i'll post my comment here since your blog does not allow anonymous
posts and you have to register and all that kind of nuisance. next time
warn us we need to register.

i liked the new information, namely the crusaders brought back the rats
with bubonic plague. and that the dumb, superstitious europeans had
killed violently most of the cats because of fear of witches, devil
worshipping, and paganism. so rats + no cats = bubonic plague and there
went 1/3rd of the population. i don't think you mentioned how
devastating the deaths and the sidetracking of civilization, or did
you? things went backwards because of this.

it's amazing what comes out of religious impulses, yes? the nice
crusaders, raping and killing along the way, to get in the swing of
things, and this was while they were still in europe.

on a personal note, the style seemed as though it needs more work, more
rewriting. i felt it was not polished and more like a rough draft in
need of serious editing. sounded like something a freshman would write.
maybe a soph would write if i knew how to spell sophomore. you have the
emotional facts down. if you rewrite this ten times and it gets worse,
then forget my snooty comments and leave it as it is.