Today In Alternate History

November 27

In 1790, on this day an anonymous letter appeared in the New York Journal, almost certainly written by the former US Secretary of the Treasury, Colonel Alexander Hamilton (pictured). An article from the Hamilton Quits thread

Hamilton Quits, Part 2:
An Anonymous LetterThe author sharply criticized the sale of unoccupied western possessions by the states that needed to settle $21.5m of Revolutionary debt to European banks. Of course this exigency would not have been necessary had the Hamiltonian Assumption Plan been passed by the House earlier in the year. Part of that rejected plan required the states to hand over those territories permitting the Union to expand westwards [1] creating a larger landmass that would better suite the Federal model.

But because the Assumption-for-Residence proposal had been rejected by uncompromising Southern Congressman led by James Madison, the proposal to move the seat of government to the Potomac had been taken off the table. And so the Federal Government itself was looking for some land in order to build a Federal District. That decision was finally taken after the Louisiana Purchase, with an option placed on St Louis. Of course it was not necessary for the USG to actually buy the land rights, simply to place a reserve on that area. Due to the navigational challenges, the plan was to move the capital to St Louis at some point in the 1820s.

But time was against such a long-term plan because the compact between the States was starting to break-up quicker than the Mississippi was becoming navigable. Certainly the short-term move to the slavery-free city of Philadelphia had created a more pro-abolitionist attitude than can be imagined on to the Potomac, where slavery was still a living institution. And of course Maryland was Pro-Dixie, so the only question was how many states would be part of the rump Union governed from St Louis.

Entry posted by Todayinah Editor

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Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Hamilton Quits Source: Wikipedia Labels: Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, Government.

Todayinah Editor Editor says, this second installment we collaboratively developed with Scott Palter, Allen W. McDonald, Jeff Provine, Mike McIlvian and Chris Oakley.
[1] this decision forced Connecticut to release Ohio, Virginia to release Kentucky and Carolinas to release Tennessee and so in this scenario, we have super-sized states with large western territories in mortgage to European banks.

Readers Comment Chris Oakley commented on 2012-11-27 23:41:27 ~ This could have made future presidential campaigns VERY interesting...

Readers Comment Mike McIlvain commented on 2012-11-28 01:34:03 ~ A capital in St. Louis would have also shaped a very different US, possibly with French more a second language, due to the early explorers from there, and perhaps a different eye toward the native Americans. The east coast capital in Washington DC probably gave the US a stronger eye toward Europe, and the rest of the world. The Mississippi would have been a major player in US thinking, actions and attention with a capital right on it, too. New Orleans might have been more of a jumping off place to some of the adventurism seen elsewhere, which could have been more concentrated in those days into the Caribbean, and South America.

Readers Comment Eric Oppen commented on 2012-11-28 01:49:52 ~ Would the Constitution have even survived in this TL?

Readers Comment Allen W. McDonnell commented on 2012-11-28 16:26:45 ~ With the acquisition of the Louisiana Purchase the rump is far more the old South than the Union, and with the Capitol on the Mississippi they are going to do whatever it takes to keep access to the Gulf of Mexico so modern day Mississippi and Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, the western end of Tennessee and Kentucky will all be secured as part of the USA even if the Carolinian's and Virginia object. I suppose some sort of agreement could be made making the Mississippi the border between the USA and the Old South, but if so the sides will both have reason to garrison their own side of the river. In the north the Ohio would make a natural river border but the USA might object to the projection of Virginia up between Ohio and Pennsylvania. Some sort of border adjustment is likely to extend the southern border of Pennsylvania to the Ohio. Negotiating the western claims of the departing southern states would be interesting as Virginia claimed just about everything under their grant from the Crown. Most of the competing claims had the same origin after all and the bickering was intense over the issue.

In 1960, on this day the 47th Vice President of the United States Timothy James "Tim" Pawlenty was born in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
This post is a compressed version of the Step in a Different Direction thread published on Althistory Wikia

Birth of Vice President PawlentyHe was a Republican politician who served as the 39th Governor of Minnesota (2003-2011). He previously served in the Minnesota House of Representatives (1993-2003), where he was majority leader for two terms.

On August 29, 2008, he was revealed as Republican Presidential Nominee John McCain's choice for running mate. McCain described him as "one of the great governors of this United States of America, a great friend and a great leader", and cited his fiscal conservative policies as governor of Minnesota and his abilities of working across the aisle with the Democrats in Minnesota as some of the reasons of his pick.

On October 2, the McCain Campaign announced that they would change their campaign strategy. Seeing that the negative advertisements against Obama had not presented any positive results, and was still trailing Obama, he would once again assume his familiar position as a political underdog, riding the Straight Talk Express and taking advantage of free media such as debates and sponsored events. Likewise he barred using the Jeremiah Wright controversy in ads against Obama, and he announced that he would as well bar the use of the purported relationship with Bill Ayers. He announced that he would instead focus on his own policies on national security, education reform, energy independence, the economy as well as fiscal responsibility and cuts in federal and pork barrel spending. He would also focus on counter attacks of being too close to the unpopular President Bush by presenting his bipartisan positions in the Senate, saying he would work closely with both Republicans and Democrats while in office.

The McCain/Pawlenty ticket received 281 electoral votes to Obama/Biden's 257. McCain won most of the battleground states and held most traditionally Republican ones although Obama made inroads into the west and south. McCain gained 50.2% of the nationwide popular vote, compared to Obama's 49.1%.

Entry posted by Todayinah Editor

Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Politicans Source: Wikipedia Labels: Tim Pawlenty, John McCain, Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Presidency.

Todayinah Editor Editor says, in reality he was rumored to be a contender for both the Republican president and vice president nominations during the 2008 election, and he officially sought the 2012 Republican presidential nomination from May to August 2011. After withdrawing from that race, he became a finalist to join his party's nominee on the 2012 ticket as its vice presidential candidate. Pawlenty was not selected as Mitt Romney's vice presidential candidate, but served as co-chair of Romney's campaign. In September 2012 he left Romney's campaign to become a Washington lobbyist for financial institutions.

In 1095, on this day Pope Urban II declared the First Crusade at the Council of Clermont.

Council of ClermontThe Byzantine emperor Alexius I Comnenus had sent envoys to the west requesting military assistance against the Seljuk Turks. Later that year, in November, Urban called the Council of Clermont to discuss the matter further. In convoking the council, Urban urged the bishops and abbots whom he addressed directly, to bring with them the prominent lords in their provinces.

Robert the Monk records that the holy pontiff asked western Christians, poor and rich, to come to the aid of the Greeks in the east, because Deus vult ("God wills it"), the rousing cry with which Urban ended his final address. Driven by this holy terror, these men march east, and nothing, not even death, would stop them.

Entry posted by Todayinah Editor

Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Religion Source: Wikipedia Labels: Pope Urban II, First Crusade, Council of Clermont, Undead, Zombie.

Readers Comment Chris Oakley commented on 2012-11-27 20:23:13 ~ Mr. Romero, please pick up the white courtesy phone...

In 1921, on this day Alexander Dubček was born in Uhrovec, Slovakia, and raised in the Kyrgyz SSR of the Soviet Union (now Kyrgyzstan) as a member of the Esperantist and Idist industrial cooperative Interhelpo.

Birth of Alexander Dubček
by Ed & Jackie SpeelHe was conceived in the American city of Chicago, but born after his mother returned to Czechoslovakia. When he was three, she moved them to the Soviet Union, in part to help build socialism and in part because jobs were scarce in Czechoslovakia. But in 1938, they returned to Czechoslovakia.

His father and elder brother (Julius) had remained in Chicago with the intention of sending money to his mother. But they were separated first by the outbreak of war, and later by the descending of the Iron Curtain.

In August 1944 Alexander Dubček fought in the Slovak National Uprising and was wounded. Meanwhile, Julius entered the political area and rose to national prominence. And by the time of the Prague Spring, he was set to launch a bid for Presidency,

Entry posted by Guest Historian

Jackie Speel

Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Politicians Source: Wikipedia Labels: Alexander Dubcek, Julius Dubcek, Presidency, America, Czech.

Todayinah Editor Editor says, in reality the whole family return to Czechoslovakia. In August 1944 Alexander Dubček fought in the Slovak National Uprising and was wounded. But his brother, Július, was killed.

Readers Comment Jackie Rose commented on 2013-04-14 13:51:59 ~ I don't know that any immigrant's son has ever become president (John Kennedy was an immigrant's grandson).

Readers Comment Jackie Speel commented on 2013-04-14 21:35:08 ~ What about Barack Obama?

Readers Comment Jackie Rose commented on 2013-04-14 23:13:13 ~ Obama's father was not an immigrant but a citizen of Kenya, although he did attend Harvard. Still, that's a good call.

Readers Comment Jeff Provine commented on 2013-04-16 21:22:20 ~ Being born to immigrants while they had returned abroad should cut him out according to the national birth requirements. If those requirements were changed in this TL, it'd make for a heck of a fight. "Birthers" wouldn't even begin to hold a candle.

Readers Comment Jackie Speel commented on 2013-04-16 21:53:55 ~ 'National prominence' involves more than the Presidency - some Governors, Senators and members of the Presidential Cabinet are also notable outside the country.

In 1874, on this day the incomparable Zionist Leader Chaim Azriel Weizmann was born in the village of Motal near Pinsk in Belarus (at that time part of the Russian Empire).

Birth of Chaim WeizmannUntil the age of 11, he attended a traditional heder. At the age of 11, he entered high school in Pinsk. Weizmann then studied chemistry at the Polytechnic Institute of Darmstadt, Germany, and University of Fribourg, Switzerland. In 1899, he was awarded a doctorate with honors. In 1901, he was appointed assistant lecturer at the University of Geneva and, in 1904, senior lecturer at the University of Manchester. He soon became a leader among British Zionists.

From the turn of the century, he lobbied for the founding of a Jewish institution of higher learning in Palestine. But as a result of his attendance at Zionist Congresses, he became increasingly militant with the higher order understanding that Jewish history was a cycle of holocausts that could only terminated by their own paramilitary activism. He actively supported the creation of the Greater Zionist Resistance (GZR) unaware that their leaders were being manipulated by neo-Nazi from 1968 who had traveled back through time to create a shadowy world-wide Zionist organization, the enemy they had always imagined. Their dastardly plan was to exploit the paranoia of Western anti-semitism in order to guarantee the success of their New Reich.
All of Robbie Taylor's novels are available for download at Amazon.

Entry posted by Alternate Historian Robbie Taylor

Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Protocols Source: Robbie Taylors Blog Labels: Elders of Protocols of Zion, Robbie A. Taylor, Greater Zionist Resistence, GZR, Nazi.

Todayinah Editor Editor says, in our timeline Weizmann first visited Jerusalem in 1907, and while there, he helped organize the Palestine Land Development Company as a practical means of pursuing the Zionist dream. Although Weizmann was a strong advocate for "those governmental grants which are necessary to the achievement of the Zionist purpose" in Palestine, as stated at Basel, he persuaded many Jews not to wait for future events,

Readers Comment Eric Lipps commented on 2012-11-27 11:54:36 ~ I've been intrigued by this thread, but it sems to contain a central contradiction. The Nazis of our history believed there already was a Jewish conspiracy, and so would have seen no need to create one.

Readers Comment Jackie Rose commented on 2012-11-27 12:43:53 ~ Modern Zionism can be traced back to the late 19th Century and the Dreyfus Case in 1894...when Alfred Dreyfus, a Jewish officer in the French army, was framed for treason, causing a wave of anti-Semitism. It was going strong by 1904, when James Joyce had Leopold Bloom, his Dublin Jew, buying Palestinian land in "Ulysses." So the Zionist dream was obviously alive and well by 1907.

Readers Comment Robbie Taylor commented on 2012-11-27 17:24:56 ~ Eric, the neo-Nazis of Protocols acknowledge the reality that there was no Jewish conspiracy, and seek to create one in order that they might be seen as the world's heroes for saving every one from it

Readers Comment Eric Oppen commented on 2012-11-27 18:02:46 ~ This might have made life very interesting for the British.

Readers Comment Jeff Provine commented on 2012-11-28 18:08:54 ~ Just happened to think: What kinds of tech would they bring back?

Todayinah Editor Editor says, what would have happened on September 11th in the President Ron Paul timeline? Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).

"Just remember, 9/11 came about because there was too much government. Government was more or less in charge. They told the pilots they couldn't have guns, and they were told never to resist. They set up the stage for all this. So, no, private - private markets do a good job in protecting - much better than this bureaucracy called the TSA, let me tell you" ~ Ron Paul speaking in the Ronald Reagan Library, US Presidential Debate September 7th, 2011

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In 2002, on this day the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States was set up "to prepare a full and complete account of the circumstances surrounding the September 11 attacks", including preparedness for and the immediate response to the attacks. The commission was also mandated to provide recommendations designed to guard against future attacks.

9/11 Commission Criticizes President Ron Paul By Ed & Jeff ProvineThe commission was created by Congressional legislation, with the Bill signed into law by the forty-second President of the United States, Ron Paul (pictured) who also approved the additional $9 million dollars of funding requested by Chairman Henry Kissinger. The final report was published on August 21, 2004 following eighteen months of extensive interviews and testimony. Nevertheless, the five Democrats and five Republicans were unable to reach bipartisan agreement on a critical issue.

The transfer of votes from the Ross Perot Campaign had unexpectedly provided a wave of electoral support that had brought Ron Paul into office in 1996. In order to deliver on his central campaign promises of deregulation, he cherry-picked a selection of public services that the Federal Government was clearly unequipped to manage. The rise of the international terrorist network al-Qaeada provided just such an opportunity, and he took the bold step of handing complete control of passenger security to the airlines themselves. On September 11^th, this policy had produced decidely mixed results with right-wing members of his own party pressing for draconian Homeland Security measures that would massively expand the role of "big government".

Entry posted by Todayinah Editor

Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Politicians Source: Wikipedia Labels: Ron Paul, September 11, 911, Presidency, Homeland Security.

Todayinah Editor Editor says, in this article we reverse a controversial discussion point from the Presidential Debate and repurpose content from History Musings, Wikipedia and Alt History Wikia web sites. In our timeline, Kissinger resigned, unwilling to pubically declare his consulting commitments. President Bush only provided $7m of the requested funding.

Readers Comment Jared Myers commented on 2012-01-04 04:15:12 ~ Ron Paul would never allow a Patriot Act to be enacted.

Yahoo! Discussion Group Comments Please click hyperlink for Yahoo! Groups Discussion comments.

Readers Comment Stan Brin commented on 2012-01-04 04:15:12 ~ Few things are certain in life, but one is that Ron Paul is not going to be president of the United States

Readers Comment Mike commented on 2012-01-04 07:24:18 ~ The other certainty about Ron Paul not becoming president is the Certainty that America will collapse because Paul was our last hope. As to the senario Ron Paul would know better then to let Kissanger get anywhere near the Government.

Readers Comment Eric Oppen commented on 2012-01-04 07:43:55 ~ Was RP running as a Repub or a Libertarian?

Readers Comment Eric Lipps commented on 2012-01-04 16:07:13 ~ If Ron Paul was America's last hope, one might as well start packing one's bags right now--stocking up on canned goods, guns and ammo and heading for a secret cabin in the woods. Because in that case, the U.S. would be doomed whether he won or lost.

Readers Comment Robbie Taylor commented on 2012-01-04 23:27:02 ~ Paul has shown, in spite of his rhetoric and occasional "principled" stand, a willingness to go along with whatever excesses the right wants, so I see a great army of mercenaries in this timeline...

Readers Comment Richard Roper commented on 2012-01-04 23:27:02 ~ If Ron Paul is president there would not be a terrorist attack of that type, of if there was the miscreants would be rounded up and arrested. This would create a scandal to end all scandals and establish Ron Paul's policies as correct. However there would likely be an assassination attempt a la Kennedy and his brother, but since Ron Paul is more savvy, lead to its failure and scandal as above.

Readers Comment Jeff Provine commented on 2012-01-05 18:07:45 ~ I agree with Mr. Roper that it would be a very different attack. Even with Libertarian-ized minimal travel security, a fire-fight with pilots wouldn't fit the MO. They'd need something more guaranteed based in surprise.

Readers Comment Jared Myers commented on 2012-01-05 20:39:36 ~ Under President Paul, the U.S. would not be occupying any foreign territory, so are we certain that there would actually BE a 9/11 attack? Would Bin Laden be suicidal enough to try?

In 200, on this day an epic three-month long military conflict fought near the Yellow River was finally won by the forces of the Chinese warlord Yuan Shao.

Battle of GuanduEven though he had the advantage of superior forces, serious errors of judgment had brought Yuan Shao to the brink of defeat. For example in an early skirmish, his troops were routed at the Fort of Boma when Cao Cao easily outsmarted him.

Yet the extended length of the conflict served as a development opportunity, forcing the General to overcome his core weaknesses as a military commander, an indecisiveness combined with the chronic inability to heed the advice of his advisors. At the last, he took the brilliant decision to launch a direct approach to Cao Cao's headquarters in the finely balanced calculated that such a strike would overwhelm his enemy. It was the narrowest of victories dictated by an excellence sense of timing because Cao Cao's temporal weaknesses disguised the fact that Yuan Shao barely had the men to spare for such a bold venture. Had he not taken the chance, then surely he would never have defeated Cao Cao and conquered the lands south of the Yellow River.

Entry posted by Todayinah Editor

Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Generals Source: Wikipedia Labels: Three Kingdoms, Cao Cao, Yuan Shao, Guandu, China.

Todayinah Editor Editor says, in this article we an idea explored on the Zetaboards web site. Also we repurpose content from Wikipedia which challenges the historic perspect that Yuan Shao was incompetent.

In 1864, on this day J. Wilkes Booth decided to continue in the Oil Business. The famed actor and oil tycoon of the nineteenth century once very nearly gave up the stake in the Pennsylvania Oil Boom of the 1860s that would make him his great fortune. Profitable crude oil in Pennsylvania had been discovered by Colonel Edwin Drake, who also developed new drilling techniques for easy removal, in 1859 and made a rush for new wealth in the region.

Wilkes Booth Decides to Continue in the Oil Business Booth created a company with his friends John Ellsler and Thomas Mears called Dramatic Oil, which would soon be renamed Fuller Farm Oil but would continue to play on the Booth's fame to help in the sale of shares.

A native of Maryland, Booth considered himself a Southerner throughout, despite his years of acting and touring in the North. When the South seceded, he publically applauded the action as "heroic". His wealth and fame grew as the fate of the South dimmed, and many said he became obsessed with the "tyranny" of the Union. According to some, Booth was even involved in a kidnap plot for Abraham Lincoln, supposedly the reason for his 10-day trip to Montreal in 1864. Union-sympathizers called for banning him from the stage, and he was arrested for treasonous speech in Missouri in 1863, but even his fellow actors, who had long suffered from his notorious scene-theft, admitted that he was gifted.

A new story by Jeff ProvineOn November 25, just after his famed performance with his brothers Edwin and Junius in Julius Caesar in New York's Winter Garden Theater, Booth fell from the stage amid the applause and broke his leg. The next day, he was treated in his brother Edwin's New York home, where the two argued bitterly about John's hatred of the North. Out of survival, the two were forced to agree to disagree, and Booth settled on plans for bringing his acting career back to Washington, D.C., later that winter. He intended to sell off his shares in the oil business despite a significant loss, but on the morning of the 27th, his doctor judged his leg and noted, "It's broken now, but it'll heal to be stronger than ever".

The thought settled into Booth's passionate support for the South. The war had taken a terrible turn, but it would be over soon, and there was always the fact that the South could rise again. He decided that he would help the rebuilding of the South privately and for the rest of his life would denounce the Federal Reconstruction policies. As his mind filled with dreams, he realized he would need money to make them concrete. Instead of pulling out of the oil business, Booth sent telegrams to Ellsler and wired his savings to rebuild equipment destroyed by hasty use of explosives.

After the war ended, Booth married Lucy Hale and conducted expert business savvy organizing Booth Oil, which would buy out Fuller Farm as well as the majority of other oil production companies in the region. In 1870, he would spark conflict with Rockefeller's Standard Oil out of Ohio, which controlled the refineries. Booth and Rockefeller battled for years to dominate the industry, with Booth using influence through Ellsler in Cleveland to block Rockefeller's buy-up of competitors. When Rockefeller overspent on purchasing rivals, Booth cut his prices to the other companies, destroying Rockefeller's empire, which eventually was absorbed.

Armed with untold millions of dollars, Booth lived a fairly modest life and sank much of his money into investment in the South. Factories went up in Virginia, mills began production in the Carolinas, universities reopened, and new railroad lines spread through the Deep South. On top of his business, Booth also toured the South using his acting talent and raw passion in speeches to reinvigorate the Southern cause. Booth would even run for president in the famous five-party election of 1892, though many Southern Democrats gave more attention to winner Grover Cleveland.

When oil fields began to open in Texas after the gusher at Spindletop, Booth began to tour the West in search of new fields. While in the northwest Oklahoma Territory town of Enid, Booth would die in 1903 at age 65 from what many said was exhaustion and others suspected as heavy drinking. In the Republican administrations of Roosevelt and Taft, Booth Oil would become a favorite target of anti-trust action. The company would be broken up, but its effect on the national economy continued to be obvious as New Orleans surpassed New York City as the nation's busiest harbor and industrial production in Georgia alone outpaced the growing Midwest. For all of his actions, Mr. Booth truly will always be remembered among the American people.

Entry posted by Guest Historian

Jeff Provine

Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Jeff Provine Blog Source: Jeff Provine’s Blog Labels: Wilkes Booth, Abraham Lincoln, Assasination, Premature Death, Civil War.

Todayinah Editor Editor says, in reality John Wilkes Booth sold out of the oil business and pursued his passionate hatred of the Union. Upon hearing of Lee's surrender at Appomattox Courthouse, Booth changed his conspiratorial plans from kidnapping to assassination, which would be carried out April 14, 1865, as he shot President Lincoln in Ford's Theater, making Booth forever notorious in the American memory.

Readers Comment Eric Oppen commented on 2010-12-11 07:05:30 ~ He'd have made an interesting oil tycoon, wouldn't he?

Comment from Joe Annaruma on Facebook: Lincoln would have stayed in office for his full second term. By doing so, the reconstruction of the south would have proceeded with stronger US Government oversight, ensuring that African Americans attained the rights and privelidges of fu...ll, and free American citizens.It is possible that the lynching crusade of the KKK and Jim Crow would not have developed as it did under the Southern sympethizer Johnson due to government enforcement underLincoln. although New Orleans was a bigger port than NYC, NY would still be the city of commerce and skyscrapers due to New Orleans being built upon swampland, while Manhatten is made of solid rock.its a matter of geographic primacy.I doubt that Rockafeller center would be a hallmark of NYC however.

Readers Comment Chris Oakley commented on 2010-12-11 15:00:25 ~ To say the least. ;)

In 2010, on this day surviving resistance commanders raced against time to reach the reactivated secret Nazi base in New Swabia, Antartica where they searched for clues that might be hidden in the hopeless stream of footage showing the tentacles of monstrous alien squids destroying human property.

Tempus FugitNever in the two millenia since Virgil had coined the phrase "Tempus Fugit" had the term held more resonance. Because despite human civilization being brought to a state of near-collapse, the all-out invasion had begun just two weeks before the emergency military conference was hastily convened.

"But meanwhile it flees: time flees irretrievably, while we wander around, prisoners of our love of detail"The event that sparked the crisis was the termination of a technology sharing alliance which enabled humans and the squids to co-exist peacefully for the last sixty years. And the cause was the accidental discovery by Jesse Ventura that human scientists had rebuilt the time dilation device pioneered at Isgarden in the last days of the third Reich by the theoretical physicist Wilhelm Schoemann.

In 1968, neo-Nazis had used the original device to create the enemy they had always imagined, a world-wide conspiracy movement known as the "Greater Zionist Resistance". Despite the ultimate failure of that attempt to draw the right-wing support necessary to force a Nazi victory, the squids feared that scientists would attempt an even bolder mission to transform human fortunes by changing the terms of engagement at first contact.

Entry posted by Todayinah Editor

Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: NaziUFO Source: Wikipedia Labels: Alien, UFO, Adolf Hitler, Squid, Antarctica.

Readers Comment Robbie Taylor commented on 2010-11-30 10:17:25 ~ Damn Nazis, always summoning Cthulhu...

Readers Comment Jeff Provine commented on 2010-11-30 15:55:10 ~ Might be reading too metaphorically, but works fairly well fitting with Hitler's work toward rockets and A-bombs and later Cold War stand offs.

In 2008, on this day of historical significance the city of Bombay was struck by a series of co-ordinated attacks which killed 101 people and injuring 287 more. Not Cricket

At least seven high-profile locations were hit in the financial capital, including two luxury hotels - the Taj Mahal Palace (pictured) and the Oberoi Trident - where dozens of hostages were held by armed gunmen.

By good forture alone, this tally excluded the Angrezi Raj National cricket team - Mr Kevin Pietersen & co. had checked out of the the Taj Mahal Palace only a few days before the attack.

November 27th marked the anniversary of the start of the Second Mutiny. After a meteor shower devastated Western Europe in 1878, the British government evacuated 1.5 million refugees to India. When the subcontintent suffered from drought and famine, millions of desperate, starving Indians rebelled after hearing rumors of food being shipped back to Britain.

In 1948, the Indian National Congress led protests that only ceased with the execution by hanging of the leadership including Mohandas K. Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru.

Exactly sixty years later, the establishment of the Angrezi Premier League (APL) would draw nationalist fervour. A caucasians only rule restricted the high profile, limited overs cricket to either British nationals or 'citizens' of the white dominions of New Zealand, Australia and South Africa.

The Viceroy Chris Patton confirmed that the APL regulations would continue, as would the arrests in Bombay.

A group of 'suspected' gunmen that included Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar would be released without charge as the authorities took a huge number of innocent young men into custody to re-establish authority in the capital.

Entry posted by Todayinah Editor

Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Beasts Source: Wikipedia Labels: British Raj, Mumbai Attacks, India, British Empire, Britain.

Todayinah Editor Editor says, We understand fully that the tragic events in Mumbai ensured that the 27th November will be the most controversial day alongside 911. We have written this post and ask for your indulgence; this alternative explores what might have been, meant to entertain and provoke thought, not to offend.

The origination of our tale was the decision by the English Cricket Team to return home. We were not impressed with the communication of that decision, nor the frequent and hypocritical threats to boycott other regimes sporting events due to human rights issues, wondering if perhaps other nations might not boycott the 2012 Games in London based on that same logic. In short, we heard a strong and unpleasant echo of empire that we amplified in this story, set in the universe of SM Sirling's novel of 2002, The Peshawar Lancers.

Readers Comment Eric Oppen commented on 2008-11-28 18:27:22 ~ Interesting---but I think that by 1948 the Angrezi Raj would be "Indianized" enough that Gandhi & Co. wouldn't have found it worth while to protest it. Who's doing the terrorism in this TL---the followers of Chernobog?

Readers Comment Eric Lipps commented on 2008-11-28 20:49:48 ~ Not necessarily. Consider South Africa. It's all too easy to imagine that the trasplanted English would retain a contemptuous attitude toward the "natives" and maintain such things as segregation in public accommodations, discrimination in education and employment, and so forth, which might fuel hostility and nurture support for terrorism. For what it's worth, I found myself somewhat repulsed by the novel, with its imaginings that most of humanity would be reduced to cannibalism. I found it hard to get past that.

Readers Comment David Atwell commented on 2008-11-28 21:30:45 ~ Yes revolutionaries do come & go, yet considering the POD of Ghandi's execution was 50 years previously, all manner of butterflies can create a TL where some current person, who ordinarily wouldn't be a "terrorist", could easily become one.

Readers Comment Todayinah Ed. commented on 2008-11-29 01:19:08 ~ Some good ideas Mr Lipps, which I have used to modify the story - with thanks.

Readers Comment Chris Oakley commented on 2008-11-29 15:33:40 ~ An interesting and timely--if somewhat controversial--ATL.

"Indian"	In 1954, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers beat the Montreal Alouettes to win their second straight Grey Cup title; Bombers quarterback "Indian" Jack Jacobs, who set five CFL playoff passing records in this game, would receive the Cup MVP award for his performance.

Jack Jacobs


Two years later, the Alouettes would avenge this defeat with a comeback victory against the Bombers in the 1956 Grey Cup championship. Several players from both teams later took their talents to the NFL, playing critical roles in the epic 1958 Colts-Giants championship game and the first Super Bowl in 1967.

On this day in 1941, just 24 hours before Cordell Hull's ultimatum to Japan was scheduled to have expired, Prime Minister Tojo was overthrown in a coup mounted by dissident Imperial Army officers with the acquiescence of Emperor Hirohito. A new provisional government headed by Mamrou Shigemetsu quickly made peace overtures to the United States and opened secret truce negotiations with Korean guerrilla leader Syngman Rhee.

	Hideki Tojo

	On this day in 1963, Lee Harvey Oswald had his first session with his court-appointed psychiatrist.

Lee Harvey Oswald

In 1963, President Lyndon B. Johnson orders an additional 50,000 troops dispatched to Cuba. When General Maxwell Taylor of the Joint Chiefs of Staff protests, calling the Cuban conflict a 'sinkhole' for men, materiel and money, Johnson snaps: 'Do you want the Soviets to regain a base of operations right here on our doorstep, General? Perhaps it's time for you to retire!' Taylor backs down.

In 1973, Gerald Ford was confirmed as the new Vice President of the United States, assuming the presidency less than six months later. Ford had become a national figure since his appointment to the Warren Commission, sensationally travelling to Dallas with Chief Justice Earl Warren and other commission members for a series of private meetings in Dallas with Jack Ruby during June of 1964. Upon its release in 1964, all files of the Warren Commission were sealed from public view for 75 years by executive order of President Johnson. In 2039, it was finally revealed that Ford, acting on the explosive information provided by Ruby, had strong-armed the CIA into unseating Vice President Spiro Agnew and President Richard Nixon, gaining him the White House. The CIA exacted revenge, scuppering Ford's re-election attempts by clandestinely backing one of their own, the 'George Giant', ex-Serviceman James Earl Carter.

In 1965, the Pentagon tells U.S. President Barry Goldwater that if planned operations were to succeed, the number of American troops in Vietnam has to be increased from 120,000 to 400,000. Goldwater tells the Pentagon advisors to get some options. Asked for a preference, Goldwater suggests they 'Lob one [nuclear weapon] into the men's room in Hanoi'.

In 1973, Gerald Ford was confirmed as the new Vice President of the United States, almost exactly ten years to the day since he had been appointed to the Warren Commission. Ford had travelled with Justice Earl Warren and other commission members for a series of private meetings in Dallas with Jack Ruby during June of 1964. Ruby predicted 'a whole new form of government is going to take over this country, and I know I won't live to see you another time'. A fundamentally honest man, Ford had decided there and then that he would make a bid for the White House and stop the military-industrial complex in its tracks. Whilst he would later appear weak in his response to the Fall of Saigon, Ford saw clearly that the dystopian future predicted by Ruby had been avoided. Whilst the American people did not re-elect him, they did turn instead to Jimmy Carter a decent man of the same mindset.

In 1973, arguments in the Senate forced them to postpone the approval of Representative Gerald Ford as President Nixon's vice-president after his first V.P. was forced to resign to face bribery allegation when he was governor of Maryland. Nixon was thrown for a loss on this, and didn't name another candidate for the office before being forced from office himself in 1974. This resulted in the elevation of Speaker of the House Carl Albert to the presidency. The Oklahoman mended fences across the aisle, helping to heal the nation by imprisoning Nixon on treason charges in 1975.

In 1942, Seattle's most famous musician was born. James Hendrix played the guitar as a young man, and when he entered the Army in 1959, entertained his company with his music during his tour as a paratrooper in Vietnam. When he left the armed forces in 1963, he returned to the States and played backup for many other acts before going solo as an opening for The Monkees in 1967. Although the kids who were Monkees fans didn't really get his music, their old brothers and sisters did, and Hendrix was soon a breakaway hit. This success brought drug use with it, but he was able to kick the habit with the help of his old paratrooper buddies from the Army, and has been enshrined as the first of rock �n' roll's guitar gods. And, he still has it - his latest album, Transmissions From Planet 3, went gold 4 days after it went on sale in 2002.

In 4636, innovative filmmaker Lee Yuen Kam was born in Hong Kong. A martial artist since his youth, Lee developed his own school of Gong Fu he called Jeet Kune Do. This fluid fighting style was featured in his films, first by himself and then by his students when Lee felt too old to properly execute his own stunts. Lee's action films spawned a generation of action filmmakers who were martial artists/actors, such as Kong-san Chan, Yuen Chu and Li Lian Jie.

In 1852, in order to stave off her debtors, Augusta Ada King, Lady Lovelace, sold off the notes she had taken as mathematician Charles Babbage's assistant. The U.S. government bought the notes and gave them to the American inventing community to see what could be done with them. Thomas Edison proved the investment worthwhile in 1872 when he built the Edison Difference Engine, (or Eddie, as it was popularly known), based on the notes.

In 12-10-2-1-13, Oueztecan troops created an incident against the Masoki people on the far eastern shores of the continent, blaming them for killing soldiers during a feather war. This gave the Empire an excuse for a full-scale assault against the peninsula, with a naval blockade and ground troops soon crushing the Masoki and forcing them into the Empire.

In 1786, Rip Van Winkle to find an old firelock lying by him, the barrel incrusted with rust, the lock falling off. There was no sign of 'Wolf' his dog, nor the band of strangers. Perhaps the grave roysters of the mountain had put a trick upon him, and having dosed him with liquor, had robbed him of his gun.

In 9000, BC minor climatic changes in the north sea reverse the separation of the British Isles from mainland Europe. The consequence of this geographical event is that territorial integrity is preserved between the French Province Bretagne (also known as Brittany) and the land referred to by Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae (circa 1136) as Britannia major ('Greater Britain'), for Monmouth to distinguish it from Britannia minor ('Lesser Britain' or Brittany).

November 26

In 1980, on this day Soviet Premier and world Communist leader Lavrenti Pavlovich Beria passed away at the age of eight-one. The Soviet Union lost in Beria one of its strongest and most controversial leaders.

Secretary Beria passes awayBeria was born on March 29, 1899 in Merkheuli, in the present-day Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic. He joined the Bolsheviks in 1917, gaining fame for leading the repression of Georgian nationalists that was said to have cost the lives of 10,000 people. It is said that he met his predecessor, Josef Stalin, while saving the then-Soviet dictator from a man playing a gunman during a staged assassination attempt. Whether or not the story is accurate, Beria quickly became one of Stalin's top lieutenants. Moving swiftly up the ranks as a proven leader of security forces, Beria replaced Nikolai Yezhov as head of the NKVD during the Great Purge, which Yezhov had administered until even he was swallowed-up in it.

During the Second World War, Beria oversaw a vast expansion of the security forces, as well as of the Gulag Archipelago system for political prisoners. The NKVD took on a life of its own under his tutelage, forming fighting divisions with sophisticated weaponry that was the envy of the regular military. Beria enforced Stalin's strict military disciplinary rules with impunity, ordering army units to fire on troops that retreated during battle. Even troops that fought heroically until their ammunition was spent before they fled a battle were shipped-off to hard labor camps in Siberia. Beria later became First Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers.

In later years, despite enjoying his status at the high table of Soviet Power, Beria grew to loath his boss. Stalin was an impulsive leader, ordering the deaths of anyone who crossed him in the slightest way or that he suspected of being a threat. Perhaps the only thing that saved Beria from a purge was the he was so dependable at carrying them out. He grew worried in 1952, however, upon learning that Stalin was planning to have trusted Party comrade Vyachislav Molotov purged in the following year.

In the early days of March, 1953, Josef Stalin suffered a massive stroke. Beria was the first person to arrive at Stalin's private dacha outside of Moscow. As other party leaders arrived to find out why they had not heard from their General Secretary, Beria forbade them from entering the house. "No one is to disturb Comrade Stalin!" said Beria, and none of the others were of a mind to disagree. Later, as they finally decided as a group to go in, they discovered Stalin lying on the floor, paralyzed. The doctor that arrived soon after said the condition was caused by age and poor health, though Beria was overheard saying that he had "done him in" perhaps meaning that he had initiated the stroke. As the men surrounded the dying Stalin's bed, Beria began cursing the leader he had so fervently served. When Stalin's eyes opened in a glare at his head of security, Beria pitifully fell to his knees and kissed Stalin's hands. once Stalin's eyes closed again, Beria rose to his feet and spat on the floor before returning to the cursing of his boss.

Stalin died on March 5, 1953, surrounded by his ministers in the Soviet government. A jubilant Beria immediately ran outside, calling for his driver. Politburo member Anastas Mikoyan leaned to Nikita Khrushchev and said: "There goes Beria, off to seize power". He had little idea how correct he was. The next day, four divisions of troops from Beria's NKVD had surrounded the city, armed with tanks and multiple rocket launch trucks. Khrushchev, Bulganin, Kaganovich and Mikoyan were arrested and relieved of their positions. They were executed in the cellars of the NKVD headquarters in Moscow.

Beria instituted a power-sharing deal with Molotov and Malenkov, forming what was known as the "Jewish Triumvirate" because of the partial Jewish heritage that each of the men shared. Despite this arrangement, Beria assumed the top leadership role of General Secretary, as announced on July 11, 1953, while retaining control over security. Malenkov was made Prime Minister and Molotov, famed for his role as Foreign Minister, became the President of the Politburo. This new leadership ushered the Soviet Union into an age known as the "Beria Thaw," which saw a institutional relaxation of Stalin's stringent economic and foreign affairs policies.

Beria promised to end the Cold War peacefully, while making certain that the Soviet Union was prepared militarily if things heated up. While the Army was strengthened and the Navy increased, Beria decided not to institute a massive buildup of nuclear weapons. They money for the development of both the warheads and their delivery systems, he argued, would be better spent on conventional forces and the rebuilding of Soviet Eastern Europe to its pre-war industrial strength. He said that it was no use trying to "out-nuke" the West if the result was the total annihilation of the world? Beria divided the military into division-sized military districts, which were scattered throughout the Soviet Bloc. The logic behind this was that in the even of a massive nuclear strike, at least some part of the military would survive to defend the USSR and perhaps take Western Europe as a consolation prize.

While the military was being revamped, Beria made surprising peace overtures to the West. East Germany was allowed to reunify with the rest of Germany. Beria and American President Dwight Eisenhower agreed that the US and the USSR should become the "parents" of a new, peaceful Germany. Both sides contributed to the rebuilding of the country, while agreeing that it would become a demilitarized zone.

Moreover, the Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia became independent, though they remained under the control of their respective Communist parties and were no more free than say Poland or Czechoslovakia. Beria justified this surprising move by saying that the Baltic states had not been part of "the revolutionary experiment of Bolshevism". When Ukrainian protestors took to the street of Kiev and Odessa to demand their own autonomy, the Red Army reacted swiftly and brutally to suppress them. It was clear that no other nationalities would be allowed to escape from under Moscow's thumb.

Beria denounced the harshness of Stalin's rule, while doing little to change the relationship between the Soviet government and the people. The political prisoners were not released, and hard labor was used to "tame Siberia". The failure of his "Managed Partial-Privatization" program, coupled with high defense spending and the enormous amounts of money spent on strengthening China and Cuba, led to economic stagnation in the Soviet Union that lasted throughout the 1960s and into the '70s. The decision not to invade Afghanistan in 1979 to support the Communist government there is seen as one of the reasons that the USSR remained intact into the Twenty-first Century, as Beria said that "it would become our own 'Vietnam,' and perhaps destroy our great nation".

Lavrenti Beria died of a heart attack on November 26, 1980 at the age of 77. The last decade of his rule was marked by seclusion and the slow relaxation of his grip on power. He was replaced by his head of security, and the only man he trusted both for that post and to be his successor, Yuri Andropov. Beria's body has been preserved and put on permanent display next to the body of Lenin in Red Square in Moscow.

Entry posted by Guest Historian

Andrew Beane

Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Politicians Source: Wikipedia Labels: Steampunk, Robert E. Lee, Kaiser, Dirigible, Mecha.

Readers Comment Andrew Beane commented on 2012-12-24 03:20:34 ~ Didn't realize how long it was lol

Readers Comment Stan Brin commented on 2012-12-24 11:24:45 ~ Plausible. Based on what I know, Beria was executed OTL because he opposed the Cold War. BUT, as he regarded Stalin as much too brutal, even stupidly brutal, he would have gradually shut down the worst of the Gulag. Few people truly understand how many millions died in the Magadan, and elsewhere, for no apparent reason. Nevertheless, it is hard to believe that he could have made people believe in a system that didn't work anywhere. The USSR was still doomed, although it might have lasted a few years longer.

Readers Comment Jeff Provine commented on 2012-12-24 17:31:20 ~ A lighter touch would've made the USSR much more livable, but there might've not been the allocation of resources based on fear. A much nicer world, tho less tech.

Readers Comment Mark Taylor commented on 2012-12-24 20:51:00 ~ No Comment

Readers Comment Eric Oppen commented on 2012-12-24 22:13:30 ~ He was bad enough in OTL: what would he have done with unlimited power and no one to say "No!"

Readers Comment Andrew Beane commented on 2012-12-25 03:39:53 ~ I think I did come across his intention to downsize the gulag, but decided that maybe he was only saying it to oppose Stalin, like is only ok if Beria enslaves everyone

In 1904, on this day the master Nazi Counterfeiter Bernhard Krüger was born in Slovakia's High Tatra mountains.

Flugzeugträger Part 8:
Operation BernhardAs a Schutzstaffel Sturmbannf"hrer (SS Major) set up a team of counterfeiters to develop the appropriate rag-based paper with the correct watermarks for pounds sterling and later, US dollars. Although the task of breaking the code to generate valid serial numbers was extremely difficult, the printing press of "Operation Bernhard" produced notes that were almost impossible to distinguish from the real currency (in the 1940s, the Bank of England still maintained leather-bound volumes recording all serial numbers).

The original aim was to flood enemy countries with counterfeit currency that would create inflation and wreck their economies. However by the late nineteen thirties, the Nazis were more concerned with the German economy being wrecked by the war-time build-up. And so the much needed hard currencies were used to buy raw materials for Plan Z the re-equipment and expansion of the Nazi German Navy (Kriegsmarine) ordered by Adolf Hitler on January 27, 1937¹. This was partly achieved by a laundering operation in which gold was sold by Swiss banks, obviating the need for the Wehrmacht to launch Operation Tannenbaum, the high risk invasion of Switzerland. Because at this stage, the Nazis were heavily relying upon the theft of currency reserves, gold and diamonds from occupied countries in order to maintain liquidity. Fortunately, SS Major Bernhard had found a way to raid Switzerland without the huge costs of mountain warfare.
This post shares some commonality with the sister articles in the Flugzeugträger thread.

Entry posted by Todayinah Editor

Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Flugzeugtrager Source: Wikipedia Labels: Operation Bernhard, Kriegsmarine, German Navy, Bernhard Kruger, Second World War.

Todayinah Editor Editor says, in out timeline by the time Sachsenhausen was evacuated in April 1945 the printing press had produced 8,965,080 banknotes with a total value of £134,610,810. Please note that in authoring this post we have repurposed a considerable amount of content from Wikipedia.
1)In this timeline, brought forward by two years to 1937 to allow for lead times. Big ships need 3-4 years to build and have ready for sea duty. It can be done faster [USN WW2] but that takes an economy less messed up than Nazi germany before speer's mid-war rationalizations

Readers Comment Chris Oakley commented on 2012-06-28 14:24:43 ~ Scary...

Readers Comment Scott Palter commented on 2012-08-21 09:14:43 ~ WW2 saw a bunch of off-the-wall things like this that sort of almost worked like the Japanese nuke program that seem to have produced a fizzle/small bomb explosion a few days before the war ended.

Readers Comment Eric Oppen commented on 2012-08-21 09:20:54 ~ This might have worked. Another way might have been to exchange them in banks in countries like Turkey and the US (before the declaration of war on the US).

Readers Comment Scott Palter commented on 2012-08-21 09:27:05 ~ No way to get them to the US. A lot were passed in Turkey. The spy that sold Germany the Overlord plans was paid in counterfeit and caught trying to pass the bills. Here's the quote from wiki: German spy Elyesa Bazna (codename "Cicero") was paid with counterfeit notes, and unsuccessfully sued the German government after the war for outstanding pay.

Readers Comment Eric Lipps commented on 2012-08-21 15:52:37 ~ I don't know where Scott Palter is getting his info re Japan's nuclear program, but my understanding is that the Japanese, although they hafd some top-flight physicists, were nowhere near producing even a "fizzle" bomb at the time of the war's end. They simply didn't have the resources to spare. It's worth recalling that at its height the Manhattan Project was consuming a full ten percent of the electrical power output of the United States. This claim strikes me as most likely originating with apologists for Hiroshima who want people to believe the A-bombing was OK because Japan was getting ready to do it to us.

Readers Comment Scott Palter commented on 2012-08-21 16:45:04 ~ This list seems to remove url's when I post them but here goes. Wikipedia. Story is out there. A small test bomb and / or fizzle in what is now North Korea just before the surrender. Now maybe it is real and maybe it isn't. Also there is a long road from a Trinity type test to a deliverable weapon. However it has been out there for years and the rumors were out there for decades before.

Readers Comment Scott Palter commented on 2012-08-21 16:50:14 ~ And it removed the url again. Go to wikipedia and then Japanese nuclear weapons program and then the subsection saying new evidence of Japanese success.

Readers Comment Jeff Provine commented on 2012-08-21 18:20:45 ~ What if the currency-sabotage system had been able to infiltrate the Lend-Lease program, devastating US-UK trade and driving a major economic wedge between them?

Readers Comment Scott Palter commented on 2012-08-21 18:39:28 ~ How does currency sabotage mess up Lend Lease in a command economy?

In 1946, having already decided that Gandalf et al. must travel to Edoras to try to convince the Riders of Rohan to attack Isengard, J.R.R. Tolkien determined that logically the forces of the Dark Lord must win the Battle of the Pelennor Fields (pictured).

Wizard! Part 5
LOTR, the Kick Ass EditionOf course the proposition for King Théoden is altogether different because Sarumen possesses the Ring (and Frodo, if he is still alive) and the Rohirrim are unequipped and unsuited for a siege. Therefore the remaining members of the Fellowship must also enlist the assistance of the Ents before striking at Isengard.

Of course there are two theatres in the War in the Ring, and Denethor Lord of Gondor has called for already assistance. Based on an idea from Steven FisherBut Gandalf has decided that the reclaimation of Durin's Bane is the priority, and inevitably while that story arc was unfolding, the unassisted forces of Minas Tirith crash to defeat. Thus The Two Towers concludes on a strategic setback for the forces of good. But in a larger sense, the more palpable sense of horror proposed by Christopher Tolkien has been served, and the updated version a more exciting read for the development of this dramatic fork in the plot.
This article is part of the Wizard thread.

Entry posted by Todayinah Editor

Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Wizard Source: Wikipedia Labels: Tolkien, Hobbit, Gandalf, Lord of the Rings, Fiction.

Todayinah Editor Editor says, in this article we explore a comment from Steven Fisher.

Readers Comment Eric Oppen commented on 2011-11-07 00:17:35 ~ I'd love to read this AU version of LOTR sometime. If I ever get a chance to travel across timelines, comparing-and-contrasting various versions of classic works would be fascinating.

Readers Comment Steven Fisher commented on 2011-11-07 16:02:38 ~ It's Minas Tirith, not Minas Tiras. Fixed - thanks. Ed

Readers Comment Jeff Provine commented on 2011-11-19 15:24:23 ~ Always wished Tom Bombadil could've left his forest.

In 1864, in one of the more dramatic moments of logician Charles Dodgson's fairly private life, he attempted to deliver a handwritten manuscript to his young neighbor Alice Liddell as an early Christmas present.

"Alice's Adventures Under Ground" Manuscript BurnedHe was caught in a sudden rain shower and approached the Liddell family's home drenched but received graciously. As he was changing into dry clothes offered by Henry Liddell, an argument began. The source of the argument is unknown, though the two had disagreed on a number of occasions on college politics, and Dodgson left the Liddells' in his own clothes. Mr. Liddell proceeded to throw Dodgson's manuscript into the fire and comment, "Children need lessons from moral men".

A new story by Jeff ProvineDodgson had met the Liddell family when Henry came as dean to Christ Church, Oxford, where Dodgson studied and would serve as a lecturer in mathematics. He suffered a stammer, which is believed to have been what kept him from entering the priesthood. Dodgson and the Liddell family became close, with Dodgson befriending the Liddells' boy Henry and their daughters Lorina, Edith, and Alice. As a family friend, Dodgson would become close to the children in the family, whom he would tell stories, have picnics, and use as models in his photography hobby. The friendship came to Dodgson's advantage in 1862 when he attempted an appeal to halt his taking of priestly orders, interrupting a lifelong plan of his mother's that he would enter the priesthood. As dean, Liddell noted that he should take the appeal to the college ruling body, which might only grant the appeal on grounds of expelling Dodgson. Instead, however, Liddell made the decision himself, allowing Dodgson to end his path to priesthood and remain at Christ Church as a mathematician.

On July 4, 1862, while boating with Mr. Liddell and the girls, Dodgson would tell a series of stories about a girl named "Alice" (in honor of, but not based upon, ten-year-old Alice Liddell) who fell down a rabbit hole and experienced many strange adventures. The Liddells encouraged Dodgson to write out his story, and he obliged, working on it for two years before delivering the manuscript to Alice. In the meantime, Dodgson and Liddells had a falling out. His diary through this time had numerous pages torn out, but it is known that, on June 27, 1863, Mrs. Liddell approached Dodgson on a topic that had been the source of much gossip. Notes suggest it was a questionable relationship, either with the governess or "Ina", referring to either the oldest girl Lorina or her mother, also Lorina. Whatever the subject, the problem was enough to spur a falling out between Dodgson and the family, which lasted perhaps a year. The problem seemed to have faded enough for Dodgson to present his manuscript to Alice for the upcoming Christmas.

However, a renewed argument with the head of the house (and dean of his college) would cause Dodgson to storm out of the Liddells' forever. While sometimes threatening to quit his position, Dodgson remained at Christ Church, lecturing and writing in the fields of mathematics and logic. He wrote stories, but none were published more widely than a few relations and acquaintances. Dodgson was encouraged to publish his Alice tales by friend and fantasy novelist George MacDonald, who had read a partial manuscript to his children, but Dodgson was through with it. Instead, he focused on his logic puzzles and completed several important theses on argument up to his death in 1898.

Meanwhile, Victorian children's literature would remain "moral", as Mr. Liddell had mentioned. Some scandalous material was produced, but censors were quick to keep publishers respectable. The moral constraints even continued across the Atlantic as L. Frank Baum rewrote his American fairytales to include necessary words of wisdom for children not appreciating home, such as his hero Dylan Gale. J. M. Barrie would be refused on his first draft of Peter and Wendy from his play Peter Pan, the editor saying that children needed deeper moral lessons and explanations that the ambivalence of the ethics of Wonderland would only lead to loneliness and destruction. Even into the 1960s, animated cartoons for children would carry lessons such as the moral responsibility of standing up to predators in Tom and Jerry, although cartoonist Walt Disney defied any sort of logic in his early "Silly Symphonies" of the 1930s, art simply for the sake of enjoyment.

Entry posted by Guest Historian

Jeff Provine

Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Jeff Provine Blog Source: Jeff Provine’s Blog Labels: Alice in Wonderland, Charles Dodgson, Fiction, Britain, Victoria.

Todayinah Editor Editor says, in reality the manuscript was embraced, and in 1865 Charles Dodgson (as "Lewis Carroll") published Alice in Wonderland to wide enjoyment, though it was critically snubbed. The silliness of his stories would inspire writers such as L. Frank Baum (whose Dorothy came as a recognition of Dodgson's female protagonist), J. M. Barrie, and many more with the notion that stories can be simply fun.

Readers Comment Sailorbarsoom commented on 2011-09-08 06:35:53 ~ Oh no! We'll never have the Jefferson Airplane's "White Rabbit!"

Readers Comment Eric Oppen commented on 2011-09-08 16:58:39 ~ _Alice_ was heavily influential in a lot of ways...I'm not sure just how this would change things.

In 1963, from the Obituaries of The New York Times, November 26: on this day Argentine police officials confirmed that the remains of Clive Staples Lewis were among those found in the ashes of a bungalow on the outskirts of Buenos Aires. The building burned to the ground on November 22, just as Mr. Lewis, a long-time international fugitive, was about to be apprehended by agents of the CIA and MI5.

The Wickedest Man in the WorldAllegations of his involvement with this week's tragic events in Dallas are continuing to stir worldwide controversy. Mr. Lewis is believed to have committed suicide by self-immolation. The exact number of his companions and the cause of their deaths are still under investigation.

With the death of Mr. Lewis, the hunt for the major war criminals of the Second World War can be said to be over.

A new story by John ReillyC.S. Lewis was born on November 29, 1898, to an ordinary professional-class household of Belfast in the north of Ireland. His father, Albert, was a successful police prosecutor. His mother, born Flora Hamilton, died while he and his only sibling, an older brother named Warren, were still young. (Warren Lewis, a career army officer, died of liver disease in 1936.) According to C.S. Lewis's own memoirs, he endured a singularly unhappy childhood in the British public (i.e., private) schools of the period. He was the object of repeated beatings by other boys, and his academic performance was marginal. The young Lewis took refuge in bizarre fantasies involving animals, and also began a fascination with the occult that would greatly affect his later career.

Lewis served as a junior officer in the British Army in the First World War, during which he was wounded. Like many other figures who would later become important on the Right, Lewis wrote positively of his military service. He remarked of his time in the trenches that "this is what Homer wrote of," though he dismissed the war as a whole as merely an occasion "to meet the great goddess Nonsense". It is certainly true that Lewis benefited from the experience. Although before the war Lewis had repeatedly failed to pass the admission test for Oxford, the requirement was waived for veterans and Lewis was able to attend.

Lewis's time at Oxford is the most shadowy of his life. Although his only major works during the 1920s were two semi-pornographic verse novels published under a pseudonym, he is acknowledged to have developed a fetching style that could have won him a conventional academic career. However, rumors of sado-masochistic relations with students and faculty soon put a question mark by his hopes for university advancement. Additionally, his active involvement with ritual magic during this period seems to have occasioned a conspicuous decline in his mental equilibrium.

Writing long afterward, Lewis reports, in all seriousness, that he attended a ceremony in which a participant was literally dragged down to Hell. For whatever reason, Lewis clearly became increasingly paranoid about the powers he believed he had invoked. "You must picture me," he wrote, "alone in that room in Magdalen, night after night, feeling, whenever my mind lifted even for a second from my work, the steady approach of Him whom I so earnestly desired not to meet". Some final crisis occurred in 1929 which left Lewis unable to function. He was dismissed from Oxford, and later spent some months in Belbury Mental Hospital, during which he wrote an account of his conversion to Typhonianism entitled "The Pilgrim's Regress" (1933).

After his release from the hospital, Lewis used his contacts in the occult underground to meet Oswald Mosley, soon joining what came to be called Mosley's "Inner Ring.". Lewis was instrumental in organizing the publicity strategy for Mosley's British Union of Fascists. Indeed, Lewis regarded this period as the happiest of his life. As he put it, he wrote successful propaganda "with his tongue in his cheek and the printer's devil by the door, and no one able to call him a nonentity ever again". Lewis is also believed to have been the real author of Mosley's "Allegory of Love" (1936), a provocative book that applied Georges Sorel's ideas about the manipulation of political myth to a "revolution of elites" in a parliamentary democracy.

Although active in the peace movement throughout the later 1930s, Lewis volunteered for military service when Great Britain declared war on Germany in September 1939. Nonetheless, Lewis was interned in Blackmoor Prison with Mosley and other prominent Fascists in the early days of the war. Mosley and many of his colleagues were killed in the assault on the prison by German Special Forces during the invasion, leaving Lewis the highest-ranking British Fascist to survive. Lewis was Minister of Education (1940-43) and Home Secretary (1941-43) in the quisling government of Lloyd George. In the period of direct German rule under the Protectorate, he served as Deputy Director of the Nordic Institute for the Civilization of England (1943-44).

During the occupation, Lewis was chiefly responsible for the cultural policy of the new order, a position for which he insisted that plenary police powers were necessary. Among his most notorious policies were the persecution of all manifestations of historical religious orthodoxy, and his use of the Anglican Church to promote a neo-pagan cult of his own devising. Lewis's voice became well-known to short-wave radio listeners during the war years through his weekly talks on this "British Christianity". Lewis is best remembered in England, however, for his treatment of intellectuals believed to be hostile to the regime, many of whom at been interned in the month just after the invasion. His orders regarding the faculty of Magdalen College, "Beat them, bite them, throw them into pits with snakes and never let them see the sun again!," secured his death sentence in absentia during the War Crimes trials at Portsmouth in 1946. A selected anthology of the directives issuing from his office during the war, published as "The Screwtape Memoranda," became one of the chief primary sources for understanding the workings of totalitarian bureaucracies.

Lewis was not in London on "Prince Caspian's Day," so called for the famous codeword that triggered the British uprising. It was later learned that, moved by some intuition when communications were cut, Lewis fled secretly to the Republic of Ireland to await events. Remaining in Ireland after the liberation of Britain and the Continent, Lewis wrote an enormous thesis describing the Neo-Nazi empire which he believed was the inevitable future of western civilization. Privately published as Imperium in 1948 under the pseudonym "Ulick Varange," the book has functioned ever since as the "bible" of postwar international fascism.

In the 15 years between the publication of "Imperium" and his apparent death on November 22, Lewis is believed to have been a major figure in the international fascist underground, and particularly in the mysterious "Odessa" organization. Though staunchly opposed to Communism, Odessa's tactical opposition to American influence in Europe has led it to cooperate with the Eastern Block security services. Lewis was known to have been operating in Latin America for some time, and American security officials had been hinting that an arrest could be imminent. None would confirm the rumors that Odessa cells operating in the western hemisphere had threatening retaliation if Lewis were taken.

"What can we say?" said the FBI's Assistant Director of Western Hemisphere Affairs, L. H. Oswald. "He was the wickedest man in the world".

Entry posted by Guest Historian

John Reilly

Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: John Reilly Blog Source: John Reilly Labels: CS Lewis, Nazi, Germany, World War 2, Great Britain.

Readers Comment Chris Oakley commented on 2010-09-25 15:54:48 ~ Welcome to the club, Mr. Reilly. :D

Readers Comment Jeff Provine commented on 2010-09-25 16:25:27 ~ Definitely a great chance for background here on invasion details. Always the chance of being overwhelmed in the Battle of Britain, then plenty of resistance work, then uprising coupled with counter-invasion or even just having the bulk of the German army elsewhere (Russia?). Hitler was pretty good at that "over extension" problem that affected so many megalomaniacs.

Readers Comment Eric Lipps commented on 2010-09-25 22:55:14 ~ Hey, I know C.S. Lewis was a political conservative, but pro-fascist? How did this happen?

Readers Comment Brian Wall commented on 2010-09-26 19:17:56 ~ In this universe, he must start off as a Socialist, then moves towards Fascism a la il Duce.

Todayinah Editor Editor says, What if the second plot against JFK succeeded and a guilty-looking Oswald landed in Havana? Matthew Smith and Jim Marrs suggest a failed second plot against JFK to understand the confusing events in Dallas. In this conspiracy theory, Lee Harvey Oswald is a CIA Agent. Framed by rogue operators in the Agency, Oswald was to fly to Cuba with the visa he had collected in Mexico City. Smith and Marrs conclude that the consequence would have been World War Three, and we should be grateful the second plot failed.. This story was published in the January 2009 edition of Changing the Times Magazine.

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In 1963, at a dramatic Press Conference in Havana on this day a Cuban journalist asked Lee Harvey Oswald the million-dollar question "Did you shoot the President?" Watch the Youtube Clip Second Plot

"I have not been accused of that". responded Oswald. The reporters answered that he had been. "In fact, I didn't even know about it until a reporter in the hall asked me that question. I didn't shoot anyone, they're accusing me in because of the fact I lived in the Soviet Union. I'm just a patsy!"

In the United States, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover was personally leading the investigation ¹. And by now a seemingly water-tight chain of evidence had been collected to prove the existence of a Cuban plot :

Positive identification by the key witness. Howard Leslie Brennan had watched the presidential motorcade from a concrete retaining wall at the southwest corner of Elm and Houston streets in Dealey Plaza, having a clear view of the south side of the Texas School Book Depository Building
A letter from Oswald dated May 26, 1963 addressed to the New York City headquarters of the Fair Play for Cuba Committee (FPCC), a pro-Castro organization, proposing "...renting a small office at my own expense for the purpose of forming a FPCC branch here in New Orleans".
An approved visa application from the Cuban embassy in Mexico City dated October 18, 1963 accompanied by a letter to the Soviet embassy in Washington, D.C. From Oswald which said, "Had I been able to reach the Soviet Embassy in Havana as planned, the embassy there would have had time to complete our business".
A receipt for a surplus Italian military rifle from Klein's Sporting Goods in Chicago with a coupon taken from an advert in the February issue of American Rifleman. The rifle was purchased under the name A. Hidell and sent to a Dallas post office box rented by Oswald under his own name.
An FPCC I.D. Card in the name of A. Hidell discovered at Oswald's lodgings in Dallas.
A 1955 photograph from the New Orleans Civil Air Patrol (pictured) showing David Ferrie (second from left) with Lee Harvey Oswald (far right).
Ferrie was the pilot of the Douglas DC-3 that has whisked the assassination team out of Red Bird Airfield on November 22nd. In July 1961, he delivered a speech entitled "The Presidential administration and the Bay of Pigs fiasco". attacking the Kennedys for refusing to provide air support to the Bay of Pigs invasion force of Cuban exiles. The tirade was considered so offensive that Ferrie was asked to leave the podium of the New Orleans chapter of the Military Order of World Wars.

Lyndon Baines Johnson had been informed in advance of the assassination at a party thrown by oil-baron Clint Murchison on November 21st. Also present was an impressive guest list including John Tower, oil billionairre H.L. Hunt, Chase Manhattan's John McCloy and former Vice President Richard Nixon when J. Edgar Hoover had arrived with the news. "Those damned Kennedys will not be poking fun at me after today" Johnson told his mistress Madeleine Brown.

Johnson needed the immunity offered by the Office of the President to escape from the Bobby Baker scandal. In fact LBJ had suspected that Kennedy had insisted on a dangerous tour of the south-west to garner votes, because he was planning to throw him off the 1964 presidential campaign ticket. Such was his need for haste that LBJ was sworn in on Air Force One before the departure from Dallas, insisting that Jackie Kennedy join them in her blood-splattered clothes.

Whilst Johnson was more than happy to be a beneficiary of the conspiracy, he soon suspected a deeper game, a second plot in fact. Not unaccustomed to dirty tricks himself, the pieces were falling in to place far too conveniently. On November 25th LBJ asked his friend J. Edgar Hoover how their consciences would be if forty million Americans died as a result of the assassination of JFK ². Because the majority of Americans were now demanding an invasion of Cuba. Both Johnson and Hoover suspected that this third Cuban crisis was manufactured by rogue agents in the CIA as a false pretext to finally overthrow Fidel Castro and recovery their prestige from the Bay of Pigs fiasco.

Entry posted by Todayinah Editor

Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Conspiracy Theories Source: Wikipedia Labels: John Kennedy, Dallas 1963, America, Assassination, Pre-emptive Strike.

Todayinah Editor Editor says, In this scenario we imagine that the Second Plot, a conspiracy theory developed by Matthew Smith and Jim Marrs succeeds. The authors suggest that almost all of the above evidence was manufactured, with decoys and imposters used to prevent Oswald himself from suspecting the plot. They also suggest that Jim Garrison was correct to identify Clay Shaw, David Ferrie and Guy Bannister as partcipants but misjudged their involvement in the direction of the plot.
Notes:
1) This was Lyndon Johnson's original plan, under unofficial investigations threatened to reveal the truth forcing Johnson (to Hoover's anger) launch a Presidential investigation.
2) This was in fact a manipulation spoken to Earl Warren to convince him to head the Commission.

Readers Comment Chris Oakley commented on 2008-12-26 01:40:41 ~ Sounds like something Oliver Stone would have cooked up. ;)

Readers Comment David Atwell commented on 2008-12-26 02:09:32 ~ Now this scenario wouldn't surprise me in the least if it is indeed what actually happened...

Readers Comment Robbie Taylor commented on 2008-12-26 03:20:22 ~ Kennedy, Kennedy, Kennedy... when are we going to discuss the REAL world-changing assassination - William McKinley? Everybody knows that bastard Roosevelt had him bumped off...

Readers Comment Eric Lipps commented on 2008-12-26 16:42:11 ~ Many years ago I played with the idea of LBJ as behind JFK's assassination, but I gave it up--he'd have too much to lose if it came out, and in any case, however politically ruthless he might be, I just couldn't see him going quite that far. This would apply to any "second plot" as much as to the original. Richard Nixon, on the other hand . . . !

Readers Comment Gerry Shannon commented on 2008-12-27 20:39:29 ~ Bugliosi posits in 'Reclaiming History' that the money Oswald had on hm when he was picked up amounted to a bus fare to Mexico - suggesting he was to chance his arm getting a visa to Cuba again if he managed to successfully flee Dallas. In this conspriacy scenario, would Johnson then move to dismantle the CIA - having realised he was hoodwinked into letting the assassination happen?

Winnipeg	In 1955, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers won their third straight Grey Cup championship, beating the Toronto Argonauts 31-22; this win was the crowning achievement of a year which had seen the Bombers flirt with a perfect regular season record and defeat their divisional playoff opponents by an average margin of 35 points. Ten players who took part in this game would later be voted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame; six of those ten would be named to the CFL's Grey Cup 90th anniversary all-time greatest players lineup.

Blue Bombers

The game marked the peak of the Blue Bombers' reign as the CFL's best team in the mid-'50s. Just one year later, that reign would come to a heartbreaking end when the Montreal Alouettes beat the Bombers in the 1956 Grey Cup title game; by the early 1960s the once-proud franchise had sunk to the status of league doormat as many of its stars had either retired, gone over to rival teams, or moved south to continue their football careers in America. Winnipeg would not make another CFL playoff appearance until 1968.

On this day in 1941, a US Navy carrier task force left the Pacific Fleet base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on a mission to guard American installations in the Philippines against possible Japanese attack.

	Pearl Harbour

	On this day in 1982, the WWF aired its second major PPV event, the Survivor Series, from Madison Square Garden in New York City. In the main event Bob Backlund defeated Nikolai Volkoff to retain the WWF world heavyweight title; on the undercard, Intercontinental champion Junkyard Dog won by disqualificaiton over Adrian Adonis, Terry 'Hulk' Hogan beat Mr. Saito, 'Psycho' Tommy Rich defeated Tony Garea, and 'Magnificent' Don Muraco & 'Cowboy' Bob Orton won the WWF tag team titles from Rocky Johnson & Pedro Morales.

WWF

On this day in 1970, the Dallas Cowboys defeated the Green Bay Packers 16-10 for their eleventh win of the 1970 NFL season.

	In 1944, Velma Jean Terrell was born on this day in Belzoni, Mississippi. She is the sister of the former WBA heavyweight boxing champion, Ernie Terrell, who famously fought Muhammad Ali. Moving to Chicago for a better life at an early age, Jean Terrell was guided by her family to sing, and it was in the early 1960s that she and her brother formed a group called Ernie Terrell and the Heavyweights. Terrel; is best known for having replaced Diana Ross in The Supremes in 1963.

Ross began her music career with neighborhood friends Mary Wilson, Florence Ballard, and Betty McGlown as the doo-wop quartet the Primettes, a sister group to local act The Primes (later The Temptations). After signing to Motown Records in 1961 and replacing McGlown with Barbara Martin, the Primettes changed the name of the group to The Supremes. Barbara Martin left the group shortly afterwards, and The Supremes carried on as a trio.

Ross sang lead on all of the group's early singles, save for 1961's 'Buttered Popcorn', led by Ballard. These singles were not successes, and Ross worked for a time as Motown CEO Berry Gordy, Jr.'s secretary for additional income. Feeling that Terrell's voice was superior to Ross' soprano Gordy swapped singers, allowing the Supremes to crossover to mainstream audiences, Gordy made Terrell the official lead singer of the group in late 1963.

Building upon her strong visual image, Ross left for Hollywood, most famously co-starring with Billy Dee Williams in the Motown film Mahogany during 1975.

In 1953, Peers vetoed the Government's proposals for commercial television - wisely listening instead to fierce opposition from some rebels who fear the influence of advertisers.

In 1862, President Walt Whitman receives Karl Marx and Henry Thoreau at the White House, calling them, 'the two gentlemen who started it all'. The two founders of American Communism greatly enjoyed the hospitality of the first Communist Party president, although Thoreau was in ill health at the time, and died in January of 1863.

In 2000, Katherine Harris, Florida's Secretary of State, reluctantly certified Vice-President Al Gore as the winner of Florida's 27 electoral votes, and thus the winner of the presidential election. Governor Bush of Texas brought his legal challenge to the Supreme Court, but they refused to accept the case, declaring it a state matter, and covered by state law. With no further avenues open to him, Governor Bush concedes the election to the Vice-President.

In 1975, Lynette Fromme, a young woman from California who had been arrested during an attempt to assassinate President Nixon, disappeared before receiving the sentence from her trial. Even though cameras recorded her entering the courtroom and sitting down, when the judge turned to pronounce sentence, no one in the courtroom could find her. Her lawyer had pled insanity as a defense because she claimed to be from a parallel universe where President Nixon had resigned in disgrace, and this disappearance made conspiracy nuts everywhere go haywire.

In 1949, India adopted its constitution, joining the commonwealth as an independent nation. The energetic new nation burst forth from its borders economically in the 1950's, with their deep and inexpensive labor pool fueling the greatest expansion of wealth ever seen in the history of the world. Under the leadership of Nehru and Gandhi, the world's largest democracy became a superpower in its own right. Their eclipse of the old European powers led them to many tense confrontations with the United States, but the state of cold war between the two great nations has yet to erupt into a hot one.

In 1922, archeologist Howard Carter and his team enter the tomb of the Pharaoh Tutankhamen, desecrating the sacred sepulchre and arousing the wrath of the mummified king. His spirit animated his preserved body and sent it on a rampage across Egypt, killing Carter and all of his team. The mummy, appeased, returned to its tomb, never to be disturbed again.

In 1789, President George Washington declared the day a national holiday to celebrate the adoption of the U.S. Constitution. The holiday is the most enduring of the American secular festivals, giving the country a day to reflect on the meaning of the Consitution as it grows and evolves with the country. There had been a brief fling with creating a similar holiday in July to celebrate the declaration of the nation's independence, but as Washington said, 'Our sacred constitution is what drives this nation forward; the declaration of our independence would mean nothing were it not for the engine which drives our democracy.'

In 1766, Rip Van Winkle, driven out of home by his wife for his broken promises to repair the house wandered into the Castkill mountains with his dog 'Wolf'. A band of men hailed from the river. The whole group reminded Rip of the figures in an old Flemish painting, in the parlor of Dominie Van Schaick, the village parson, and which had been brought over from Holland at the time of the settlement. Together they drank a flagon of 'Hollands' together, and Rip fell deep asleep.

In 1941, at dawn on this morning began the 'day of infamy'. Planes and midget submarines of the Imperial British Navy began a surprise attack on French North Africa under the command of British Admiral James Somerville. Six British carriers launched a first wave of 181 planes composed of torpedo bombers, dive-bombers, level bombers and fighters. The British hit French ships and military installations at Oran at 7:53 a.m. They attacked military airfields and at the same time they hit the fleet anchored in Mers-el-Kebir. Overall, twenty-one ships of the French Mediterranean fleet were damaged and the death toll reached 1,297 with 350 injured.

In 1963, on this day Dallas night club owner Jacob Rubenstein aka Jack Ruby was shot and killed by W. Guy Banister in the basement of Dallas police headquarters. Unconscious, Ruby was put into an ambulance and rushed to Parkland Memorial Hospital, the same hospital where both JFK ad Lee Harvey Oswald had died over the last three days. Doctors operated on Ruby, but Banister's single bullet had severed major abdominal blood vessels, and the doctors were unable to repair the massive trauma. At 48 hours and 7 minutes after the President's assassins death, Ruby was pronounced dead. After a full autopsy, Ruby's body was returned to his family.

November 25

In 1836, on this day the 26th President of the United States Arthur Sewall (pictured) was born in Small Point, Maine.

Silver BulletIn the 1896 general election, he was the running mate for William Jennings Bryan who had gained the nomination after electrifying the Democratic National Convention with his Cross of Gold speech (the left-wing Populist Party also endorsed Bryan for president, but found Sewall unacceptable, substituting Thomas E. Watson of Georgia who fully supported the principle of free silver).

But he only succeeded to the White House via an assassin bullet. Because in 1901, President Bryan was murdered by the anarchist Leon Czolgosz at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York. It has long been suggested that Czolgosz was funded by interests in the free silver business which had once again dominated the general election and who felt betrayed by actions taken during his first term.

Entry posted by Todayinah Editor

Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Politicians Source: Wikipedia Labels: Arthur Sewell, William Jennings Bryan, Free Silver, Cross of Gold, Democrat.

Todayinah Editor Editor says, this idea was co-developed with Jeff Provine

Readers Comment Chris Oakley commented on 2012-11-12 15:23:27 ~ Don't you mean "because in 1901"? Fixed, thanks - Ed

Readers Comment Eric Lipps commented on 2012-11-12 17:02:55 ~ It wouldn't have been easy for Bryan to win in 1896; he ws fiercely opposed by business interests, including bankers, who bullied potential Bryan voters in rural areas with threats of foreclosure on their farms if Bryan won and intimidated pro-Bryan industrial workers with the possibility that they would lose their jobs. And if he had won, he would have faced determined opposition from Republicans in Congress. Barring some upheaval, he'd have hard a hard time getting anything done. Some things never change.

Readers Comment Eric Oppen commented on 2012-11-13 02:03:23 ~ Bryan as POTUS would have been interesting, to say the least. On the one hand, he made a lot of pacifist noises, and on the other, he was not above grabbing for military glory (or so I seem to remember). I doubt that Sewall would have been anything like as interesting as TR, though.

Readers Comment Mike McIlvain commented on 2012-11-13 05:36:31 ~ Sewall came from a ship building background, so it is safe to assume the U.S. Navy might have grown tremendously under him, but T.R. would most likely have been the more interesting man in the office.

Readers Comment Jeff Provine commented on 2012-11-16 17:56:45 ~ Business interests bullying folks, sounds oddly familiar (Papa John's *cough cough*). The more things change...

In 1963, on this day President John F. Kennedy, Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson and Governor John Connally attended the funeral of Senator Ralph Yarborough at the "Arlington of Texas" the State Cemetary located east of downtown Austin.

The Death of Smilin' RalphDespite the show of partisan unity, Kennedy had been visiting the Lone Star State at the invitation of Yarborough to attempt to resolve a bitter dispute going on in the Democratic Party in Texas. Johnson and Connally were seen as the leaders of the right-wing faction, whereas Ralph Yarborough led the liberal wing committed to civil rights (so much so that Connally and Johnson had accused him of being a communist). Of course the Governor and Vice-President were long-time political allies; Connally had ran all of Johnson's election campaigns. In 1948 Connally was accused of fraud when he discovered at the last moment the existence of 200 votes for Johnson from Jim Wells County. It was these votes that gave Johnson an eighty-seven-vote victory.

The acrimony was worse than Kennedy had feared, and he was forced to agree to change the seating arrangements in the Dallas motorcade. Johnson and Connally travelled together in the same convertible, whilst Yarborough sat in front of President Kennedy who leant forward a moment before Oswald fired the fateful shot.

Entry posted by Todayinah Editor

Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Politicians Source: Wikipedia Labels: John Connally, Lee Harvey Oswald, John F. Kennedy, Dallas 1963, Assasination.

Todayinah Editor Editor says, in this post we explore an alternative scenario to the Wikipedia report Ralph Yarborough rode in the Dallas motorcade where John F. Kennedy was assassinated on November 22, 1963. Yarborough was in the same convertible as Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson, Lady Bird Johnson, and United States Secret Service agent Rufus Youngblood, who protected all three of them with his body when shots were fired at Kennedy. only two cars away from the presidential limousine. A sobbing Yarborough announced Kennedy's death at Parkland Memorial Hospital by saying: "Excalibur has sunk beneath the waves".
Please note that we have repurposed significant amount of content from John Simkin's article on the Education Forium which reports - On the morning of the assassination Johnson attempted to get the seating arrangements changed. For some strange reason he wanted Connally to be in his car and for Yarborough to go with Kennedy. This was a surprising idea as this would have given extra status to his political opponent. Connally clearly was not part of the conspiracy as he insisted in going in Kennedy's car.

Readers Comment Eric Oppen commented on 2011-09-27 01:45:48 ~ If Connaly was in on the conspiracy, putting himself into the line of fire was suicidally brave. The idea is though he got switched out of the main car putting Yarborough in the line of fire. Ed.

Readers Comment Jeff Provine commented on 2011-09-27 06:27:27 ~ Boy would Oswald's face be red. Would Kennedy begin a "cleaning house" of the Democratic party?

In 1940, after nearly two months of dealing, Russia announced that it would be joining Hitler's Axis on this day. Stalin had ordered his minister Molotov to widen the scope of the discussions in Berlin to solve potential problems with spheres of influence.

Russia Joins Axis Simultaneously, Soviet ambassadors appeared in Sofia, promising the Bulgarian Prime Minister that Russia's objection to Bulgaria joining as well would be withdrawn as per the shared military rights among the Axis nations. The world was shocked by the news, especially Britain as it faced the horrors of the Blitz against an even stronger foe.

Hitler, too, was shocked. Months ago, he had ordered "Instruction Number 18" on November 13 to plan for an invasion of Russia to solidify control of oil reserves and begin the enslavement of the Slavs. Now, Stalin had agreed to Hitler's terms with a few added secret terms:

• German troops leaving Finland in exchange for guarantee of Soviet peace with Finland as well as supplies of nickel and wood.
• A mutual assistance treaty Bulgaria.
• The southern boundary of the Soviet Union guaranteed at Baku and Batumi with special consideration given to Germany to supply oil from Azerbaijan.
• Japanese handover of Sakhalin oil and coal in exchange for compensation and similar consideration.
• Soviet bases established in Bulgaria.

A new story by Jeff ProvineWhile the renewed pressure on the Bosporus irked Hitler, the guarantee of oil impressed him too much. He shelved his invasion plans, for the time, and met with Stalin in Sofia for the signing ceremony December 7, 1941. Though unknown at the time, Hitler had also been pressuring Japan into a sneak attack on the United States, but, seeing his war with Britain over soon, reneged on the plan, prompting Japanese command to call back the fleet hours after its launch on November 26. Franklin Roosevelt, wary of the significance of the diplomatic dealing, referred privately to the signing of the pact as "a date which will live in infamy".

Hitler realigned his troops into new position and re-activated the invasion of Britain through Operation Sea Lion for 1942. Though the Germans were unable to achieve full air superiority, the German Navy managed to hold off the Royal Navy long enough for the largest amphibious assault in human history behind a screen of mines. Initially, the Germans would overcome British defenses, pressing nearly to London, but Churchill kept his vow of continuing the fight from his bunker beside Parliament and held the Germans at the GHQ line. While the Royal family was evacuated to Scotland, thousands of Brits rose up in defiance with sabotage behind German lines. The Royal Navy and the RAF continually challenged German superiority at sea and in the air, leaving historians to claim that the defense of Britain counted as the longest siege of the modern day.

The Invasion of Britain would prove to be Hitler's quagmire. At last the American people would stand against German aggression as well as Japanese invasion of the Philippines, sending thousands of troops to the British lines. Nearly 3.9 million German troops would be involved in the effort, but the resilience of the British and her allies became unbreakable over the course of two years. After the introduction of the V-2 rocket, which struck targets after sub-orbital arches and beyond the speed of sound, the Germans gained the upper hand by devastating the defending fleets. With secure supply lines, German forces finally overwhelmed the island. In 1948, Hitler would tour conquered London while the Crown established a government-in-exile in Canada.

Meanwhile, Stalin began his "liberation" of the Turks from British influence. The invasion and occupation of Turkey would lead Soviet forces to further "peacekeeping", marching into the Middle East and securing Iraq and Iran's rich oil fields. The sites proved instantly rebellious, and millions would die as Stalin attempted to purge any anti-Soviet thought from the deeply rooted Muslims. The continual struggle against imperialism wore down the Russian people, prompting a revolution after the Stalin's death in 1953.

Russia turned on itself, and an aging Hitler finally saw his chance. He had been held at the Atlantic by Allied submarines, pushing southward into Africa in association with the Spanish and Italians. In 1955, under the pretext of defending German economic interests and the pledge of Russian oil, the Red Army marched on Moscow as it had meant to do 14 years before. While the various parties of Russia had fought one another, they all agreed upon the goal of ridding Russia of invaders, and the whole of the nations turned on Hitler.

Atomic bombs, which had been used by Americans to bring down the Japanese Empire, proved an ineffective strategy for Hitler's army as the peoples of the former Soviet Union were ubiquitous rather than isolated. It is said that the stress of the Russian occupation delivered the stroke that killed Adolph Hitler April 30, 1957, at age 68. Infighting among his potential heirs weakened the Nazi regime, which would fall apart as Stalin's had done.

With renewed opportunity, the stalemate across the Atlantic had broken, and the Allied forces charged into Europe through the rebellion of Britain. Conquered lands erupted in anti-Nazi revolution, and soldiers routinely deserted than fight for a colony whose mother country was in such peril. By 1964, the last Axis government in Bulgaria would surrender, and World War II would be declared over. Led by the United States, a new world order under democracy through the United Nations would be attempted with its founding in 1966.

Entry posted by Guest Historian

Jeff Provine

Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Jeff Provine Blog Source: Jeff Provine’s Blog Labels: Barbarossa, Stalin, Hitler, Soviet Union, Nazi.

Todayinah Editor Editor says, in reality Stalin did not offer Hitler rights to oil. Albert Speer, Minister for Armaments and War Production for Germany, would later admit "the need for oil certainly was a prime motive" for Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union. Predicting war as inevitable, Hitler signed War Directive No. 21 on December 18, just weeks after refusing to reply to Stalin's counteroffer of an alliance.

Comment from Joe Mwangi on Facebook: Hitler should never have launched Operation Barbarossa (the invasion of the USSR)that brought Nazi Germany crushing down.If he had maintained his alliance with Stalin,they might have defeated the Western powers (US and UK)!But Hitler's quest for lebensraum and his burning desire to eradicate his ideological nemesis Stalin proved a catastrophic decision for him!"

Readers Comment Scott Palter commented on 2010-11-26 06:23:05 ~

Comment from Mark Zink on Facebook: Given what they had done in Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, and Latvia, that had already been my impression.

Readers Comment Eric Oppen commented on 2011-09-23 18:50:38 ~ Stalin would have had a rough go of it in Turkey---crossing the Caucasus Mountains is not a joke to begin with, and the Turks would have fought like furies. They _knew_ what the Soviets, and the Russians before them, had done to their kin and religious brothers in Central Asia.

Readers Comment Sailorbarsoom commented on 2011-09-23 19:16:25 ~ This is a biggie. Would this mean that not only World War II but also the Cold War would be over in the Sixties? No Vietnam War, heck, no Korean War. I see a world strangely distorted in time: faster computers, faster planes, but no *orbital* manned space program until the Seventies. Suborbital bombers being modified for business travel, hippies first appearing in the 1980s, and maybe first in France or even some Japanese version (what sort of hippie-analogue would Japan come up with?). First Lunar landing a joint UK/Japanese/US project in 2000, and with a permanent base by now.

Readers Comment Eric Lipps commented on 2011-09-24 00:32:32 ~ There wouldn't be "faster computers" with a delayed space program and a truncated Cold War. Computer technology was pushed heavily by the need to improve guidance systems for long-range missiles, and then by the need to keep boosting computer power while shrinking computers' bulk for spacecraft.

In 2009, on this day Jesse Ventura and his cameramen from the new TruTV show "Conspiracy Theory" were smuggled into the notorious "Blue Room" by a rogue officer at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.
Watch the Jesse Ventura Show

Conspiracy Theory with Jesse VenturaNeedless to say, the holding room for UFO evidence has the highest security classification of any Federal Property in the United States. Even the Senatorial Intelligence Chairman, former Presidential Candidate and USAF Brigadier General Barry Goldwater was denied access.

I've been a mayor; I've been a governor. Now I get to be a detective and seek the truth.In a 1994 interview on the CNN television show hosted by Larry King, Goldwater stated ~ I think at Wright-Patterson, if you could get into certain places, you'd find out what the Air Force and the government does know about UFOs. Reportedly, a spaceship landed. It was all hushed up. I called [Professional Head of the USAF] Curtis LeMay and I said, "General, I know we have a room at Wright-Patterson where you put all this secret stuff. Could I go in there?" I've never heard General LeMay get mad, but he got madder than hell at me, cussed me out, and said, "You can't go in there and I can't go in there. Don't ever ask me that question again!"

Fifteen years later, Ventura succeeded where Goldwater had failed. An American politician, former governor of Minnesota, Navy UDT veteran, actor, and former radio and television talk show host, "the Body" used his unique network of connections and broad public sympathy to open a number of doors previously considered closed to even the most determined of conspiracy theory investigators.

Smuggled into the Hangar, Ventura was taken into the command deck of a recovered flying saucer. At the climax of the show, the rogue officer rotates an alien looking dial covered in hieroglyphics and the room is flooded with the ear-drum splitting sound of Aerosmith. "Decent" agreed Ventura in his gruff voice.

Entry posted by Todayinah Editor

Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Beasts Source: Wikipedia Labels: Jesse Ventura, UFO, Wright-Patterson, Barry Goldwater, Blue Room.

Readers Comment David Atwell commented on 2010-11-25 01:10:34 ~ And what happens next?

Readers Comment Todayinah Ed. commented on 2010-11-25 01:17:58 ~ In the next episode, JV interviews various friends and family members and they universally agreed that he is an insight-free beefcake brain donor that is abusing his celebrity status to share absolutely nothing worth knowing to fill up TV time with more mindless junk. Or perhaps I'm being unkind!

Comment from Robert Baker on Facebook: Sorry but this too extreme. My dad served as Executive Officer for Air Force Logistics Command at Wright Pat during the 60's. I was a typical Zoomie Brat and can pretty much say that all of this hanger hype is just that. I believe a series on this was done years ago by channel 7 in Dayton.

Readers Comment Robbie Taylor commented on 2010-11-25 02:35:09 ~ In the next episode, he shows us what's REALLY at the moon landing site - using the recovered flying saucer, of course!

Comment from Tom Loy on Facebook: I don't think there are outer space aliens. It's more likely that that 'space aliens' are a cover story for top secret anti-gravity technology that the military has. The technology may be derived from the work of various scientists-like Nikola Tesla, T. Henry Moray,John Searle, and some Nazi scientists.

Readers Comment Jeff Provine commented on 2010-11-28 22:12:10 ~ This would be a huge push for the Freedom of Information Act. If we got that kind of technology going public, we'd see all kinds of leaps forward. I'd hope for faster intercontinental air travel, personally. Oh, and interstellar travel while we're on it.

In 2001, syndicated columnist William Safire writes a scathing op-ed piece accusing the Gore Administration of "sitting on its hands while the murderers of the innocent passengers of Flight 93 run free and plot more attacks on America". President Gore can say nothing in response without jeopardizing the secrecy of the CIA mission codenamed Operation Kipling currently underway in Afghanistan, which is aimed at rooting out Al Qaeda. Privately, however, he fumes at the conservative pundit's words.	US President

	Al Gore

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A Daily Updating Blog of Important Events In History That Never Occurred Today.
Imagine what would be, if history had occurred a bit differently. Who says it didn't, somewhere? These fictional news items explore that possibility.

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A Daily Updating Blog of Important Events In History That Never Occurred Today. Imagine what would be, if history had occurred a bit differently. Who says it didn't, somewhere? These fictional news items explore that possibility.

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A Daily Updating Blog of Important Events In History That Never Occurred Today.
Imagine what would be, if history had occurred a bit differently. Who says it didn't, somewhere? These fictional news items explore that possibility.