The Dirty Secret your Parents Never Told You about Columbus

There are people are see what is in front of their eyes, who learn what is told to them. And then there are exceptional individuals with special powers of insight, who see patterns and connections that others overlook.

I am one of those exceptional individuals.

Consider these well-known facts:

1. Horses were introduced to the Americas soon after Columbus's 1492 voyage (in fact by Columbus in 1493).

2. Crossing the Atlantic by ship in the era of Columbus took roughly a month or more.

3. Ships of the era were small by today's standards, with few amenities. Most of the crew were expected to sleep wherever they could find space. The Captain's own stateroom was not much bigger than an elevator.

Where did the horses ride on the ship? Clearly they must have been confined to a small space during the long weeks of the voyage.

And now we come to the crucial insight, whereby events of centuries ago suddenly shed light on the human condition today:

When your parents told you there was not enough space in the family room to keep a pony, clearly they were lying.