On this side track to the discussion, I think that a major factor there was the location of decision making vs. where the action took place. Too much control wa

On this side track to the discussion, I think that a major factor there was the location of decision making vs. where the action took place. Too much control was taken away from the location where it was needed. Centralization does that, in general, not just in those countries. There is a reason octopuses have sub-brains in their arms, and that some of our reflexes are controlled from neurons in the spine and not from all the way up in the brain, and why small army units have some autonomy.