In this alternate history deep-dive, Fine Print asks: what if the sick man of Europe had triumphed in World War I? Would the Ottoman Empire still rule over the Middle East? Could Istanbul have become a 21st-century superpower capital? We unpack the ripple effects—no Balfour Declaration, no modern Turkey, and perhaps no Israel. From oil politics to pan-Islamic diplomacy, we explore the fragile threads of empire, faith, and geography. Tune in as we peel back the layers of forgotten treaties, colonial ambitions, and the legacy of a world that almost was.