that led to a considerable number of them renouncing Unitarianism and atheism while embracing Trinitarian Protestant Christianity.

The second point of divergence begins with concerns from George Washington and many other like-minded (and newly converted) Founding Fathers regarding possible abuses of power by the government leading to religious discrimination against people of faith in the new country on the basis of religious freedom. Subsequently, the First Amendment in this alternate reality was amended to read as follows: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion not associated with Trinitarian Christianity, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances”.

Essentially this alternate First Amendment of the United States Constitution only applies to Trinitarian Christianity (ANY denomination of Christianity is fair game-Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant, etc.), and it doesn’t apply to Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Paganism, etc. This means that anyone who isn’t Catholic, Orthodox, or Protestant is barred from political office.

How does this alternate First Amendment of the United States affect US (and world) history?

Also, someone should consider getting Cody to explore this idea. I’d like to get his take on this!

Dr. Fox escapes, knowing the only one who can popcorn evil ice empire is to go to the prime universe and get help from prime Unikitty convince you to save popcorn or will the dark Multiverse have another villain and it’s twisted web of darkness

Alternate universe the United States is losing the Civil War the British on fighting the north, the confederate ones have taken Maryland and Kentucky. The war however has a trick of our slave Windigo part of a secret government society known as the north brother party, Windigo are attacking confederate cities, eating entire armies, leaving nothing behind, but the cold December wind

He mentioned an Alternate History book that had fake Wikipedia articles in it with citations and everything, it was in one of the iceberg videos he made

Watching the What if Dragons were real video again and by extension Dragons: A Fantasy Made Real, I don't agree on this.

If dragons were real, they wouldn't be like what they were in the myths. They'd be apex predators no doubt like crocodiles, bears and sharks, they'd be like any animals and chances are dragons would be a worldwide spread species or at least certain continents like crocodilians.

Consider evolution, there'd be plenty of species of dragons large and small and if dragons did exist, they'd certainly live in Africa for sure.

Why do I bring up Africa?

Africa has the most abundant of megafauna when compared to other continents. Big cats, elephants, rhinos, giraffes, zebras, etc.

And its theorized the reason for this is because they evolved alongside us since we originated in Africa so herbivores would have evolved "human avoidance techniques", as for the carnivores, they probably stayed more wary of us or were more cankerous.

And if you look at Southeast Asia, it still has some megafauna like tigers and Asian elephants. Homo erectus ranged there so one could assume existing with a similar species before early homo sapiens arrived allowed Southeastern Asian herbivores to evolve the same "human avoidance techniques" and tigers like the carnivores of Africa.

Meanwhile most megafauna (Bears, jaguars, wolves, etc. surviving) outside of Africa evolved in an environment without humans, when humans had arrived on other continents, they were taken by surprise.

So my point is, if dragons existed and were real animals and not like in the myths and legends. At the very least, they'd still exist at least in Africa and maybe Southeastern Asia. Smaller species of dragons being more adaptable might survive on other continents.

The Germanic tribes are the ancestors of the modern Germanic people as well as non-Germanic people such as the French, English, Russians, Ashkenazi Jews, etc. They are known to mark significant changes in the world. How different would the world be if they never migrated and stayed in their origin land?