h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I have to disagree with your theory that the British Empire crumbled away because of revoloutionaries such as Ghandhi. Although I am not saying that what he did was pretty special, the British Empire fell apart for different reasons.
One of these, I believe, was the chronic shortage of beer in the nineteenth century. If you think about it, without beer you are increasingly prone to making at least vaguely rational decisions. A rational decision, in the context of the British Empire, might be to let a few colonies go for various unimportant reasons. However, if the British public were completely drunk and out of their skulls then they might, just might have decided that it would have been best to keep the colonies. This, I believe, proves the theory that Reality is brought on by a lack of beer.
That's what I thiknk anyway.

I agree, beer or its lack may well have brought about the decline of the British Empire. Nevertheless, its loss is a great one for the rest of the world. Millions of stamp collectors have been deprived of saving predictable stamps of places all over the globe. They were beautifully printed in steel engraving, consistent in design, with a picture of the monarch to make then easily datable.

The world might have been better served had Britain let the colonies go after the war, but retained administration of the post offices.

Not sure about the post offices - my postman appears to be unable to understand the phrase 'do not bend'. Or numbers, come to think of it.

Look on the bright side - your postman isn't trying their best to deliver your new computer to Alaska...

- G

There may have been noe beer in the cupboard but Mother England had plenty of Mother's Ruin, didn't she?

I disagree that the high cost of beer in 19th century contributed to the decline of the British Empire. The real cause was tea. The price of tea (imported from India, naturally) dropped sharply in sync with the level of wages and living conditions (the natives', naturally) throughout the sub-continent till it became irresistable as an alternative beaverage to beer. And tea has strong diuratic properties that cause the kidney to overwork: over the long haul it drains the kidney and the Englishman of energy. Britain may have thus lost her empire, she may yet lose her balls (!) if the price of tea continues to drop.