When Pierre Trudeau lost his majority in the 1972 general election he philosophically reassured Canadians that "the universe is unfolding as it should", a quotation from the
Desiderata by Max Ehrmann.
This unfolding is not always to our liking nor does it quash our fears about what the world has in store for us.
Trudeau must then have had his share of doubt about the direction of 1970s Canada which was different from that of the electorate.
As a child of the universe each of us must occasionally wonder how things could have been different if we had done things differently in our own lives.
These doubts extend to the political world and how little incidents in world events could have perhaps shaped the world differently.
One question which has always haunted me is how the world would have unfolded if events in Sarajevo in June, 1914 had gone differently.
In 1914, the Austria-Hungarian empire was wearing thin and their governance annoyed many diverse ethnic minorities who saw things differently.
If we go back to that day, six Bosnian Serbs were sent to Sarajevo with a specific mission - kill Archduke Ferdinand.
Although the day did not go entirely to plan, the result was the same.
The plan for the six assassins was for them to be stationed at certain strategic points along Archduke Ferdinand's route which would provide a higher certainty that their mission be accomplished but events did not go as planned.
The first assassin along the route had perfect position and opportunity but at the last moment chickened out. The second assassin who also had good position and opportunity observed, at the last moment, a policeman standing behind him.
The third person also had excellent position and opportunity. He threw his fused bomb but it hit the back of the rolled-down convertible top and exploded under the next car. No one was killed but 20 people were injured.
Incensed at the assassination attempt, the motorcade sped away and the Archduke and his wife continued on to a scheduled reception at City Hall.
The eventual assassin, Gavrilo Princip, walked away disappointed and wondered what to do next since the assassin who had thrown the grenade had been arrested and taken away.
An interrogation and/or torture would quickly reveal all the other
participants - their lives were now in danger.
Confused, Gavrilo went to a food shop and decided what to do next.
After the City Hall reception, organizers decided to make alternate plans to go to the hospital to visit the bomb victims. Everyone was advised of the route change except for the driver of the Archduke's vehicle.
As he proceeded along what he thought was the correct route, he turned onto a street and was only then informed of the route change. Backing up the car quickly, he stalled directly in front of the food shop where Gavrilo Princip sat in confusion.
When this unexpected opportunity arose, Gavrilo ran out of the shop with his revolver ready. The panicked driver saw Gavrilo and put the car into reverse but the gears jammed - the Archduke was a sitting duck.
Gavrilo shot the Archduke and then attempted to shoot Governor Potiorek but accidentally shot Sophie, the Archduke's wife.
We all know the rest. The First World War began soon after and the Second World War resulted from the harsh reparations treaty with Germany.
How would the world be different today if the driver hadn't taken a wrong turn, hadn't stalled his car in front of that particular shop and hadn't locked his gears precisely at that spot? One can only imagine.
Is the universe unfolding as it should?
