Numerous policymakers have a possibility to shape global issues and domestic affairs of the nation that they represent. It is excellent that the George Washington University provides its students with an opportunity to interact with such individuals and world leaders since it allows these young people to influence the world’s future. However, an exciting point is also to know what people would have made if they had had an opportunity to change anything in the past. As for me, I would have headed for the early 20th century to prevent the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand.
In the beginning, it is rational to refresh memory regarding that significant event. The murder occurred in 1914, and it became a formal cause for World War I. Significant tensions in the world had existed long before 1914, but it was not until the assassination that large-scale military actions began. Thus, one can state that a single event led to one of the most terrific war conflicts in world history, resulting in approximately 20 million deaths.
The information above demonstrates that the assassination brought tragic consequences, meaning that some benefits could have happened if it had not occurred. It is possible to suppose that World War I would have never started if Franz Ferdinand had not been killed. Firstly, this scenario means that millions of people would not have died on the battlefield. Secondly, significant geopolitical changes would not have happened to the world, which refers, for example, to the fall of the Ottoman and Russian Empires. Thus, there is no doubt that many positive outcomes would have occurred if the world had managed to refrain from starting World War I.
Furthermore, one can suppose that the aborted assassination would have resulted in a significantly different world development in the 20th century. Since World War I was the first of multiple war conflicts that occurred during that timeframe, its absence would not have given rise to many other tragic events. It refers to World War II, Vietnam War, Cold War, and others. Each of these events implied adverse consequences for its participants, including the United States. It is so because the USA participated in the three conflicts above and experienced essential losses in human and financial resources.
It is possible to state that the modern world is still suffering from World War I consequences. It relates to numerous regional conflicts that tend to occur throughout the globe. It seems that they happen because there are many recent examples of how countries can solve their disputes. Thus, the aborted assassination of Franz Ferdinand would have deprived the world of this destructive example, leading to peace and safety.
In conclusion, it is exciting to speculate on what could have been changed in the past and why. As for me, I would have prevented the murder of Archduke Franz Ferdinand not to let World War I begin. This fact would have resulted in numerous benefits for the whole world and single nations because the aborted war would have saved millions of lives and would not have caused many other conflicts that happened in the 20th century. Even though time travel is impossible, thinking about what could have been changed in the past is useful because it allows people to understand that even a single action can have many tragic consequences.