Duncan Craig Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> bernard Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > From the story:
> >
> > "Menzies believes that Zheng He took rice
> from
> > China to America, brought back maize from
> America,
> > took sweet potato from South America to New
> > Zealand and Australia, and took Indian cotton
> to
> > America and then brought a better strain of
> cotton
> > to Europe. Besides, all sorts of fruits and
> > animals were also transferred from one
> country to
> > another."
> >
> > 1) there is no evidence of Asian rice in
> America
> > prior to Columbus.
> > 2) the sweet potato in Asia comes from
> Central
> > America and not South America, further I have
> not
> > heard of sweet potato being common in
> Australia.
> > The sweet potato in Asia is present earlier
> than
> > 1421.
> > 3) Indian cotton is not found in the New
> World.
> > 4) The first cotton in Europe was brought by
> the
> > Arabs, for example the Spanish word for
> cotton,
> > algodon, is of Arab origin. I doubt that any
> study
> > has been made of 15th century European
> cotton
> > cloth to show that it is the long-staple AADD
> New
> > World variety.
> >
> > Bernard
>
> There are many examples of dishonesty,
> exagerration, circular logic and misrepresentation
> in '1421'. It is unfortunate that it has become
> emblematic of a discussion that has been ongoing
> since '1492'. There are plenty of old arguments as
> well as new evidence to hash out. Menzies is a
> straw man and a distraction. Getting a lousy auto
> mechanic does not invalid the laws of physics, and
> '1421' doesn't render the work of many capable
> scholars, mute.
>
I was only commenting on the four "factoids" presented here.
Bernard