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Editor says, what if Little Mac had been assassinated by John Wilkes Booth at the Ford Theatre? Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s). This story was published in the June 2012 edition of Changing the Times Magazine.
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In 1825, on this day the eighteenth President of the United States, "Gentleman" George Hunt Pendleton (pictured) was born in Cincinnati, Ohio.
George H. Pendleton
18th US PresidentAfter attending Cincinnati College and the University of Heidelberg in Germany, he studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1847. He was a member of the Ohio Senate from 1854 to 1856. In 1854 he ran unsuccessfully for the Thirty-fourth United States Congress. Three years later he was elected as a Democrat to the Thirty-fifth Congress and also succeeded in being reelected to the three following Congresses (March 4, 1857 to March 3, 1865), but in 1864 he failed to be elected to the Thirty-ninth Congress.
He was one of the managers appointed by the House of Representatives in 1862 to conduct the impeachment proceedings against West H. Humphreys, United States judge for several districts of Tennessee. He was a leader of the peace faction of the Democratic party, with close ties to the Copperheads. In the 1864 general election he was on the winning ticket as George McClellan's running mate, a victory that was largely due to the delayed fall of Atlanta and the Confederate victory at Cedar Creek.
Pendleton was a noted antiwar Democrat, but McClellan's position was more equivocal: he supported continuation of the war and restoration of the Union (though not the abolition of slavery), but the party platform, written by Copperhead Clement Vallandigham of Ohio, was opposed to this position. The platform called for an immediate cessation of hostilities and a negotiated settlement with the Confederacy. McClellan was forced to repudiate the platform, which made his campaign inconsistent and difficult.
The situation became even more tense when it was revealed that Lincoln was determined to attempt a no holds barred assault on Richmond to conclude the Civil War before inauguration day. President-elect McClellan then revealed his true colours by refusing to take a stand against his former boss, the lame-duck President. But he paid the ultimate price for this equivocation, because on the night of April 14th, he was shot dead in the Ford Theatre by John Wilkes Booth.
Entry posted by Todayinah Editor
© Alternate Historian, 2004-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Politicians Source: Wikipedia Labels: George B. McClellan, Texas, Presidency, America, George H. Pendleton. Editor says, in authoring this article we refer to Eric Lipps' post Death of "Little Mac" and we also repurposed content from Wikipedia.
~ I've never heard of George H. Pendleton.
~ He invented the flannel shirt.
~ I'm sorry, he invented the *plaid* flannel shirt.
~ History is full of forgotten figures who might have ben president of the United States.
~ It wouldn't have mattered if McClellan had opposed abolition. Slavery was already abolished in the Confederacy, and the army was in no mood to let it stand. They were inspired. And after victory, which was inevitable, the Radicals would have prevented re-admission. The national mood had changed. The North savored its victory.
~ McClellan was as pro-Union as Lincoln, and he'd have been delighted to preside over the final destruction of the CSA. Matter of fact, he might have made JWB even madder, because he'd have likely crowed a lot more over having humbled his precious South.
~ Is this the same Pendleton that gave the name to Camp Pendleton? According to Wikipedia no, Camp Pendleton was declared a "permanent installation" and by 1946, it became the home of the 1st Marine Division. It was named after Major General Joseph Henry Pendleton (1860–1942), who had long advocated setting up a training base for the Marine Corps on the west coast. Today it is the home to myriad Operating Force units including the I Marine Expeditionary Force and various training commands.
~ McClellan was definitely prepping for the long-term war, which would've been even more devastating for a South behind the blockade. Rolling through Virginia as the Yanks did Georgia, but more slowly and more grinding, might've made JWB even crazier.
Editor says, what if Barack Obama's Facebook Account was hacked? Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s). This story was published in the July 2011 edition of Changing the Times Magazine.
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In 2011, on this day hackers began broadcasting rogue messages from President Obama's Facebook Account just weeks after the incoming Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta warned the Senate Armed Services Committee that the U.S. could face cyberwarfare.
Facebook LeaksInitially the revelations were relatively low key, exploiting alleged security weaknesses in Facebook to indiscretely reveal false information in the President's profile such as his birth in Kenya, the fact that his publications were entirely ghost written, that his smoking intake had increased to over a packet a day, that over the last decade he had spent on average less than two weekends at home etc.
The next Pearl Harbor we confront could very well be a cyber attack that cripples our power systems, our grid, our security systems, our financial systems, our governmental systemsEmbarrassingly the US Government was unable to prevent these discloures reaching the twenty-two million friends of President Obama even after Panetta (pictured) was ordered to take personal charge resulting in the immediate decision to shut down the Facebook page.
Although damaging this personal attack soon developed into something far more insidious. Further revelations soon began to emerge about the disappearance of nuclear warheads in Pakistan and Russia. And shocking details of America's clandestine role in the "Arab Spring".
Entry posted by Todayinah Editor
© Alternate Historian, 2004-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Politicians Source: Huffington Post Labels: Barack Obama, Leon Panetta, Facebook, Cyberwarfare, Internet Security. ~ Could happen any time. Spooky,
~ This would be funny, if nothing else.
~ We can always dream :)
~ So are these leaks" supposed to be of genuine information or disinformation?
If the former, the revelation that Obama was really born in Kenya would provoke a constitutional crisis, since it's far from clear who would be constitutionally entitled to take his place. And no, the presidency wouldn't default to John McCain; it could just as easily go to Joe Biden A case could be made for a full-scale "redo," since in that case Obama wouldn't have been legally eligible for the Democratic nomination, and there are plenty of Democrats, let alone Republicans, who'd rather the White House stand vacant than that Hillary Clinton get another shot at it. which raises the interesting question - what if the presidency had a recall mechanism?
~ It does, in a way--impeachment. But "recall" as you seem to mean it would be something like what happened a few years ago with California's Gov. Gray Davis, which ended up putting Arnold Schwarzenegger in the goverenor's mansion. essentially there'd be a whole new election.
I'd guess one reason no such mechanism exists is that in the 1780s it would have been impractyical, given the primitive state of transportation and communications (in 1789, George Washington was sworn in seven weeks late because, due to bad winter weather, the roads between Virginia and New York City were impassable all through March and early April). I also suspect the Framers, who designed the presidency with Washington in mind, did not want to weaken the office by making it too easy for a president to be thrown out.
Editor says, what happens just before the ceasefire.. Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
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In 1983, the United States and the Soviet Union agreed to a cease-fire, ending the short but catastrophic superpower conflict which had started just 48 hours earlier with the Soviet invasion of West Germany.
The Last Broadcast Part 3: CeasefireUnfortunately for millions of Europeans and North Americans, the cease-fire came too late: dozens of cities on both sides of the Iron Curtain had been vaporized in the exchange of nuclear missiles between NATO and the Warsaw Pact, and many others were so thoroughly contaminated by radioactive fallout as to be rendered uninhabitable. New York City was particularly devastated in the holocaust; at least ten Soviet nuclear warheads were detonated in the metropolitan New York area in a span of less than thirty seconds.
An article by Chris OakleyBut for all the horrors they'd suffered, the United States and the Soviet Union had at least been able to retain some semblance of a national government -- which was more than could be said for many of their allies. To cite just two examples, Czechoslovakia collapsed into anarchy within just hours of the first NATO missile strikes on East Germany and Belgium was literally wiped off the map by multiple Soviet tactical nuclear weapons. Even China had not been spared from nuclear destruction -- just before the cease-fire pact was reached, Beijing and Shanghai were annihilated by what US intelligence believed to be Soviet submarine-launched missiles.
Entry posted by
Chris Oakley
© Chris Oakley,2008-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: GTA Nuke Source: Wikipedia Labels: Last Broadcast, Pierre Trudeau, Nuclear War, Canada, Toronto. Editor says, this timeline is based on a Canadian student-made radio play titled The Last Broadcast. Audio clips of the play can be found on YouTube.
Editor says, what if the Royal Navy won the Battle of the Solent? muses Jeff Provine on This Day in Alternate History Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
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In early July 1545, in the midst of England's participation in the Italian Wars, France launched a massive fleet in the Seine with the aim to invade English soil with some 50,000 troops.
Mary Rose leads Counter-invasion of France They sailed up the Solent (the strait between the Isle of Wight and the mainland) unopposed while the fleet of 80 small English ships held in the defenses of Portsmouth Harbor. July 18, the English came out to engage at long range, but the two fleets did little damage to one another.
On the 19th, the wind was calm, and the French made to use it to their advantage. They moved to use their galleys against the immobile English, but a breeze came up that evening, and the agile English ships became able to maneuver. The enormous carrack Mary Rose lead the charge, closing her lower gun ports and using the wind to sweep her into the midst of the French. Sporting 24 anti-ship cannon, the Mary Rose served as a potent flagship, bringing down numerous French ships herself and making way for vicious attack by other English ships.
The French were caught with large ships in the narrow harbor and made for the wider Solent, but they were cut down even there. Hoping to regroup in the Channel, French Admiral Claude d'Annebault called for the retreat. Before he could escape, however, the English pushed forward, gunning down ships until the dark of night allowed the remnants of the French fleet to slip away. Their land invasion was halted as there seemed no chance to unload and supply the massive invasion force.
With a resounding victory and thousands of French bodies floating in the sea, Henry VIII seized his opportunity for an invasion himself. His Austrian allies had made peace with the French upon fearing uprisings in the Germanies, but Henry refused to give up liberation of Boulogne in France. Instead, he used his ships to ferry a new army onto the continent and began a drive like that of Edward III in the Hundred Years War. Fearing another return to unending violence, the French opted for peace. Henry, knowing that his own coffers were running bare, agreed, and the details of the Treaty of Ardres were achieved in 1546. The French faced another diplomatic humiliation, but worse was the demands for reparations. While the French economy suddenly fell under vicious taxation to repay, England soared.
Henry would not live to see the financial fallout of his treaty as he would die in 1547. His son, Edward VI, would use the money to fund an increase in his navy, though he, too, would not live to see what his actions would do after his short reign of six years. Eventually his half-sister Elizabeth would come to the throne, and England would settle back into wars with Catholicism. With their economic upper-hand, however, their fleets would confound the Spanish attempts at reaping further wealth from the New World. Rather, English settlement would advance, taking over many of the unfunded colonies begun and abandoned by the French.
The further decadence would promote civil war against the pompous Charles, but the king had ample funds to put down the revolt with mercenaries. Creating a much weaker Parliament filled with yes-men, the House of Stewart would rule powerfully over a massive and growing empire. Along with trade, however, came new technology and ideas, and the Enlightenment would cause rebellion against monarchs all over Europe. Many kings gave up their absolute power in favor of constitutions, and colonies throughout the world would claim independence, such as the United States, Haiti, and Ireland from Britain. With his empire falling apart around him, James V would try to hold to the rule of his ancestors, but his heavy-handed efforts only brought the collapse of his crown, and England became a Republic in 1802, just as France did thirteen years earlier and the Netherlands for centuries. Later, Sweden and Prussia would join them. This division in Europe would spark the huge Monarchs' War in 1810, and many of the other kings would lose their thrones under guerrilla warfare in Iberia and major battles in eastern Europe.
Dust settling and only backward Russia still standing with its czar, the republics of Europe returned to empire-building. Trade and industry drove the countries to unpredictable wealth, but also to competition that would bring about the World War at the beginning of the twentieth century. Out of the wreckage, the new political ideology of communism would begin, some championing as a golden age of social justice while others mourn as an arrival of slavery for entire populations.
Entry posted by
Jeff Provine
© Jeff Provine, 2010-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Jeff Provine Blog Source: Jeff Provine’s Blog Labels: Mary Rose, Royal Navy, Battle of the Solent , England, France. Editor says, in reality, the lower gun ports of the Mary Rose were left open, and the strong breeze that pushed her caused her to careen over. Water rushed into the ship, sinking it so quickly that only a few dozen of its 450 crew escaped with their lives. The Battle of the Solent would be indecisive, as would be the Italian Wars themselves, bringing nothing but a costly stalemate for both England and France.
~ Er . . . It would have been the House of "Stuart", not "Stewart".
~ Is this the same Mary Rose that they salvaged a while back?
~ Yep. Fascinating history on the Mary Rose. Took the tour last summer. Impressive what the supposed dullards of centuries past were able to do. Also displays the timelessness of messing up new technology, just like in Chernobyl or the iPad.
Editor says, what if the events after the party at Chappaquiddick was even worse than we dared to imagine? Please note the views expressed in this post do not reflect those of the author. Substantial amounts of content have been repurposed from both Wikipedia and also the Boston Globe Newspaper.
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In 1969, Deputy Sheriff Christopher "Huck" Look stopped a black 1967 Oldsmobile Delmont 88 driving erractically on the Dike Road of Chappaquiddick Island, Martha's Vineyard.
Even though Dike Road was unpaved, the vehicle was travelling at "approximately twenty miles an hour", with the reckless driver taking "no particular notice" of this fact.
The Party's OverLook was a special police officer who had been assigned to the Edgartown regatta dance that night.
At 12:30 am he left the dance, crossed over to Chappaquiddick in the yacht club's launch, got into his parked car and drove home. He testified that between 12:30 and 12:45 am he had seen a dark car containing a man driving and a woman in the front seat approaching the intersection with Dike Road. The car had gone first onto the private Cemetery Road and stopped there. Thinking that the occupants of the car might be lost, Look had gotten out of his car and walked towards it.
The occupants were lost, but not in the sense Look had imagined. Because he was was astonished to find that the driver of the vehicle was none other than Senator Edward Moores Kennedy (pictured above), accompanied by his brother, the former Presidential candidate, Robert Francis Kennedy; both brothers were riotously drunk. The other passengers were two giggling young ladies in their twenties, also drunk.
It would later emerge that a wild drunken party had been held at the Lawrence Cottage. His longtime chauffeur Jack Crimmins had brought Kennedy's car to the Vineyard on the ferry. He had also brought a supply of liquor for the weekend: vodka, Scotch, rum, a couple of cases of beer. The party had been planned by Joseph Gargan, the son of Rose Kennedy's sister. Gargan had rented the cottage for his family vacation, but when his mother-in-law fell ill, it became the cookout venue.
Neither of the Kennedy's had invited their wives, claiming that they were hosting a semi-official thank you event for some inspired young people who had campaigned enthusiastically in 1968. In fact the guests were a group of young women who had operated RFK's "boiler room", effectively "courting" a number of power brokers in order to influence the vote. It was not the first reunion of Robert Kennedy's staffers. The six young women who gathered that weekend on the Vineyard - sisters Nance and Maryellen Lyons, Rosemary "Cricket" Keough, Mary Jo Kopechne, Esther Newberg, and Susan Tannenbaum - had come together several times already to reminisce (pictured right). The Kennedys had hosted one such affair at Hyannis Port the previous summer.
Even though the Kennedys made the ludicrous claim to be chapperoning the girls back to their lodgings at the quite unbelievably late hour of 1a.m., it would transpire that both young ladies had left their hotel keys and handbags at the cottage. Because of this evidence, a supressed police report would conclude that the Kennedys "did not intend to drive to the ferry slip, but had turned onto Dike Road intentionally to drive to East Beach [for sex with the young women]" Furthermore, the police wrote, because the bridge was a hazard to be crossed with caution, Kennedy "would at least be negligent and, possibly, reckless" when he approached it, as he testified, at 20 miles per hour. Had Look not stopped the vehicle, there was good reason to believe Kennedy might even have driven off the bridge into Poucha Pond.
The Kennedy brothers would condemn the report as "not justified", a short snappy answer that was believed by absolutely no one at all.
Entry posted by Todayinah Editor
© Today in Alternate History, 2004-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Beasts Source: Wikipedia Labels: Kennedy Curse, Chappaquiddick, Boiler Room Girls, Edgartown Ferry, Congress. ~ Girls, booze, sex parties... I wanna be a Kennedy! lol Seriously, though, nice take on the Teddy scandal
~ It'd be forgotten shortly...the press didn't want to go after the Kennedys. Now, if RFK AND Teddy had both been in the car when it went into the water, and survived, while two girls drowned, that would have been different...
~ "The Party's Over" is right...
~ I don't know about the press not wanting to go after the Kennedys. Certainly there was (and has continued to be) plenty of unflattering coverage of Ted Kennedy over Chappaquiddick, and the press was eager enough to retail Judith Campbell Exner's claims that she was mistress simultaneously to JFK ansd mobster Sam Giancana, despite what remains a surprisingly sparse supply of evidence.
(I said evidence, not testimony. There were plenty of folks who insisted they knew it was true--but they've tended to be people with an axe to grind, like Frank Sinatra, a former Kennedy intimate who turned bitter foe, and Republican, after being cut off on account of his own mob connections when association with him threatened to embarrass President Kennedy.)
Editor says, what if Jack Nicholsons portrayal of the Joker in Dark Knight was a tour de force? Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
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In 2008, on this day box office records were smashed in the United States and Canada with the opening of "The Dark Knight".
Headlines screamed "The Dark Knight: Nicholson's performance is hypnotic", "Midnight stampede to 'The Dark Knight' sets box office record" and "Nicholson's compelling Joker thrills, Ledger's absence saddens fans as 'The Dark Knight' opens" with nothing but rave reviews published from Toronto to Los Angeles.
Nicholson's compelling Joker thrills, Ledger's absence saddens fans as 'The Dark Knight' opens
The caped crusader is taken down a darker path as perhaps best exemplified by one character who prophetically says,"you either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain". Two actors were also taken down very different paths.
Heath Ledger had been chosen to portray the Joker, whom the actor described as a "psychopathic, mass murdering, schizophrenic clown with zero empathy" .
Director Christopher Nolan had wanted to work with Ledger on a number of projects in the past, but had been unable to do so. When Ledger saw Batman Begins, he realized a way to make the character work in that film's tone, and Nolan agreed with his anarchic interpretation. To prepare for the role, Ledger lived alone in a hotel room for a month, formulating the character's posture, voice and psychology. It's difficult to judge how good Ledger's performance would have been because it is impossible to watch him without being influenced by the tabloid fanfare surrounding his mental breakdown (did playing The Joker lead him to his mental collapse? asked the Toronto Metro).
The director of The Dark Knight Christopher Nolan made an unexpected offer - would seventy-year old actor Jack Nicholson reprise his 1989 potrayal of the role of The Joker following Heath Ledger's withdrawal on mental health grounds?
Frighteningly close to a complete mental collapse, Ledger had quit the set shortly after filming started. Ledger stated that his role preparation had taken a toll on his ability to sleep: "Last week I probably slept an average of two hours a night. ... I couldn't stop thinking. My body was exhausted, and my mind was still going". At that time, he told Lyall that he had taken two Ambien pills, after taking just one had not sufficed, and those left him in "a stupor, only to wake up an hour later, his mind still racing".
"It was tremendously emotional, right when he quit" Nolan recalled. "But the truth is, his potrayal was just too Marlon Brando. With Jack Nicholson I feel very lucky to have something productive to do, to have a performance that he was very, very proud of, and that he had entrusted to me to finish".
Entry posted by Todayinah Editor Watch the Video
© Today in Alternate History, 2004-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Personalities Source: Toronto Metro Labels: Dark Knight, Heath Ledger, Jack Nicholson, Batman, Dark Knight.| Commander | On this day in 1969, one of humanity's oldest dreams was finally realized as Apollo 5 mission commander Neil Armstrong became the first human being to walk on the moon. |
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| Neil Armstrong |
Entry posted by
Chris Oakley
© Chris Oakley,2008-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Apollo One Survives Source: Wikipedia Labels: Apollo One, NASA, Neil Armstrong, America, Space Race.'You apparently have been an angel all your life, with the exception of the time you were dating your ex-husband.' He grinned. 'But, no-one would talk to me about him.'
'Well, we all make mistakes, Mr. Lance. He was mine.'
'He helped you produce a nice daughter, though,' he said, looking back at Monica. 'Seems very self-confident. And, she makes a nice pecan pie.' 'Just wait till she gets through the CIA.'
Lance's brow furrowed. 'She wants to be a spy?'
'Culinary Institute of America. She wants to be a chef.'
'Oh,' Lance said, a little crestfallen.
'But, I suppose she could be a spy, too,' she said, throwing him a bone. 'It'd be good cover.'
He looked over at her again and shrugged. 'I suppose. It feels funny, though, that someone would still want to be something as ordinary as a cook after being so close to an event like this.'
'People are still going to need to eat.'
'Yeah, but...' Lance seemed to be struggling to express himself. She was actually a little taken with him; he was very cute when he was trying to be sincere. 'I mean, watching the first contact with an alien race; being related to somebody who's involved in the planning of it, the execution of it ? it'd make me want to be an astronomer.'
Her face broke into a lopsided smile. Oh, the many times that conversation had taken place. 'She's a good amateur, but she doesn't really have the desire or the temperament for the job. I've long since accepted her career decision. She'll be a good chef.' She leaned over and whispered confidentially, 'Especially if she makes it onto Food TV.'
'Yeah, she was pushing that with me,' he said, smiling broadly. 'I don't know if my network has any real influence on who appears there, though.'
'She'll figure out a way to leverage this all into an appearance there. She's smart.' 'Takes after her mother.'
Andrea blushed a little at the compliment. 'In some ways.'
In 1984, as expected, Colorado's Senator Gary Hart receives the Democratic nomination for president. In his acceptance speech, he reveals he has chosen John Glenn, the former astronaut and current Ohio senator, to run with him in the fall. The VP nomination comes as a bit of a consolation prize to Glenn, whose own bid for the nomination never quite took fire. A disappointed Jesse Jackson delivers an emotional speech of his own following Hart's, urging his supporters to 'keep hope alive.' Rev. Jackson's words are widely interpreted as signaling that he means to run again in 1988. | |
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| Gary Hart |
Entry posted by
Eric Lipps
© Eric Lipps,2007-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Generals Source: Wikipedia Labels: Gary Hart, Jesse Jackson, John Glenn, America, Presidency.Entry posted by Alternate Historian Robbie Taylor
© Robbie Taylor, 2004-Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Soviet America Source: Robbie Taylors Blog Labels: Joel Rosenberg, Robbie A. Taylor, Comrade, Soviet States of America, Communism.Entry posted by Alternate Historian Robbie Taylor
© Robbie Taylor, 2004-Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Conspiracy Theories Source: Wikipedia Labels: Apollo Missions, Fake Landing, Space Mission, Hoax, Stage Managed.Entry posted by Alternate Historian Robbie Taylor
© Robbie Taylor, 2004-Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Society Source: Wikipedia Labels: Sun Records, Elvis Presley, Bluegrass, That's All Right, Mama, Blue Moon Of Kentucky.Entry posted by Alternate Historian Robbie Taylor
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Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Discoveries Source: Wikipedia Labels: Rosetta stone, Translation, hieroglyphic , Ancient Egypt, Ptolemaic era stele.Entry posted by Todayinah Editor
© Today in Alternate History, 2004-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Conspiracy Theories Source: Wikipedia Labels: Syzygy, Counter-earth, Galileo, Gor, Planets.Entry posted by Alternate Historian Robbie Taylor
© Robbie Taylor, 2004-Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Religion Source: Wikipedia Labels: Scientology, Rapture, Ron Hubbard, Army of Intelligent Life, Battlefield Earth.Entry posted by Todayinah Editor
© Today in Alternate History, 2004-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Alternate Nations Source: Wikipedia Labels: Holbrook, Navajo County, Meteorite, Royal American Mounted Police, Capital city of Wellington.Entry posted by Todayinah Editor
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Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Crises Source: Wikipedia Labels: Lady Jane Grey, Queen of England, Coup D'etat, Mary Tudor, Reformation.Entry posted by Todayinah Editor
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Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Crises Source: Wikipedia Labels: Ted Kennedy, Kennedy Curse, Chappaquiddick, Boiler Room Girls, Edgartown Ferry.Entry posted by Todayinah Editor
© Today in Alternate History, 2004-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Beasts Source: Wikipedia Labels: Salem Witch Trials, British Empire, Witches, British North American Union, America.July 18
Editor says, what if Gazza had joined Manchester United rather than Tottenham? Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s). This story was published in the March 2013 edition of Changing the Times Magazine.
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In 1988, on this day Manchester United Manager Alex Ferguson paid Newcastle £2m for the services of Paul Gascoigne.
Gazza, Red Devils LegendHaving won both the PFA Young Player of the Year and listed on the PFA Team of the Year for 1987-8 season, his breathtaking skills tortured Ferguson's midfield during a Newcastle vs Manchester United fixture earlier in March.
His first choice was Liverpool but with no offer forthcoming, he promised Ferguson that he would sign for Manchester United. Ferguson duly went on holiday to Malta, where he received the troublesome news that Spurs Manager Terry Venables had made a last minute swoop, trying to woo him into signing for Tottenham with an offer to buy a house for his impoverished family.
Ferguson rushed back to England to rescue the deal. But of course the real winner was Gascoigne, because when his off-field antics started to get dangerously out of control, Ferguson was the tough disciplinarian who put him back on the straight and narrow. Saving him from his worst enemy - himself. Ironically, Gazza did eventually play for Venables, when he became England Manager in 1994, leading them to triumph in Euro '96 (pictured).
Entry posted by Todayinah Editor
© Alternate Historian, 2004-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Sports Source: Wikipedia Labels: Alex Ferguson, Paul Gascoigne, Manchester United, Spurs, Newcastle. Editor says, in reality Under Terry Venables, he blossomed into the best footballer in England and a regular England international. He helped Spurs finish third in the League in 1989 - 90 and at that summer's World Cup in Italy, the whole world became aware of his precocious talent as England reached the semi-finals. But his subsequent career was marred by acts of self-destruction. In his 1999 auto-biography Ferguson described the event as his worse setback in the transfer market, writing - "I was determined to bring Paul to United ever since he had tortured us with a devastating performance for Newcastle.The fact that he never wore the red shirt was his mistake, not ours as far as i was concerned, I had a solid promise that he would sign for me and I think that his change of mind hurt both of us".
~ All too many sports stars prove unable to handle their personal lives with the same discipline and talent that they exhibit on the field/pitch/arena/etc
~ Is the Euro 96 victory just a step too far? Hard to imagine Gazza playing much better than he did anyway...
~ Transfer market?
Editor says, what if the ministry of Jesus had not led to the rise of Christianity? In this article we explore the significance of the role of John the Baptist. Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s). This story was published in the August 2012 edition of Changing the Times Magazine.
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On 27th of Tamuz, 3787, Yuhanna greeted his cousin Yeshua Ben Jesse at the River Jordan, and to his great surprise proclaimed "Behold the Rabbi of Nazareth1, who will lead the people of Yahweh into a new age".
Rabbi of Nazareth
by Ed and Jared MyersThe Messianic reference was somewhat odd. Because it raised a few eyebrows among the crowd, Yeshua corrected him with the words "Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill2". Nevertheless, during his long ministry, he developed a lasting reputation as one of the greatest teachers of the age.
Entry posted by Todayinah Editor
© Alternate Historian, 2004-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Religion Source: Wikipedia Labels: Jesus, John, Baptism, Judaism, Christian. Editor says, in this article we explore a point of divergence where the new religion of Christianity does not arise at all. There is of course a basic point of understanding as to whether Jesus was Jewish, or Christian. 1) In OTL, John recognizes Jesus as the son of God.
2) The interpretation of the quote from Matthew 5:17 is key to the understanding of whether breaking away from Judaism.
~ I take it Paul does not exist, or is killed by that fall from his mount outside Damascus?
~ Re Cassandra, the Christian/Jewish split actually occurred earlier, by the end of the first century of the Common Era; Christians, who were heavily influenced by the Greeks, were rejected as heretics by Jewish religious authorities, not least because they increasingly accepted converts not of Jewish blood. However, while what Jesus thought of himself can only be surmised, but there's no evidence that his disciples thought of themselves as anything but Jews.
Editor says, what if Alan Turing had transferred to Cambridge University on the eve of World War 2? Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s). This story was published in the July 2011 edition of Changing the Times Magazine.
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In 1938, even as Hitler dreamt of world domination by an all-conquering aryan master race, the research of two Germanic scientists slowly began the process of biological uplift for the sentinient mammals who would eventually fight alongside humans in the decades-long war with the Nazis.
SuperweaponThe English mathematician, logician, cryptanalyst and computer scientist Alan Turing had been completing his PhD dissertion on mechanized thought at Princeton. But a visit from Austrian-born mathematician and polymath John von Neumann encouraged him to return to Cambridge where he had studied in the early to mid thirties.
Also studying at Cambridge was Ludwig Wittgenstein whose study of higher order cognitive functions had earned him the Chair of Philosophy at the age of just forty.
Von Neumann's true intentions were now revealed. Working together collaboratively they radically changed direction to focus on biological uplift. And with atomic fusion going nowhere fast, the application of their research became the Allies best hope of developing a war-winning superweapon.
Entry posted by Todayinah Editor
© Alternate Historian, 2004-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Inventions Source: Wikipedia Labels: Alan Turing, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Germany, John von Neumann, Adolf Hitler. Editor says, Princeton (Cambridge Computing) thread on Alt History Wikia originated the idea of Turing coming to Cambridge to work with Wittgenstein.
~ DNA wasn't yet understood... By the way, anyone ever hear of David Brin's, "The Uplift Wars"?
~ Loved the first three novels of David Brin's Uplift War saga bu could not get into the sequel set.
~ DNA perhaps not, but there was a lot of genetic science stemming off Mendel's work. Perhaps instead of a Captain America, they get something that can breed faster: super-mice?
~ Sounds like someone was inspired by the new Planet of the Apes, due soon in theaters. ;)
Editor says, what happens after the GTA was destroyed by nuclear fire.. Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
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In 1983, Canadian prime minister Pierre Trudeau was given his first detailed debriefing on the nuclear attacks that wiped out Toronto and leveled most of York.
The Last Broadcast Part 2: Fall OutAccording to the information given to Trudeau by his top defense advisors, ground zero for the detonation of the first Soviet nuclear warhead had been approximately two blocks south of the Royal Ontario Museum; the extent of the destruction inflicted on metropolitan Toronto was made all too clear when Trudeau's defense secretary showed him an RCAF reconnaissance photo of the ruins of the CN Tower. The tower, once Canada's tallest building, had been reduced to a scorched heap of twisted metal and shattered glass by the blast wave from the first Soviet ICBM strike (the Royal Ontario Museum was vaporized in the Soviet attack).
An article by Chris OakleyThat evening Prime Minister Trudeau finally re-established communications with the U.S. government and was informed by acting President of the United States Malcolm Baldrige that shortly after the Soviet ICBM strike on Toronto American nuclear missiles had destroyed Moscow, Leningrad, and Kiev; Baldrige, previously Ronald Reagan's secretary of commerce, had been sworn in as chief executive upon confirmation the deaths of Reagan and Reagan's vice-president George H.W. Bush. The new president also notified Trudeau that he was negotiating a cease-fire accord with the provisional Soviet government and working to secure the withdrawal of surviving Soviet combat troops from West Germany.
Entry posted by
Chris Oakley
© Chris Oakley,2008-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: GTA Nuke Source: Wikipedia Labels: Last Broadcast, Pierre Trudeau, Nuclear War, Canada, Toronto. Editor says, this timeline is based on a Canadian student-made radio play titled The Last Broadcast. Audio clips of the play can be found on YouTube.
~ I'd think myself that after the destruction of several US cities, the American people wouldn't want to stop until we had done unto the USSR what we did earlier to Japan. Especially if they attacked without prior declaration of war---that sort of thing does not set well.
~ The calls for vengeance and the cries for an end to the madness could balance each other out, so it may rest in the hands of leaders at the time. At least we'd finally get to use those stockpiled underground bunkers from the '60s.
Editor says, what if the AD64 Fire in Rome was successfully contained?, muses Jeff Provine on This Day in Alternate History Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
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In 64 AD, as recorded by the Roman poet Tacitus, a fire broke out in the merchant district of the city of Rome, consumed a warehouse, and was defeated by brave workers dragging sand and water from the Tiber.
Fire Successfully Contained Nero praised the men's actions even though some of them were of the Christian cult, a band of Jews who had begun accepting Gentiles after worshiping the Son of a God. One of them, Paul of Tarsus, had been brought on an appeal to Caesar after being accused of treason, of which Nero would later find him innocent.
A new story by Jeff ProvineAfter the fire, Nero would continue his campaign to lower taxes on the poor, keep foreign diplomacy afloat (he had already maintained conquest of Britain after the rebellion of Boudicca as well as defeated Parthia in the east), and improve culture throughout the empire. Later, in 66, a revolt in Judaea would arise, and Nero would dispatch his great general Vespasian to put it down. Distrust of the Christians would mix with the fervor of the revolt, and a great divide would split the cult between the Gentiles and those who still held to the Jewish Law, the latter being removed from Rome and facing legal segregation. Gradually, the religion would blend with other Roman beliefs, such as had been done with the Egyptian Isis and the Persian Mithras.
In 65, a conspiracy by the statesman Piso to overthrow Nero and return the Republic was discovered and destroyed. The senators complained that they had lost all power despite Nero's promise in 54 to return their influence to levels under the Republic. Nero liked the power in his own hands and refused to give up any of it, using his sway to launch his massive construction projects. While Italia and the provinces struggled economically, taxes were never levied enough to cause rebellion. The successful end of the Jewish rebellion and looking of Jerusalem and their temple in AD 70 was enough to alleviate many of Nero's empty coffers.
As Nero grew older, he began to slow down his pace and draw more to distraction with his own arts. Meanwhile, Nero's son Antonius grew in military strength under the tutelage of the Governor Agricola of Britain during his conquest of Caledonia. Antonius would spearhead the conquest of Hibernia before returning to Rome after the death of Nero. More concerned with expansion than rule, Antonius would finally begin the return of Roman government back to the Senate, so long as it maintained funds for his expeditions into Germania. After the bloody conquest of the Germans, Rome would grow stagnant and corrupt, eventually falling in the north to the predatory Vikings of the 900s and the south to renewed Arab and Parthian attack.
Entry posted by
Jeff Provine
© Jeff Provine, 2010-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Jeff Provine Blog Source: Jeff Provine’s Blog Labels: Nero, Rome, Fire, Roman Empire, Tacitus. Editor says, in reality, the fire raged for five and a half days, destroying nearly half the city. The emperor Nero did much to aid the victims, but nothing could squelch their smoldering discontent (there were even rumors of singing while his city burned, though Tacitus recorded him being in Antium at the time). To redirect public ill sentiment, Nero blamed the grown Christian population of the city. Several Christians even admitted to the conspiracy (though this was proven to be under torture). Christians were thusly thrown to dogs, crucified, and even dipped in oil and burned alive as streetlights, beginning centuries of persecution throughout the empire. Despite the torment, Christianity would survive and even thrive to the Edict of Milan 250 years later when tolerance was declared by the Emperor Constantine.
Meanwhile, Nero used the newly cleared space in Rome to build his Domus Aurea, a palace for which he paid by levying tribute from every province of the empire. It would be another dark badge on the bad emperor's toga. Later taxation policies on the provinces would cause Governor Vindex of Gallia Lugdunensis to rebel, the first link in a chain that would bring about the rise of Galba, who would declare himself emperor and drive Nero to suicide.
~ No Great Fire of Rome would have been interesting, but sooner or later, the Christians and the Roman authorities would have come into severe conflict.
Comment from Valente Real on Facebook: Nero started that fire, then tried to rebuilt where the ruins
Comment from Dianne Castillo on Facebook: don't want to imagine that!
Comment from Marko Prpic on Facebook: It is assumed that the last of Nero's words were "What a great artist dies with me.
Comment from Joe Mwangi on Facebook: Then Nero (I believe he caused the fire so as to build his Megalomaniac edifices) would not have become so unpopular until the Senate declared him an enemy of Rome forcing him to flee then commit suicide.The line of Julius Caesar might have continued.Nero's downfall was beneficial to Imperium Romanaum since the resulting civil war brought in Emperor Vespasian who rebuit the empire (but he started building the Colosseum in which humans died for sport)!!
Comment from Michael Balikoff on Facebook: It has not been commented on the purported ability of Nero to play the Violin one wonders what the tune would have been if this was true...maybe "We have a burning desire for you"
Seriously though, it was a marvelous ploy by the Emperor to ...gain some open space to enable his rebuilding desires was it not? .... jazzman
Comment from Norton James on Facebook: Christians wouldn't be persecuted by the pagans
~ If Nero had followed the policies of Claudius he would have gone down well as would any emperor but he didn't. Truth is Nero was his own worst enemy. His ego and his vanity were his unding. As for restoring the Republic, Few in the Senate wanted that since the Emperor did all the decision making while they kept the powers of patronage and spending. Would be nice if Nero had restored the Tribunes of the Plebs Tiberius abolished and granted other citizen provinces of the empire right to elect them to the Senate. That way some parts of the Repbulic could carry on as far as tehg empire was concerned.
~ If Valente's right, that would have made Nero the world's first arsonist... :D
Editor says, what if Nelson Mandela was a pin-stripe suited African lawyer in a smaller British South Africa? Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
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In 1918, on this day Sir Nelson Mandela was born in the East Cape Province some eleven hundred kilometres from the capital where he would later serve as the first indigenous vice-regal representative to the British Crown Colony.
Sir Nelson Mandela, Part 1Mandela's qualifications for the position of governor were impeccable. A member of the cadet branch of the Royal House of Thembu, his great-grandfather Ngubengcuka was Inkosi Enkhulu (King) of the Transkeian homeland. And his father Gadla Henry Mphakanyiska served as a chief of the town of Mvezo.
The first of his family to go to school, his Methodist teacher called him Nelson in preference to his Xhosa name of Rolihlahla.
Subsequently, he studied at Clarkebury School (completing his junior certificate in two rather than the usual three years) and then progressing to the all-British Healdtown High School, a strict Methodist College where most Thembu royalty attended.
At Fort Beaufort, he took a keen interest in boxing and running. On his matriculation, his father sent him overseas to the University of London to study for a Bachelor of Laws Degree. On his return, he established a successful legal practice in Cape Town.
In 1960 British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan toured the British territories in Africa, travelling to the Cape Colony to deliver his keynote "winds of change" speech. In recognition of the dramatic changes that were sweeping the continent, "Supermac" announced that the incoming governor would be the pin-stripe suited African lawyer, Nelson Mandela. To be continued..
Entry posted by Todayinah Editor
© Alternate Historian, 2006-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Sir Nelson Mandela Source: Wikipedia Labels: Nelson Mandela, South Africa, Apartheid, Harold Macmillan, Cape. Editor says, in this ATL we will explore a POD before the Boer War in which a Dutch South Africa emerges north of the Cape Colony. Thanks for everyone's input so far.
~ If that didn't tick off the Boers, I don't know what would. And even if the Boers were out of the picture, I suspect it would go down hard with a lot of English-descended South Africans. The Brits weren't King Leopold II's Belgians of "Heart of Darkness" infamy, but they didn't have a great reputation on race.
~ The end result is what has happened to any colony the Brits so called "cared for" .... Australia is one continent that has benefited by self-government just to mention one of many
~ I'm keen to know what's going to happen in the next part...
~ It might have gone better than it did if this had happened...
~ Odds that this could kick off a new Boer War? Make no mistake, they would probably _lose_, but....
~ Dutch South Africa would be bound to have poor political relations with Cape Colony, tho I'd be curious to see their economic relations. Landlocked?
Editor says, what if the last twenty-five years was just a bad dream? Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
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In 1988, in a dreadful speech which lasted for so long that some delegates began booing to get him to finish, Arkansas Governor Bill Clinton placed Jesse Jackson's name in nomination at the Democratic Party Convention on this day in Atlanta, Georgia.
Sitting on Someone's ShouldersTexas State Treasurer Ann Richards made a more lasting impression by comparing the origins of Jackson, "a nobody who had no daddy" with his likely adversary in November, Vice President Bush who "was born with a silver foot in his mouth". For surely his "testament to the struggles of those who have gone before" was truly an American story every bit as epic as George Washington's victory at Trenton.
And yet Jackson really seized the moment for the Rainbow Coalition by boldly welcoming "the sons and daughters of slavemasters and the sons and daughters of slaves, sitting together around a common table , to decide the direction of our party and our country". The nomination was dedicated to the mother of the civil rights movement Rosa Parks, and former President Jimmy Carter for his unwavering commitment to peace in the world.
These words would find refresh resonance some two years later, when President Jackson would find a peaceful resolution to the Persian Gulf Crisis through dialogue with Saddam Hussein. That remarkable achievement would open the way to negotiations between Israel and Palestine to discuss the status of Jerusalem, "a small village that became the birthplace for three great religions -- Judaism, Christianity, and Islam". By then, George Bush was in the grandfather business, and Ann Richards the Governor of Texas, having consigned Bush's playboy son to a crushing defeat in the gubernatorial election.
Entry posted by Todayinah Editor
© Neil Kagan, People who Shaped the CenturyStory Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Alternate Nations Source: Entertonement Labels: Jesse Jackson, 1988, Presidency, America, Atlanta. ~ Interesting...but I don't think that Jesse Jackson had a chance at the nomination, no matter how PC the Dems are. There's so many skeletons in his closet that he could be charged with running a cemetery without a license, and a lot of his past and rhetoric would be leaped on gleefully by the Republicans.
~ I don't either--especially given the whiff of anti-Semitism which had accompanied Jackson since 1984. Remember his description of New York as "Hymietown"? His accusation that Jews controlled the media and were using them against him? Hisa use of thugs from Louis Farrakhan's Nation of Islam as personal guards?
It isn't even a matter of PC. Jackson simply antagonized too many people personally, not least with his egotistical assumption that he was entitled to the nomination, and the presidency, and hat anyone white who voted against him had to have done so out of bigotry.
~ I agree...the "Hymietown" comment pretty much shot Jackson's nomination hopes to smithereens.
~ Goes beyond Hymietown. jackson never showed much ability to get white votes beyond a VERY narrow if mediagenic trendy left fringe.
Editor says, what position would Winnie Mandela take on the aliens in District 9? Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
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In 2008, on this day former President of the Republic of South Africa Winnie Madikizela-Mandela launched a devastating verbal assault on Thabo Mbeki, blaming his government for the country's woes. Describing recent xenophobic attacks as "the worst tragedy in the post-apartheid era", Madikizela-Mandela said the government's poor economic policies and lack of service delivery had contributed to the recent wave of violence.
Watch Alive in Joburg
A Terrible Indictment"Is it not a terrible indictment when, 14 years after our liberation, the minister of housing stands up in parliament and says she could not build houses because there is no money? This is 14-years after the drafting of the ANC's original manifesto" said the former President.
"The worst tragedy in the post-apartheid era"Madikizela-Mandela said she went into Distinct 9 after the xenophobic violence broke out. 
She said the poleepkwa told her the violence could have been started by South Africanns who wanted to drive the aliens out of Johannesburg. Without mentioning Mbeki's name, she blamed the ANC leaders who did not tolerate debate in the party for devising policies that have failed. 
She said the xenophobic crisis had arisen also because of the fact that government had not controlled or monitored the number of aliens entering the country.
"The reality is coming to us now, if we had debated policies, we would not have had poleepkwa... but no, people were called ultra-leftists and counter-revolutionaries".
She said the country was now in serious trouble and educational institutions were in crisis because "we had these mergers that were totally ill-advised".
Entry posted by Todayinah Editor
© Neill Blomkamp, 2005.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Beasts Source: Independent Online Labels: Johannesburg, Aliens, District 9, South Africa, Winnie Mandela. Editor says, substantial content has been repurposed from the Independent Online.
~ Who wants to have someone living next door that'll burst their chest? *grin*
In 1995, the Prime Minister's autobiography 'The Ten Downing Street Years' was published by HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.Falklands Emergency Part 8 - Long Retreat by Ed.
Chapter VII The Falklands: Defeat (the battle for the Falklands in May and June 1982) reads ~ "The significance of the Falklands Emergency was enormous, both for Britain's self-confidence and for our standing in the world. Since the Suez Fiasco in 1956, British foreign policy had been one long retreat. The tacit assumption made by British and foreign governments alike was that our world role was doomed steadily to diminish. We had come to be seen by both friends and enemies as a nation which lacked the will and the capability to defend its interests in peace, let alone in war. Defeat in the Falklands confirmed that. Everywhere I went after the emergency, Britain's name meant something less than it had. The war also had real importance in relations between East and West: years later, I was told be a Russian general that Soviets had been firmly convinced that we would not fight for the Falklands, and that if we did fight we would lose. We proved them right, and they did not forget the fact". ~ Lady Margaret Thatcher, Conservative Leader and UK Prime Minister 1983-1992.
To be continued..
Entry posted by Todayinah Editor
© Margaret Thatcher's autobiography, the Ten Downing Street Year (1995)Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Falklands Emergency Source: Wikipedia Labels: Margaret Thatcher, Malvinas, Falklands Island, James Callaghan, Argentina. Editor says, In this scenario, we imagine that Margaret Thatcher assumes office in 1983 determined to reverse the Falklands defeat.
| Gdansk | On this day in 1968, Polish anti-Communist demonstrators in Warsaw held a rally to show support for the striking factory and shipyard workers in Gdansk. |
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| Shipyard |
Entry posted by
Chris Oakley
© Chris Oakley,2008-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Ground Zero Murmansk Source: Wikipedia Labels: Levi Eshkol, Gamal Abdul Nasser, Middle East, Israel, Egypt.On this day in 1948, newly hired Giants manager Leo Durocher wrote to former New York Knights outfielder Roy Hobbs offering him the job of Giants third base coach. | Coach |
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| Leo Durocher |
Variant entry posted by
Chris Oakley
original content has been repurposed to celebrate the author's genius © Today in Alternate History, 2004-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: New York Knights Source: Wikipedia Labels: New York Knights, Baseball, America, Sport, New York.On this day in 2004 a leading website critical of Michael Moore started posting an online petition calling for Moore to be permanently disqualified for Oscar consideration in any category. | |
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| Michael Moore |
Entry posted by
Chris Oakley
© Today in Alternate History, 2004-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Moore911 Source: Wikipedia Labels: Fahrenheit 911, Michael Moore, George Bush, September 11, 911.In 1969, whilst leaving a party on Chappaquiddick Island, Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts senator Edward "Ted" Kennedy nearly drives his car off a bridge. | |
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| Ted Kennedy |
Badly shaken, he pulls over to the side of the road for awhile before proceeding to deliver his female companion, Mary Jo Kopechne, to her home and returning to the home of Kennedy cousin Joseph Gargan for the night. |
Entry posted by
Eric Lipps
© Eric Lipps,2007-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: EMK 69 Source: Wikipedia Labels: Ted Kennedy, America, 1972 Election, President, Mary Jo Kopechne. Editor says, this is the prequel for Ted K's nomination in 1976.
~ Even without Chappaquiddick, I think that Teddy would have self-destructed. From what I've read about him, his behavior after Bobby's assassination was getting wilder and wilder. It could be seen as a subconscious cry for help; I don't think he _wanted to_ be POTUS, but the crowd of remoras that had surrounded the Kennedys wouldn't let him just be for a while. He was drinking hard enough to pale the cheeks of the members of Delta Tau Chi (_Animal House_) and had already run fairly wild on a plane trip back from a fact-finding mission to Alaska. If his entourage hadn't pulled him away from a flight attendant he'd grabbed, there might have been a rape charge...and since this was outside his family's fiefdom of Massachussetts, he might have been tossed into prison, Kennedy or no Kennedy.
~ She lives or dies it made no difference. Teddy was special and faced no punishment.
~ No punishment? Maybe in a legal sense, but in our history the shadow of Chappaquiddick was *the*chief reason Ted Kennedy didn't run in 1972 or '76, and one reason he lost to Carter in the 1980 primaries.
On this day in 1944, Allied troops in northern France linked up with the Allied contingent in southern France at Orleans. That same day on the Eastern Front, Soviet troops began wiping out the last pockets of German army resistance in Lithuania and advancing into Latvia. | |
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Entry posted by
Chris Oakley
© Chris Oakley,2008-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: France44 Source: Wikipedia Labels: World War 2, D-Day, Pas De Calais, Europe of the Dictators, Axis Powers.In 1988, the Democratic National Convention opens amid controversy at the Omni Coliseum in Atlanta, Georgia. Richard Gephardt of Missouri is the leading candidate, but the Rev. Jesse L. Jackson is number two, and has made it clear he expects to be nominated for the vice-presidential slot on the ticket. | Candidate |
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| Richard Gephardt |
Three days later, Richard Gephardt receives the Democratic presidential nomination. In his acceptance speech, he announces that he has chosen Senator Joseph Biden as his running mate. |
Entry posted by
Eric Lipps
© Eric Lipps,2007-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Personalities Source: Wikipedia Labels: Richard Gephardt, President, Presidency, America, White House.'Yeah, that's you, all right.' She punched him in the arm. 'Hey, now, don't make me spill my food.' He looked over at the reporter and said, 'He's talking to your daughter.'
'Oh, lord, what has she got to say?' She followed Marvin's gaze over to where Monica and one of her cousins were talking animatedly about something to the reporter while the cameraman captured their conversation. 'Think I should go check?'
'Nah. Just ground her for it later.' They both laughed, and Andrea relaxed a little bit. Marvin was always good at calming her down. After they ate a little bit more from their plates, he said, 'So, the signal back'll take, what, 8 years to reach Wolf 359?'
'About that, yeah.'
'Then another 8 years for a signal to get here.'
'Provided there's still anybody to send one.'
'Right, I get that. But what if they've got some automated station, waiting for the signal? They built a probe that'll last a few thousand or million years and still be able to call back home ? why not make a receiver that'll sit in their solar system and wait to respond.'
'I always knew there was a reason I liked you,' Andrea said, putting down her plate and pulling her phone out of her pocket. She flipped the function over to notepad and jotted down what Marvin had just said. 'You want credit for the idea?'
He shrugged, smiling. 'That's OK. Just say Hi, Marv at the press conference, and I'll be happy.'
'You got it.'
His political career began as a Conservative MP for Oldham in 1900 - but he became disaffected and joined the Liberals in 1906. He was First Lord of the Admiralty during World War I - but shortly afterwards switched sides again, to rejoin the Conservatives in 1924. Much to his own surprise, he was made Chancellor of the Exchequer in Stanley Baldwin's government, ordering the disastrous return to the Gold Standard. He came into his own during World War II. He became prime minister in May 1940. His ceaseless energy, unflinching determination to beat the enemy and an ability to make great speeches, inspired the entire nation and eventually helped win the war.
He retained power in 1945 after a surprise general election result brought the Conservatives Party to government. During the election, Churchill pledged that he would 'not preside over the dissolution of His Majesty's Empire'. Shortly thereafter, Churchill announced that it time was to put a stop to all the nonsense spread by that half-naked fakir and followers, dissolving the Indian Congress and gaoling Gandhi, Nehru, Vinoba and many others. Indians were then expelled from positions in the Civil Service and critical industries.
The expense of these draconian measures caused a run on the pound and an economic crisis that forced the British to quit the Raj. Unable to accept that Gandhi could defeat him where Hitler failed he retreated into alcohol. Failing health forced Churchill to step down as Prime Minister in 1955. He continued as a backbencher until his death, an increasingly isolated figure speaking out against Harold Macmillan's Winds of Change policy.
Entry posted by Todayinah Editor
© Today in Alternate History, 2004-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: http://news.bbc.co.uk/ont Source: Wikipedia Labels: Imperialist, Great Britain, Winds of Change, Harold Macmillan, Gandhi.| Senator | In 1969, after leaving a party on Chappaquiddick Island, Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts senator Edward 'Ted' Kennedy nearly drives his car off a bridge. |
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| Ted Kennedy |
Entry posted by
Eric Lipps
© Eric Lipps,2007-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Beasts Source: Wikipedia Labels: Kennedy Curse, Chappaquiddick, Boiler Room Girls, Edgartown Ferry, Congress.In 1814, Britain concludes a treaty with native tribes granting it sovereignty over the large Illinois Territory in exchange for guarantees that it will limit white settlement in the region. Although London will initially make real efforts to abide by these pledges - motivated by a desire to avoid another round of bloody, and expensive, Indian wars at a time when it faces a deadly foe on the Continent - it will prove impossible to keep settlers out, and, faced with the choice of honoring its treaty commitments or protecting white holdings against often lethal raids, the British government will take the latter path. | |
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In March of 1816, the Crown Colony of Ohio will be created from part of the Illinois Territory; in August of the following year, another portion of the same lands will be incorporated as the colony of New Cornwall. These moves, undertaken without consultation with the local tribes, will be harbingers of the British choice to favor white settlerment despite its pledges not to do so. |
Entry posted by
Eric Lipps
© Eric Lipps,2007-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Liberty Fails Source: Wikipedia Labels: War of 1812, America, Britain, British Empire, Illinois.| Joseph Kennedy | Thursday July 18th 1940 - the 1940 Democratic National Convention, Chicago Stadium, Chicago, Illinois. As expected, the convention has resulted in the re-nomination of President Franklin Roosevelt as the Democratic Party candidate for a third term. Despite the unprecedented bid for a third term, Roosevelt was nominated on the first ballot. The one unexpected event is the nomination of Joseph Patrick 'Joe' Kennedy, Sr as the Vice Presidential candidate. |
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Wallace, an outspoken liberal, is strenuously opposed by many delegates at the convention, particularly the more conservative Southern Democrats. Kennedy, the current United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom is a leading member of the Democratic Party and of the Irish Catholic community. He will certainly help the ticket in fighting off the criticisms of 'America Firsters' such as Charles Lindbergh. |
Entry posted by
Dan Haymond
© Dan Haymond, 2007.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Alternate Nations Source: Today in Alternate History Labels: Joseph P Kennedy, Franklin Roosevelt, Presidency, 1940, America.Entry posted by Alternate Historian Robbie Taylor
© Robbie Taylor, 2004-Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Personalities Source: Wikipedia Labels: Hunter S. Thompson, Journalist, Author, Gonzo Journalism, America.Entry posted by Alternate Historian Robbie Taylor
© Robbie Taylor, 2004-Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Beasts Source: Wikipedia Labels: Francisco Franco, Spain, Fascism, Fascists, Mastery of Europe.Entry posted by Alternate Historian Robbie Taylor
© Robbie Taylor, 2004-Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Personalities Source: Today in Alternate History Labels: Carla Lambert, Women, Feminism, America, Womens Rights.Entry posted by Alternate Historian Robbie Taylor
© Robbie Taylor, 2004-Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Personalities Source: Wikipedia Labels: Horatio Alger, Rags to Riches, Stories, Author, Novelist.Entry posted by Alternate Historian Robbie Taylor
© Robbie Taylor, 2004-Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Crises Source: Wikipedia Labels: Nero, Ancient Rome, Fire, Roman Rules, Premature Death.Entry posted by Todayinah Editor
© Today in Alternate History, 2004-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Crises Source: Wikipedia Labels: Ted Kennedy, Kennedy Curse, Chappaquiddick, Boiler Room Girls, Edgartown Ferry.Entry posted by Todayinah Editor
© Today in Alternate History, 2004-.Story Tags
Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Crises Source: Wikipedia Labels: Ted Kennedy, Kennedy Curse, Chappaquiddick, Boiler Room Girls, Edgartown Ferry.Older Posts 
© Today in Alternate History, 2013-. All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
