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|April 19
Editor says, what if Lincoln had survived the Night of Terror (but Seward and Johnson did not)? muses Allen W. McDonnell. Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
In 1865, following the Night of Terror brought by the Booth Conspiracy Abraham Lincoln summoned the US Congress into session on this the first Monday after Easter.
Booth Conspiracy brings Night of Terror, Part 2 by Ed, Allen W. McDonnell & Jeff ProvineIn a solemn address he paid his dutiful respects to the two dead national leaders, Vice-President Andrew Johnson and Secretary of State William Seward. Also his gratitude to the military policeman who had intercepted John Wilkes Booth at the Ford Theatre.
Having reflected on the events of April 14th, and after holding several rounds of intense discussions with the Cabinet, Lincoln had developed a robust set of proposals that would safeguard the Federal Government from a re-occurrence of such a future conspiracy. Accordingly, he was asking for a Constitutional Amendment that would make the post of Vice President equal to those of the Cabinet, a person appointed by the President to serve at his pleasure as the President of the Senate (the official title of the Vice President).
The Amendment easily passes the joint session of Congress by the necessary margin and was also passed quickly by the States of the Union making it part of the Constitution. From the election of 1868 onward people only elect the President, the Vice President and Cabinet Secretaries are appointed by the President with the Advice and Consent of the Senate. However in his auto-biography, Lincoln would reveal that an even more far-reaching proposal that was considered - the President to also appoint a new position, President of the House [1] as a second Vice President.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Conspiracy Theories Era: US Civil War Source: Wikipedia Labels: Abraham Lincoln, John Wilkes Booth, William Seward, Andrew Johnson, Assasination.
Editor says, this is a follow-up variation to Jeff Provine's April 14, 1865 - Booth Conspiracy brings Night of Terror proposed by Allen W. McDonnell.
[1] Like the UK Prime Minister position combined with the USA Speaker of the House position. Editorial comments are entered in [light green] typeface.
Editor says, what if Simon Peter had refused to disown the Lord, had been martyred in Jerusalem and consequently had never taken up the "Commission of Peter"? Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
On this fateful day Simon Peter kept his word and made good on his pledge that "Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will" despite the Lord's prediction at the Last Supper "This very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times". Of course Jesus surely knew that he had already planted temptation in his mind when he had said "Whither I go, thou canst not follow me now; but thou shalt follow me afterwards" to which Peter had replied "Lord, why cannot I follow thee now?".
Peter the Rock stands trueThe Gospel of Luke records the events after the arrest of Jesus ~ Then seizing him, they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest. Peter followed at a distance. And when some there had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter sat down with them. A servant girl saw him seated there in the firelight. She looked closely at him and said, "This man was with him" to which he faithfully replied "Even if I have to die with him, I will never disown the Lord".
As a consequence of his unshakeable faith he never fulfils the prophecy to become the Rock upon which the Early Church is built. Instead of following God's holy plan and taking the Church to Rome to become the first Pope, Simon Peter is crucified on the cross right next to Jesus (upside down at his request). And although the Good News would falter in Europe, not so in the enlightened lands of the blessed south where St Mark took the Word into Egypt and it spread like wildfire across the horn of Africa and thereafter the entire continent. Centuries later a new religion would arise in Mid World, and only the Mediterranean Sea would act as a temporary barrier between Islamic Europe and leaders of the Black Jesus wearing the Fisherman's ring in their Ethiopian Vatican, praise his holy name for it is most high.
Author's Note: in reality the denial of Peter led directly to his leadership of the early Church. According to the 1911 Catholic Encyclopedia, Peter laboured in Rome during the last portion of his life, and there his life was ended by martyrdom. The death of Peter is attested to by Tertullian at the end of the 2nd century, and by Origen in Eusebius, Church History III.1. Origen wrote: "Peter was crucified at Rome with his head downwards, as he himself had desired to suffer". This is why an upside down cross is generally accepted as a symbol of Peter, with the interpretation that he would not have considered himself worthy enough to die the same way as his Saviour.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Politicians Era: Post Coldwar Topic: Religion Source: Wikipedia Labels: Gospel, Jesus, Rock, Crucifixion, Jerusalem.
Editor says, what if Maryland had seceded? Muses Jeff Provine on the This Day in Alternate History web site. Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
With four men taken seriously on the ballots of the 1860 election, Abraham Lincoln's victory sent all those who had voted solidly for Southern Democrat John C. Breckenridge calling for secession. The matter escalated, and Washington sat unsure of what to do in a legally ambiguous situation. When the new Confederate state of South Carolina opened fire on the Union Fort Sumter sitting in their capital's harbor, civil war officially began. Lincoln now had legal standing to fight on grounds of returning captured Federal property, and he called for 75,000 volunteers to serve. The call was answered widely in the North; Ohio itself produced enough to fill the national quota.
April 19, 1861 - Baltimore Riots Lead to Maryland's SecessionGetting these troops to the front was a serious logistical issue. Foremost in the military's mind was protecting Washington, D.C., just across the river from Virginia, seceded as of April 17. All around the federal city, Marylanders wondered what would become of their state. The electors had voted for Breckenridge, and folks shared the spirit of the South. They were also seafarers and traders linked to the North, creating a delicate balance that troubled many in what would become known as the Border States. Most of the Western Marylanders had voted for John Bell of the Constitutional Union party, who wanted to keep the nation together under clear terms, but his carried state of Virginia had already given up such a dream. With no way to be certain on how the vote would go, Maryland officials such as Governor Thomas Hicks were hesitant to call for a formal vote.
The military, meanwhile, acted. Union troops were brought down from the North to the rail hub in Baltimore. There, they had to march across town, through streets lined with Confederate sympathizers, to board southwest-bound trains for Washington. On April 19, the 6th Massachusetts began the transition to find the path blocked by protestors. The protestors became violent, throwing stones and shouting at the Northerners to get out of their city. Troops opened fire out of panic, and the protesters charged them. Police began to swarm the area, but even they could not stop the fighting. Somewhere in the crowd, a series of protestors produced guns and returned fire.
The regiment's commander Colonel Edward F. Jones determined that retreat was no longer an option. He had warned his troops the night before to "pay no attention to the mob". The civilians had created themselves combatants, so he rallied his troops into formation to return fire. Baltimoreans were leveled, and the mob scrambled to escape. Jones directed the men in fixing bayonets and marching out firmly to their waiting transport to Washington.
With dead scattered in the streets, Marylanders rose up. After the raid on Harper's Ferry by John Brown, many in the state had formed militias as a precaution against a violent slave revolt. The call went out, and that night the militia seized the railroad bridges leading into the city. Whether they had official authority from Hicks and Balitmore's Mayor George Brown was kept vague, but they were effective in turning around a trainload of troops. Major General Robert Patterson, commander of the Department of Washington, ordered Brigadier General Benjamin Franklin Butler to secure the state. Militia countered with guerilla warfare, but the Union's superior arms enabled them to seize the major cities and declare martial law.
During their retreat to Virginia, the politicians who escaped arrest in Maryland voted for secession. Brown was captured and held in Baltimore while Hicks hurried to Washington to plead for peace that proved impossible, as Lincoln would explain that "Union soldiers were neither birds to fly over Maryland, nor moles to burrow under it".
Secession was politically significant, but largely moot as the military filled the void of elected government. Chaos with torn up railroads and cut telegraphs ruled in the countryside while strict regulations kept the cities from turning back into riots.
The Southern cry was to liberate the Marylanders. Virginian Generals Beauregard and Johnston were able to fend off a Union invasion at Bull Run, while Union troops held off two Confederate assaults late that summer. Eventually the stalemate around the Potomac swayed toward the Confederate side as they managed to float an army into southern Maryland. Many in Congress called for the evacuation of Washington, but Lincoln refused to budge, knowing what a political calamity it would be. The city was turned into a fortress and besieged time and again, but its defenses were unable to be cracked. Union General McClellan gained great aplomb for his efforts in drawing Confederate attention away in his Peninsular Campaign.
After years of brutal warfare that depopulated much of Maryland, victories in the West enabled the North to actualize the Anaconda Plan formulated by retiring General Winfield Scott that would choke out Confederate resources. Measures to placate Maryland tested the most effective strategies for occupying the South for Reconstruction as the war came to a close. The use of militias prompted a clear legal definition of "peaceable assembly", which caused Federal crackdown on fraternities such as the Klan as they grew up. National loyalty was rewarded, and subversion resulted in public humiliation rather than execution to prompt vengeance. Troublemakers found themselves as forced exiles on the Canadian borders. A strong military system invaded the American populace with a continuance of the draft that used young men in civil service. Blurry "American" ideals spawned wide-spread government corruption, but it would be generations before Americans would be willing to speak out against it.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Jeff Provine Blog Era: World War 2 Source: Jeff Provine's Blog Labels: John C. Breckenridge, Abraham Lincoln, US Civil War, Maryland, America.
Editor says, in reality, the rioters limited themselves to cobblestones and bricks for ammunition. The brawl claimed sixteen lives: four soldiers and sixteen Baltimoreans. Maryland did, in fact, vote on secession April 29, and the legislature opposed it 53 to 13. Nonetheless, for the security of the nation, General Butler declared martial law, suspending habeas corpus and ensuring no further votes could be held. In commemoration of the riot, James Ryder Randall, Marylander living in Louisiana, wrote "Maryland, My Maryland," which would later become the state song despite somewhat shocking lyrics. Union troops also secured the border states of Delaware and Missouri, the latter with more violence. Editorial comments are entered in [light green] typeface.
Editor says, what if New Netherlands had been re-founded by the Dutch Navy? muses Dirk Puehl. Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
By 1647, things looked quite bleak for the settlements of the Dutch West India Company's settlements in North America. New Amsterdam, the company's most important trade centre, was lost to the English in 1665 and it was a bold stroke that the Dutch naval captain Jurriaen Aernoutsz captured the French settlements of Acadia along the Kennebec River during the Franco-Dutch War of 1674.
This post was written by Dirk Puehl the highly recommended author of #onthisday #history Google+ posts.
The Foundation of Nieuw Zwolle and the Republic of New HollandNaming the place New Holland, Aernoutsz appointed a governor and went to the Dutch West Indies to find willing colonists for the WIC's latest acquisition. Returning with a shipload of them, the experienced skipper managed to slip behind three English men-of-war out of Boston who tried to intercept him and land in what was to become the capital Nieuw Zwolle at the mouth of the Kennebec in Penobscot Bay. This day, April 19th 1674, marks the actual beginning of New Holland.
Settling various differences with His Majesty's Colony of Massachusetts and the English, Aernoutsz and his new governor Cornelius van Steenwyk pushed northwards towards New France and the St Lawrence River valley. Without resources to speak of from the mother country, Aernoutsz rose above himself in diplomatic skill, managed to form an alliance with Massachusetts' governor Josiah Winslow and the Iroquois Confederation and his colony of New Holland and captured Montreal in 1678 and Quebec early in 1679.
Teeth-gnashing, the French had to accept a major loss of their New France territory with the Treaty of Nijmegen. The Dutch Republic was with one stroke one of the players in the round of North American colonial powers again.
Grown rich on the fur trade, New Holland participated actively in the War of the Spanish Succession and gained the French territory of New Brunswick under the Treaty of Utrecht and the Seven Years' War saw them expand to the Eastern shores of the Great Lakes.
The relationship between the New Hollanders and the English in Rupert's Land on the Hudson Bay and the East Coast was never easy and took a while to heal after the colony joined the mother country in declaring war on the British during the American War of Independence, ending with a territorial status quo of the colonies after the Peace of Paris in 1783.
New Holland almost faced Civil War, when Napoleon occupied the Netherlands in 1795 between the pro-Napoleonic faction and the Onafhankelijkheid party who wanted their own, independent North American Republic. The later President of the Republic of New Holland, Willem van Steenwyk, a descendant of Cornelius, won the relatively bloodless conflict and the country was proclaimed a republic on June 21st 1796 in Nieuw Zwolle.
An article from the multi-author American Mini-states thread.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: American mini states Era: 17th Century Source: Wikipedia Labels: Nieuw Zwolle, New Netherlands, Dutch, American, Friendship.
Editor says, what if New Netherlands had survived? muses Jeff Provine. Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
In response to unrestricted submarine warfare by the Germans, American President Woodrow Wilson delivered on April 18, 1916, an ultimatum that continued attack on American ships would provoke war. The next day, Neiu Nederlander President Theodoor van Rosevelt traveled to Washington to show his agreement. If the US went to war, the American Dutch would bravely join them.
An article from the multi-author American Mini-states thread.
Neiu Nederlanders back AmericansThe two nations had grown up alongside one another as Europeans colonized North America. The English threatened to eliminate the Dutch from their holdings of New Amsterdam when four frigates occupied the harbor. Director-General Peter Stuyvesant, after considering ceding the land in hopes of retaking it, decided to head off a Second Anglo-Dutch War and refused. After firing on the city, the frigates were rebuffed and returned to England empty-handed.
Since that time, New Amsterdam quickly expanded. Jews ousted from Brazil as Portugal retook Dutch conquests flooded into the city, and immigrants from all over the world were accepted. The economy flourished as pelts were harvested from the upper Hudson and established shipping. When the twin states of New England and Great Virginia declared independence from Britain, the Dutch granted support first financially and then through its impressive navy. When Napoleon conquered the Netherlands in Europe, Neiu Nederlands announced its own independence.
Relations between Neiu Nederlanders and Americans were amicable. They were particularly close with New England due to ties in shipping and manufacturing, although relations were at times strained while the United States to the south determining water rights of Lake Erie. When New England broke off trade with the US over slavery, the Nederlanders maintained a lucrative neutrality. The sudden surge of trade brought about a new golden age, which led to a great deal of corruption that responded in a powerful Progressive Movement, headed by the young Theodoor van Rosevelt.
Rosevelt was part of the wealthy and politically influential family that had begun with Claes Maartenszen van Rosevelt, who purchased a large farm on Manhattan Island that would translate into enormous wealth as the city grew. Theodoor was born in 1858 and struggled through his childhood suffering from asthma. He overcame the disease by determination and exercise with seeming limitless energy, features that would define his life. After his education, Theodoor traveled extensively to the American West as well as Dutch holdings in the Caribbean and South America. He returned and entered civil service, soon becoming Director of the Navy where he built a canal through Panama and led the Great White Fleet on its tour around the world. By 1910, he was elected President.
When war erupted in Europe, Rosevelt hoped to join quickly and use the impressive New Dutch fleet, but business was too good trading through the neutral Netherlands. Despite his extensive campaigning, it wasn't until the Americans threatened Germany that he finally gained the agreement of shipping interests who disapproved of attacks by uboats. In 1917, unrestricted submarine warfare resumed, and a joint declaration of war was announced. Thanks to Rosevelt's anticipation, New Dutch troops joined the front almost immediately.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: American mini states Era: World War 1 Source: Jeff Provine's Blog Labels: Nieuw Zwolle, New Netherlands, Dutch, American, Friendship.
Editor says, what if the Dutch Government refused to accept the 1962 agreement with Indonesia? muses Marko Bosscher. Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
Since 1949, with independence the status of New Guinea had been a bone of contention between the Netherlands and Indonesia. Shortly before the independence the Dutch government had unilaterally decided that New (West) Guinea would remain Dutch even after the official recognition of Indonesian independence.
War in New GuineaIn the decade that followed Indonesian president Sukarno would repeatedly call for annexation of New Guinea, and in 1958 the tensions started to boil over. A more conservative Dutch government, backed by guarantees from American minister of Foreign affairs John Foster Dulles, started reinforcing the Dutch military presence and created a law that would allow Dutch soldiers to be stationed overseas.
The Indonesian government also upped the stakes, parachutists were landed on New Guinea and leaflets dropped. Although direct confrontation was avoided for now the Indonesian military was clearly flexing it's muscles.
The first combat action happened in january 1962, when three Indonesian motor torpedo boats loaded with infiltrators were intercepted by the Dutch navy. One MTB was sunk by a Dutch frigate another ran aground and the third was damaged by Dutch fire. In the intervening years Indonesia had gotten closer to the Soviet Union and the Soviets started sending troops to Indonesia started sending alongside the weapons that were already being sold to that country.
The Dutch government decided to up it's military presence in the region with extra soldiers and an anti-aircraft battalion to bolsters it's . While tensions mount the US tries to pressure both parties into a diplomatic solution, but in early august negotiations break down as Indonesia demands the transfer of New Guinea on 1 january of the next year.
On 15 August the invasion fleet takes to the sea, and a Soviet submarines slips into the harbour while 5 others take up position to block any seagoing vessel entering or exiting the waters around New Guinea.
Although the Dutch forces were in a state of readiness the attack still takes them by surprise. The fuel tanks in Mankovari harbour go up in flames, followed shortly by the frigate anchored there, in the chaos the Soviet submarine escapes unnoticed.
One of the other two frigates is badly damaged by a torpedo attack as it sails to Mankovari and barely manages to limp into port.
The third frigate attempts to intercept the Indonesian invasion fleet, but is itself intercepted by the Soviet submarines and turned back. Meanwhile thousands of Indonesian and Soviet soldiers start disembarking.
Although US president John F. Kennedy sharply denounces the Indonesian actions no military aid will be forthcoming, and any mention of the Soviet forces is studiously avoided. With the Americans tied up in Vietnam the Dutch soldiers conduct a valiant but vain defence of the Island. Within two weeks the main Dutch positions have all been taken and the threat of Soviet submarines is preventing reinforcements. Even the Dutch aircraft carrier Karel Doorman which has hastily steamed towards the East is kept at bay by the submarine threat.
Back in the Netherlands the government unilaterally declares a ceasefire as it's last act before resigning. Although Indonesia now holds all of New Guinea it will take months before this is officially recognized, the parliamentary elections fail to create a stable coalition. It is not until 19 april 1963 that a peace agreement is signed, and even then the agreement is little more than a recognition of the status quo in exchange for repatriation of all Dutch prisoners of war.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Politicians Era: Cold War Source: Wikipedia Labels: Netherlands, New Guinea, Indonesia, John F. Kennedy, Vietnam.
Editor says, in reality: Under heavy US pressure the Dutch government accepts the August 1962 agreement. Foreign minister Luns delays signing the agreement until the 15th, just hours before the Indonesian invasion would have started. Editorial comments are entered in [light green] typeface.
Editor says, what if Hitler, Trotsky, Tito, Freud and Stalin teamed up in pre-war Vienna? Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
In 1913, on this day Imperial police arrested dozens of subversive intellectuals gathered at the Café Central, a notorious coffeehouse in the Old Town of Vienna.
The Arrests at the Central Cafe, Part 1In the struggle, an innocent member of the Viennese intellectual scene was killed. This was the famous Austrian neurologist Dr Sigmund Freud, who had the misfortune that evening of wandering across from his favourite haunt, the Café Landtmann on the Ring.
Drawn together into custody were an assorted group of trouble individuals including Josip Broz, Leon Bronstein, Adolf Schicklegruber and Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili. Of various ethnicities drawn together by the brutalizing experience of senseless murder, the inner core of a revolutionary ring was formed. Upon their release, they set about ending the polyglot rule of the Habsburg's and their dastardly suppression of multi-nationalities across Europe.
The events had been triggered by the expiry of Emperor Franz Joseph (pictured) who had ruled since the revolution of 1848. The crackdown ordered by his successor Franz Ferdinand would cause a second, much more bloody overthrow that would end centuries of Habsburg rule.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Politicians Era: Pre World War 1 Source: Wikipedia Labels: Vienna, Politicals, Radicals, Subversive, Austrian.
Editor says, As reported on the BBC Web Site all of these individuals were gathered in Vienna for a month in 1913. A similiar fictional encounter is explored in works like "Dr Freud Will See You Now, Mr Hitler" - a 2007 radio play by Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran.
A well known story is that when Victor Adler objected to Count Berchtold, foreign minister of Austria-Hungary, that war would provoke revolution in Russia, even if not in the Habsburg monarchy, he replied: "And who will lead this revolution? Perhaps Mr. Bronstein (Leon Trotsky) sitting over there at the Cafe Central?". Editorial comments are entered in [light green] typeface.
Editor says, what if Lenin had died in 1917? muses Bryan Caplan. Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
In 1917, on this day the Russian Marxist theorist and German Agent Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov (codename Lenin) died of a heart attack brought upon by the rejection of his call for an immediate socialist revolution (his "April Theses") by the Petrograd Soviet.
Death of LeninWritten on the train from Geneva and based upon his early theory of imperialism, the theses was more radical than virtually anything Lenin's fellow revolutionaries had heard. And just four weeks after the fall of tsarism, his thought process was completely out of context as a result of his isolation from mainstream political doctrine. Only later was the discovery made of an insidious German plot to force Russia out of the Great War.
To Lenin's huge disappointment, resistance was overwhelming. Pravda's editorial board refused to print it on the pretext of a mechanical breakdown in its printing press. And a meeting of the Bolshevik Central Committee on April 6 passed a negative resolution on them. Just twenty-four hours before his heart attack the Petrograd Committee had overwhelmingly voted the manifesto, two voting in favor, thirteen against, with one abstention.
However Lenin's death was not the end of the germ of communism that the Imperial German Government had placed in the sealed train from Switzerland. After the war, his political heir Leon Trotsky left Russia heading Westwards. He would later become a Political Commissar in the Sparticist Government in Berlin. In 1940, he would be sent to Geneva where the League of Nations was debating St Petersburg's request for military assistance to defend Republican Russia's territorial integrity from German Communist aggression.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Russland Era: Dark Valley Source: Wikipedia Labels: Lenin, Soviet Union, Russia, Tsar, Bolshevik.
Editor says, in this article we explore an original idea by Bryan Caplan on the Library of Economics and Liberty. Also we have repurposed content from Wikipedia. Editorial comments are entered in [light green] typeface.
Editor says, what if John Adams had been persuaded to accept a more suitable position in the US Government? Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
In 1721, on this day the first Vice President of the United States Roger Sherman was born in Newton, Massachusetts.
Birth of Roger ShermanHe is especially notable for being the only person to sign all four great state papers of the United States: the United States Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Association, the Articles of Confederation, and the United States Constitution.
With John Adams reluctantly accepting his greater suitability for the position of Supreme Court Justice, Sherman emerged as the leading candidate for Vice President. "a man who never said a foolish thing in his life" ~ Jefferson on ShermanIt was an inspired choice, through measured advice at cabinet he successfully acted as an anti-Federalist counter weight to the excesses of Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton.
Health permitting, he could have risen to the Presidency itself; but instead, Washington was succeeded by Secretary of State, Thomas Jefferson, a man who might well have quit the cabinet had Hamilton not been forced out. And therein lie the problem, because by the time of the "revolution of 1800" Burr, Hamilton et al had joined forces and returned with avengeance, armed with a mandate to dismantle the Jeffersonian governance structure.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Generals Era: American Revolution Source: Wikipedia Labels: Roger Sherman, John Adams, Alexander Hamilton, Presidency, Thomas Jefferson.
Editor says, many thanks to Scott Palter for his contribution to the development of this article. Editorial comments are entered in [light green] typeface.
Editor says, what if LBJ had been re-elected and sent Gregory Peck to Ireland in 1969? Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
In 1969, on this day the actor Eldred Gregory Peck was appointed United States Ambassador (Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary) to Ireland.
Great AdventureNeedless to say the appointment of a lifelong supporter of the Democratic Party would have been unthinkable had the Republicans won the recent Presidential election. The GOP nominee, Richard Nixon had actually placed him on his enemies list due to his liberal activism. This was primarily due to his opposition to Hollywood blacklisting; in 1947 he signed a letter which deplored a House Un-American Activities Committee investigation of alleged communists in the film industry.
An intensely private man, Peck had only accepted the "great adventure" because of his Irish ancestry. That flowery description of the new role was his own phrase, but surely the timing of his arrival in Ireland on the eve of the sectarian violence surrounding the "Battle of the Bogside was precipitous.
Peck had not sought political office. He had politely, but firmly declined, offers to run against Ronald Reagan for State Senate in 1964, and later the Governship of California in 1968. After the elections, Democrat supporters (including the defeated incumbent Governor Edmund Brown) were convinced that his charisma, and celebrity status, could have defeated his fellow actor.
A political confrontation between the two actors finally occurred in 1987 when Peck did the voice over on television commercials opposing Reagan's Supreme Court nomination of conservative jurist Robert Bork. Bork's nomination was defeated to the disgust of many, including another actor Charlton Heston who registered his protest by formally joining the Republican Party.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Politicians Era: Post Coldwar Source: Wikipedia Labels: Gregory Peck, Ireland, America, Ambassador, Liberal.
Editor says, in an interview with the Irish media, Peck revealed that former President Lyndon Johnson had told him that, had he sought re-election in 1968, he intended to offer Peck the post of U.S. ambassador to Ireland - a post Peck, due to his Irish ancestry, said he might well have taken, saying "[It] would have been a great adventure". Author Michael Freedland, in his biography of Peck, substantiates the report and says that Johnson indicated that his presentation of the Medal of Freedom to Peck would perhaps make up for his inability to confer the ambassadorship. Editorial comments are entered in [light green] typeface.
Editor says, what if the Austrian Empress Maria Theresa had died in 1740? 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).
In 1713, with no living male heirs, Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor, issued the Pragmatic Sanction to ensure that Habsburg lands and the Austrian throne would be inherited by his daughter, Maria Theresa of Austria (not actually born until 1717). But unfortunately Maria Theresa did not survive her father for long and the Austrian Throne was left empty.
Austrian Throne Left Vacant On an October day twenty-seven years later Charles decided he would like some mushrooms for dinner. Delighted, he shared them with his daughter and heir, Maria Theresa, whom he had kept near him for fear of his death since 1738. He had worked throughout his reign to secure the Pragmatic Sanction of 1713, which would allow a daughter to secure the throne of Austria. Female rulers, while sometimes seen in Europe such as England's Elizabeth and Poland's Jadwiga, were simply unheard of in the traditions of the ruling empires of the Continent. All of Charles' work would be undone in a quick lapse of thought as the mushrooms would prove poisonous.
Charles died, and Maria Theresa followed him soon after. It was believed that Maria Theresa was pregnant, but autopsy upon a royal was forbidden, and there was no reasonable way to be sure beyond the whispers of her nurses. Maria Theresa's husband, Francis Stephen, stood to directly inherit the titles, but he was distrusted by many of his people, and his claims were hardly locked in iron-clad law. Instead, a surge of Austrian nobles, as well as the Hapsburgs in Spain, looked to take up the throne. Civil war would break out in the empire and then all through Europe in what became known as the War of the Austrian Succession.
Austria proved itself unable to secure a ruler. Its coffers had been emptied by the expenses of the War of the Polish Succession and the Russo-Turkish War. Charles had ignored suggestions to focus on restoring the imperial treasury as well as expanding the military, which had dwindled to 80,000 soldiers who had not been paid in months. Instead, Charles focused on the security of his Pragmatic Sanction, but now there was no ruler at all. Austria unable to defend itself, Frederick the Great of Prussia would begin the international move carving up the empire with his invasion of Silesia on December 16. The Hungarian Diet would declare its independence early in 1741 and drop out of the war.
The rest of Europe would hurry to grab what it could. France and Spain turned on each other and fought bitterly over duchies in northern Italy. Frederick, meanwhile, began a campaign to unite the German states not as Holy Roman Emperor, but as Emperor of Germany, a Kaiser as he called it. Saxony would initially fight, then yield, as would most of the others. England joined Spain against France in a bid for domination in the colonies of North America and India. Russia, meanwhile, became embroiled in a two-front war with Sweden while attempting to block the Prussians' move south.
When the war ended and the dust settled on battlefields in 1756, Europe reached a new balance of power. Spain made great gains in Italy, Germany stood united under the Prussian crown, and Russia gained a sphere of influence in the Balkans. The French were removed from North America while the British came to dominate Canada and India. Expenses would be charged upon the colonies, spurring a reprisal from the American colonists that demanded representation to determine their taxes. As one of his last actions before his death, George II promoted new ministers of parliament from the colonies, a rash decision in the minds of many, but what he considered best rather than leaving the matter to his grandson who would "foul it up".
Austria itself would become a shadow with only its lands east of the Alps under the new Austrian King Leopold. The many subordinate peoples broke free and named their own kings, which each had to be approved by the Great Powers to ensure a return to European stability.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Jeff Provine Blog Era: 18th Source: Jeff Provine's Blog Labels: Austria, Hungary, Maria Theresa, Habsburg, Vienna.
Editor says, in reality Maria Theresa survived her father. The Pragmatic Sanction divided Europe as many supported the Austrian succession while Prussia's Fredrick the Great led the dispute against it, seizing Silesia. After years of war and the deaths of thousands, much of the status quo would return to Europe despite extravagant battle plans. Spain took a few duchies in Italy in the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1748 while Prussia kept Silesia, but few questions had been answered. These matters would be brought up again in the Seven Years' War less than a decade later. Editorial comments are entered in [light green] typeface.
On this day in 1943, Xavier March became the youngest U-boat captain in the history of the German navy, assuming command of the U-106 after his old commanding officer was killed during a British depth-charge attack. March's bunkmate, Rudi Halder, assumed March's former post as U-106's executive officer.
|Xavier March
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Xavier March Story Source: Wikipedia Labels: Robert Harris, Fatherland, Xavier March, Miranda Richardson, Charlotte Maguire.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Arthur II Source: Robbie Taylors Blog Labels: Arthur Pendragon, Robbie A. Taylor, Camelot Redux, Merlin, England.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Sockless Source: Robbie Taylors Blog Labels: Jerry Simpson, Robbie A. Taylor, Topeka, Grover Cleveland, 1861.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Mlosh Source: Robbie Taylors Blog Labels: Mlosh, 1720, Robbie A. Taylor, Warp, Alien.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Protocols Source: Robbie Taylors Blog Labels: Elders of Protocols of Zion, Robbie A. Taylor, Greater Zionist Resistence, GZR, Nazi.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Soviet America Topic: Revolution Source: Robbie Taylors Blog Labels: Joel Rosenberg, Robbie A. Taylor, Comrade, Soviet States of America, Communism.
In 1979, prominent leftist Afghan Mir Akhbar Khyber is killed on orders from Afghanistan's president, Mohammed Daoud Khan. Fearing a Communist coup in the aftermath of the murder, President Khan orders the assassination of additional leaders of the country's Communist party, the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan. Among those targeted are Mohammed Taraki, Hafizullah Amin and Babrak Karmal.
Eight days later, Afghan president Mohammed Daoud Khan is overthrown in a coup organized by Mohammed Taraki, who has eluded Khan's hit squads. Khan flees into the Afghan countryside, planning to mount a countercoup with the aid of military forces loyal to him. On May 1, Taraki declares himself president and prime minister of the newly established 'Democratic Republic of Afghanistan' and general secretary of the PDPA. At an emergency meeting of the National Security Council, CIA Director George H. W. Bush urges President Nelson Rockefeller to lend 'all support possible, as fast as possible,' to the fledgling insurgency of deposed President Khan.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Generals Source: Wikipedia Labels: Nelson Rockefeller, Akhbar Khyber, Mohammed Daoud Khan, Afganisatan, America.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Religion Source: Britannia Labels: Benjamin Disraei, Beaconsfield, Anti-semitism, British Government, Britain.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Personalities Source: English History Labels: George Gordon Byron, Poet, Alchocol, Paris, Poetry.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Alternate Nations Source: Wikipedia Labels: Lexington, War of Independence, America, British America, Britain.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Generals Source: Wikipedia Labels: Sir Francis Drake, Spanish Armada, Cadiz, Elizabeth I, Anglo-Spanish Rivalry.
Editor says, what if the Titanic had never sailed? Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
In 1912, unable to either resume normal mode of business operations or otherwise resolve the serious financial difficulties caused by the consequences of the so-called "supermoon", the prominent British shipping company White Star Line was forced into a declaration of bankruptcy.
The White Ghost of DisasterHaving paid millions of pounds to Harland and Wolff to construct the next generation of Olympic-class ocean liner in Belfast ship-building yards, maiden voyages had been postponed due to freak weather conditions in the North Atlantic. This was the result of extraordinary gravitational forces unleashed by the closest lunar approach for fifteen hundred years that had re-floated hundreds of icebergs. Heading south this swarm had soon forced the closure of international shipping lanes operated by passenger liners from White Star Line and its main competitive rival Cunard.
But unfortunately all-too human errors leading to the catastrophic loss of the Olympic had given the now-bankrupt company far more deep rooted problems than Cunard. Philip A. S. Franklin, vice president of the International Mercantile Marine Company (White Star Line's holding company) stated after being told of the sinking "I thought her unsinkable, and I based my opinion on the best expert advice available. I do not understand it".
Because on 20 September 1911, the Olympic was involved in a collision with the Royal Navy Warship HMS Hawke in the Brambles Channel near Southampton. The two ships were close enough to each other that Olympic's motion drew the Hawke into her after starboard side, causing extensive damage to the liner - both above and below its waterline (HMS Hawke was fitted with a re-inforced "ram" below the waterline, purposely designed to cause maximum damage to enemy ships). An Admiralty inquiry assigned blame to the Olympic, despite numerous eye-witness accounts to the contrary.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Disasters Era: Pre World War 1 Source: Wikipedia Labels: White Star Line, Titanic, Supermoon, Britain, Iceberg.
Editor says, in authoring this article we have re-purposed content from National Geographic, the Wire and Wikipedia. Editorial comments are entered in [light green] typeface.
Editor says, what if Denmark had won the Second Schleswig War? Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
In 1864, motivated by their exclusion from German Confederation on the basis of language the Danes under General Læssøe proved a point by narrowly winning a hard-fought victory over the Prussians at the Battle of Dybbøl.
Denmark wins the Second Schleswig WarAlthough Prince Frederick Charles of Prussia had larger forces in reserve, they were needed to repel an unexpected attack by their erstwhile ally, the Austrians.
Ironically, it was Læssøe's actions taken after the First Schleswig War that had fatally undermined Bismarck's project for the formation of a German Empire. Seriously wounded at Isted1, the iconic status of Læssøe's prestige enabled the Danish elite to suppress the rise of parliamentarism. Instead under a strong national leadership, they convinced the British and French that Bismarck wanted to annex the whole of Jutland, Sjaelland and the smaller island to project greater naval power. This was of course highly disingenuous. Because in 1460 King Christian I of Denmark guaranteed the nobles of Holstein that Schleswig and Holstein should remain "forever undivided" as they accepted him as their ruler. By the 19th century that was the main argument why the Danish attempts to fully integrated Schleswig into the Danish state were invalid, while that would weaken or dissolve the union of Schleswig and Holstein.
With Britain and France already on high alert, the defeat at Dybbøl was enough to encourage the Austrians to step-in before the Russians did so. This timing was extremely fortuitous because in a few years, the French were forced to commit thirty thousand troops to Mexico, and would have been in a much weakened position had they been forced to confront a German Empire.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Generals Era: Pre World War 1 Source: Wikipedia Labels: Battle of Dybbol, Laessoe, Prussia, German Confederation, Schleswig.
Editor says, in authoring this article we have re-purposed content from Alternate History, Wikipedia.
[1] he had died OTL in 1850 Editorial comments are entered in [light green] typeface.
Editor says, what if the Doolittle Raid had failed? Muses Jeff Provine on the This Day in Alternate History web site. Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
The Japanese strike on Pearl Harbor had thrown many Americans into panic. The war effort came underway as the feeling of invincibility disappeared from the American spirit, eliminating all but a few stalwart isolationists. Meanwhile, the populace of the home islands of Japan were assured that they were invulnerable and that the war would soon be over with an American surrender.
April 18, 1942 - Doolittle Raid Wrecked by Japanese Death RayTo restore American morale and weaken Japanese resolve, the US determined to launch a raid on the empire's capital of Tokyo and other targets around the home islands. After it was suggested by Navy personnel that a bomber could take off from an aircraft carrier, the operation was handed to famed aviator Lieutenant Colonel James Doolittle of the Army Air Force to customize B-25B bombers to make a one-way long-distance run. He stripped out the lower gun turret, radio equipment, and the upper armor, installed anti-icing agents and collapsible extra fuel tanks, and famously created fake rear turrets from broomsticks. Attempts were made for safe landing in the USSR, but the Soviet's non-aggression treaty with Japan made such an option impossible. Instead, the bombers were to touch down with ragtag allies in worn-torn China.
Despite these best-laid plans, the raid seemed star-crossed from the beginning. Shortly after seven in the morning of the proposed attack on April 18, crew aboard the USS Enterprise spotted Japanese picket ship No. 23 Nittō Maru, which spotted them as well. The Americans destroyed the smaller ship, and, realizing their position had been radioed back to Japanese command, launched the aircraft ahead of schedule. Everyone was breathless as the first bomber, piloted by Doolittle himself, plunged from the deck and managed to climb into the air despite the naysayers' fears of a splashdown.
The bombers swooped toward Japan with 10 aircraft heading directly for Tokyo. Other planes headed to targets in Yokohama, Nagoya, and Kobe, where they successfully dropped their bombs, tangled with fighters, and escaped to China. As the sun set, weather deteriorated, and the crews were forced to crash-land in temporary airfields. There was no sign of Doolittle or the other raiders. American newspapers published heavily censored stories, impressing the public while many in the know about the secret operation searched for information about the lost attackers of Tokyo. Japanese newspapers told that the capital had been successfully defended by the Ku-Go death ray.
Death rays had been popular in the pulp fiction writing of the time, but the fantasy came with certain scientific grounds of focused electromagnetic radiation. British inventor Harry Grindell Matthews, who successfully claimed a £25,000 prize for an unmanned remote-controlled vehicle in 1914, touted his own beam weapon in 1924. Nikola Tesla himself had claimed in a 1934 Times editorial to have designed one. While the science seemed plausible, the law of inverse-squares meant that an anti-aircraft microwave beam would require immense amounts of power to have any suitable range. Japanese researchers successfully lobbied for military resources to be directed into energy-technology, and the Ku-Go was granted an enormous new power station in 1940 as part of city air-defense.
In May of 1943, the bomber crew under Captain Edward York appeared at a British consulate in Iran with a harried tale. Low on fuel, their bomber separated from the others. York described seeing the bombers begin to fly erratically as the pilots slowly lost control under the gradual bombardment of microwaves. Eventually, their addled engines gave out, and the planes fell. York managed to escape the wide beam and flew to nearby USSR before they ran out of fuel. They were arrested and the bomber confiscated. Requests to be returned to America were refused due to the Japanese-Soviet treaty. Eventually Russian secret police orchestrated an escape by placing the Americans in Ashgabat and putting them in touch with a smuggler who would help them across the boarder. The details of the American causalities due to the death ray confirmed suspicions and caused fear of a "science gap". Money had already begun pouring into the atomic Manhattan Project, and still more was invested in beam research. Spanish immigrant and welding-researcher Alberto Longoria, who was mysteriously zapping pigeons at the same time the elderly Tesla drew diagrams in 1934, was suddenly hired into government service.
The Japanese, too, began giving more attention to their scientific warfare. Weather balloon technology enabled the creation of Fu-Go, fire bombs that were planned to set the American West aflame. After successful tests of biological warfare from experiments of the secret Unit 731 and Unit 100, the Fu-Go were adapted to carry anthrax, which devastated several American ranches but did not ultimately create the plague they hoped. Americans countered when they unleashed atomic bombs, dropped from near-sonic high-altitude planes capable of gliding far above the Ku-Go's effective reach and running cold so that infrared-seeking Ke-Go drones launched by To-Go electric cannons were unable to hone in on them.
When the war finally came to its conclusion, with plagues still ravishing China, radiation depopulating several Japanese cities, and chemical weapons obfuscating Soviet advance in Korea, new treaties drew up strict rules for scientific research. The United Nations created oversight committees and banned any research without clear civilian applications. Secret projects did continue, such as nuclear programs, but countries were forced to experiment in the open and mask the development of warheads in power plants. Marketing teams created applications for technology such as the microwave oven and public communications satellites.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Jeff Provine Blog Era: World War 2 Source: Jeff Provine's Blog Labels: Pearl Harbor, James Doolittle, Second World War, World War 2, Japan.
Editor says, in reality the Ku-go death ray did not begin development until 1943 after magnetron improvements in 1939. At the end of the war, the weapon was capable of killing test-rabbits 1,000 yards away after five minutes of bombardment. While the Doolittle Raid did little damage militarily, it was successful in raising American morale. Doolittle himself feared a declaration of his failure due to all of the planes were lost to crashes or by ditching into the sea, but he was instead promoted to Brigadier General and given the Congressional Medal of Honor. The Japanese sought revenge with the Zhejiang-Jiangxi Campaign, punishing any Chinese believed to have aided the Americans in their escape. Over a quarter of a million Chinese were killed during the campaign, many used in experiments in unethical research. Editorial comments are entered in [light green] typeface.
Editor says, what if Virginia had remained in the Union? By Ed, Michael Patrick, Scott Palter, Jeff Provine & Jeffrey Leff. Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
In 1861, on this day fifty-three year old Colonel Robert E. Lee of Virginia accepted responsibility for the defense of Washington D.C. (and a promotion to the rank of Major-Rank) just twenty-four hours after his native state of Virginia narrowly voted against the motion to secede from the Union.
Major-General Robert E. LeeBut almost immediately, frustration replaced the sharp sense of relief that secession had been limited to the Deep South States.
Commander-in-Chief Winfield Scott had formulated the "Anaconda Plan" which centred on a land-based advance contingent upon either the belligerence or acquiesence of the Dixie Border States. In the event neither of these two conditions were met. Instead, declarations of neutrality from Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Arkansas and Kentucky created a buffer state on the Eastern theatre.
To confuse matters further, the "conditional" Unionists who voted down secession had done so in the conviction that the Union would not pursue a policy of coercion. In fact there were two major blockers to coercion, being the 90 day troop policy and the impossibility of attacking Dixie with five states in the way. Nevertheless, President Lincoln was pressing hard for action, and an aggressive new strategy was quickly devised - for the US Navy to transport Union Forces by sea for an amphibious landing at Savannah.
Due to his iconic role in leading the US Marines at the Harpers Ferry Raid, both Lincoln and Scott naturally selected Lee for this mission, even though he had been privately hoping to see out the war in the barracks and avoid any conflict between loyalty and duty. Mistaking Lee's relucantance for timidity, Scott compounded the error by barking "I have no place in my army for equivocal men!"...
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Generals Era: US Civil War Source: Wikipedia Labels: Robert E. Lee, American Civil War, Confederate States of America, Confederacy, Virginia.
Editor says, in this post we imagine that Virginia voted against secession on the eve of the American Civil War.
Wikipedia reports ~ The commanding general of the Union Army, Winfield Scott, told Lincoln he wanted Lee for a top command. Lee accepted a promotion to colonel on March 28. He had earlier been asked by one of his lieutenants if he intended to fight for the Confederacy or the Union, to which Lee replied, "I shall never bear arms against the Union, but it may be necessary for me to carry a musket in the defense of my native state, Virginia, in which case I shall not prove recreant to my duty".
Meanwhile, Lee ignored an offer of command from the CSA. After Lincoln's call for troops to put down the rebellion, it was obvious that Virginia would quickly secede. Lee turned down an April 18 offer by presidential aide Francis P. Blair to command the defense of Washington D.C. as a major general, as he feared that the job might require him to invade the South. When Lee asked Scott if he could stay home and not participate in the war, the general replied "I have no place in my army for equivocal men".
Lee resigned from the Army on April 20 and took up command of the Virginia state forces on April 23. While historians have usually called his decision inevitable ("the answer he was born to make", wrote one; another called it a "no-brainer") given the ties to family and state, recent research shows that the choice was a difficult one that Lee made alone, without pressure from friends or family. His daughter Mary Custis was the only one among those close to Lee who favored secession, and wife Mary Anna especially favored the Union, so his decision astounded them. While Lee's immediate family followed him to the Confederacy others, such as cousins and fellow officers Samuel Phillips and John Fitzgerald, remained loyal to the Union, as did forty percent of all Virginian officers. Editorial comments are entered in [light green] typeface.
Editor says, what if the US lost Central America in the seventies? Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
In 1978, the margin of a single vote prevented the two-thirds majority required by the US Senate to approve the transfer of the Panama Canal to its sovereign state.
National DivideDefeat in the Senate was a bitter blow for President Jimmy Carter's foreign policy at a critical time when the effectiveness of his administration was under severe scrutiny. The previous September, Carter had signed two treaties with Panama's leader, General Omar Torrijos Herrera. The first provided for the gradual transfer of the canal to Panamanian control on 31 December 1999. The other declared the canal neutral territory and open to vessels of all nations. However, the US has retained the right to defend the canal, preferably in support of Panama but alone, if necessary.
There had been fierce domestic opposition to the prospect of giving up the canal which critics argued was a necessary part of the US's defences despite the fact that the Canal could not accommodate the larger vessels which had become part of the US fleet by the time of the Korean War. And yet the irony of the United States refusing to return a canal to its sovereign states was not lost upon the British Government, nor the former President M. Michael "Duke" Morrison who went against fellow conservatives by supporting the Panama Canal Treaty. Having been married to two south American wives, and owning property in the region, he also foresaw that the issue of the canal would lead to an upsurge of anti-American feeling in Panama and other Latin American nations.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: The Duke Source: BBC Labels: Jimmy Carter, Panama, Presidency, John Wayne, Panama.
Editor says, what if President William King died after forty-five days in office? muses Andrew Beane. Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s).
In 1853, President William King died today after losing a battle with tuberculosis. This comes as a shock to the nation, which is still coming to terms with the death of President-elect Franklin Pierce (pictured), who was killed on January 6th of this year in a train derailment in Andover, Massachusetts.
Death of President William KingKing had been suffering with an incurable case of tuberculosis when he was sworn in on March 4th as the fourteenth President of the United States, a distinction that would have been given to Pierce. Too ill even to travel to Washington, D.C, he was sworn in during a limited ceremony at his plantation in Cahaba, Alabama, and remained there for the remainder of his life. He was the first president since John Adams to officially reside somewhere other than the White House.
Though the shortest presidency in American history, it was extremely controversial just the same. Favoring the Kansas-Nebraska act, King succeeded in pushing the Transcontinental Compromise through Congress. The compromise stated that Kansas and Nebraska would eventually be admitted into the Union as slave states, which favored the southern states; and the Transcontinental railroad would run from New York to Chicago before heading south to St. Louis and continue due west to the California coast, which superseded most of the southern states and favored northern interests.
With only forty-five days as President, King did not have time to select a vice president, though it was believed that King's longtime friend James Buchanan had been considered. In accordance with the Constitution, President Pro Tempore David Atchison will become acting President. Having such a prominent pro-slavery activist in the White House carries the danger of splitting the nation over the issue of states' rights.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Andrews Posts Era: Post Coldwar Source: Wikipedia Labels: Franklin Pierce, William King, America, President, Washington.
Editor says, allegedly Operation Quartz was a Rhodesian army conspiracy led by Ian Smith's son Alec to prevent Zanu-PF taking power if the so-called "white-man's black man", Bishop Muzorewa lost the 1980 election. In this post we continue to explore the theory of historical processes to wit that things could be very different yet the outcomes much the same.
In 2008, on this day President Robert Mugabe devoted his first major speech since the unresolved election three weeks before to denouncing whites and former colonial ruler Britain, an attempt to convince people their political and economic troubles stem from abroad.
Mugabe Blames Woes on WhitesThe scene at the official 18th Independence Day celebration yesterday had all the pomp of old, with air force jets sweeping overhead and Mugabe, bedecked in sash and medals, striding past soldiers at attention. But any private observances by ordinary Zimbabweans were likely muted - prices for food, gasoline and drinks have more than doubled just in the past week amid an economic meltdown that has emptied store shelves and idled four of every five workers.
"There are black people who are putting prices up, but they are being used by the whites," Mugabe said, promising to tighten laws that set prices and to crack down on - and possibly take over - businesses that break the rules. Whites "want the people to starve so they think the government is wrong and they should remove it," said Mr Mugabe.
The opposition and independent economists blame Mugabe's economic policies for the collapse of what was once southern Africa's breadbasket. Often violent seizures of white-owned commercial farms that began on Mugabe's orders in 2000 put land in the hands of his cronies instead of productive farmers, black or white, and agricultural production slumped. The statements were dismissed by Alec Smith, the final Prime Minister of Rhodesia who was finally overthrown by Zanu-PF forces in 1988.
Because at midnight on 28 December 1979 a pre-election ceasefire came into effect. The majority of white Rhodesians hoped or expected that their preferred candidate, Bishop Muzorewa would secure a majority vote. However, it did not take long for experts to work out that this would not come to pass. Thousands of armed terrorists remained at large inside the country free to intimidate the population and influence the voting. Commanders of the Rhodesian security forces informed General Walls of this, and he tried to persuade Lord Soames, the temporary governor sent out by Britain to preside over the election, to disqualify ZANU. Soames gave Mugabe several warnings, but took no further action to prevent ZANU from taking part in the election.
Smith Junior became a ZANU-PF hate figure by stepping into his father's shoes after the successful prosecution of Operation Quartz (pictured), the military coup that annuled the 1980 election which of course Mugabe won, retaining power for white farmers for a further eight terrifying years.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Alternate Nations Era: Post Coldwar Source: Toronto Star Labels: Robert Mugabe, Alec Smith, Ian Smith, Rhodesia, Zimbabwe.
Editor says, what if Albert Einstein had been a musician?
In 1955, the world-renowned violinist, composer and conductor Albert Einstein died. Born March 14, 1879 in Ulm, Germany, the young Albert displayed an early aptitude for music, as well as for mathematics. In his early teens, he attended the progressive Luitpold Gymnasium in Munich, where his musical talent was recognized.
Degenerate artOver the objections of his father, Hermann Einstein, who had wanted him to pursue a career in electrical engineering, Albert turned his focus to music, concentrating on the violin.
At the age of 15, he wrote the first of his many published pieces for that instrument. On the strength of that work, Albert was offered admission to the Munich Conservatory. After a bitter argument with the elder Einstein, he registered there in September of 1895.
Einstein's musical fame grew swiftly. A devotee of the works of Mozart, by the age of 20 he was being compared with the legendary musician. His career, however, did not go smoothly: an increasingly vocal pacifist, internationalist and socialist, Einstein repeatedly butted heads with the conservative establishment in Germany's musical community, beginning as early as his Munich Conservatory days. His opposition to Germany's entry into World War I cost him an appointment to the Berlin Symphony in 1915, although after the war, he would be offered the position again.
Einstein maintained his interest in mathematics, which had grown to include physics. Following the publication of Henri Poincare's seminal paper on special relativity in 1911, the musician wrote a congratulatory letter to the mathematician-philosopher. Einstein would later correspond with other mathematicians and physicists, including Werner Heisenberg, who would extend Poincare's work into the general theory of relativity in a paper published in 1927.
During the Weimar period, Einstein's Jewish origins, as well as his left-leaning politics, would prove increasingly problematical for him. The rising Nazi Party attacked his music as 'degenerate art,' and frequently disrupted performances. Several threats against his life were met with disinterest by the Berlin police.
On January 30, 1933, German president Paul von Hindenburg appointed Nazi leader Adolf Hitler chancellor of the Weimar Republic, dooming that regime after only thirteen years. Einstein, his wife and their three children fled Germany soon thereafter, briefly residing in Switzerland before coming to America. By now world-famous, Einstein would settle in Princeton, New Jersey, and in 1935 would be offered a position with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, which he would accept. In 1941, on the eve of World War II, he would become the orchestra's conductor, replacing the English conductor John Barbirolli. Einstein would remain in that position until his retirement in 1953.
The Second World War deeply distressed Einstein. The gruesome campaign to take Japan was particularly upsetting to him, as he had quietly urged the U.S. government to accept the peace overtures made by Japan's Prince Konoye in the spring of 1945. The harsh occupation of Japan following its fall in the spring of 1946 and the execution of Emperor Hirohito as a war criminal prompted Einstein to write an op-ed piece for the New York Times questioning whether America, in the name of overthrowing a despotic regime and winning the war, was not becoming an empire as dangerous as any in the Axis. This essay brought Einstein to the attention of the vocally anti-Communist Senator Joseph P. McCarthy of Wisconsin and would lead to his interrogation by the House Un-American Activities Committee in 1948. Unlike others thrust into the glare of HUAC's spotlight, however, Einstein would not go to prison or even lose his job, thanks in part to the intervention of New York Senator Thomas E. Dewy, then the Republican presidential candidate. Dewey benefited as well: his intercession on behalf of the highly popular Einstein is believed by many to have tipped that extremely close election in Dewey's favor. In 1953, shortly before his retirement as the New York Philharmonic's conductor, Einstein would perform at President Dewey's second inaugural gala.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Personalities Era: Dark Valley Source: Wikipedia Labels: Albert Einsten, Nazi Germany, America, Music, Anti-semitism.
On this day in 1943 Yamamoto restaurant chain founder and CEO Isoroku Yamamoto died of a heart attack just hours after being forced to resign from the company in shame over the chain's defeat in its 16-month-long battle with Kimmel's for supremacy in the U.S.
West Coast seafood dining market; the strain of his efforts to overtake Kimmel's and the disgrace of being ousted from his own firm had been too much to bear, one of his associates later told a Tokyo newspaper. Within a year of Yamamoto's resignation and death his old company would be teetering on the verge of bankruptcy.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: The Great Pacific Seafood War Source: Wikipedia Labels: Pearl Harbor, Japan, America, Kimmel, Yamamoto.
In 1951, on this day Darren McGavin joined the cast of the Star Trek radio series as new Enterprise captain James Kirk.
|Darren McGavin
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Spock Prime Source: Wikipedia Labels: Star Trek, William Shatner, Spock, Captain Kirk, Darren McGavin.
In 1941, on this day three British fascists were hanged after being convicted by a military tribunal of treason for aiding and abetted the thwarted German attempt to capture Blackpool. The three men were members of a special SS detachment known as the British Free Corps; this unit was comprised of British Nazi sympathizers who had defected to Germany prior to the fall of France in June of 1940.
|British Free Corps
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Blackpool40 Topic: Warfare Source: Wikipedia Labels: Blackpool, Adolf Hitler, Normandy, Britain, France.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: The Baron Source: Robbie Taylors Blog Labels: Mikhail von Heflin, Robbie A. Taylor, The Baron, Velma Porter, Dimensions.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Mlosh Source: Robbie Taylors Blog Labels: Mlosh, 1720, Robbie A. Taylor, Warp, Alien.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Arthur II Source: Robbie Taylors Blog Labels: Arthur Pendragon, Robbie A. Taylor, Camelot Redux, Merlin, England.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Sockless Source: Robbie Taylors Blog Labels: Jerry Simpson, Robbie A. Taylor, Topeka, Grover Cleveland, 1861.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Crisis Source: Wikipedia Labels: Beirut, Barracks, America, Middle East, Lebanon.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Soviet America Topic: Revolution Source: Robbie Taylors Blog Labels: Joel Rosenberg, Robbie A. Taylor, Comrade, Soviet States of America, Communism.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Personalities Source: Wikipedia Labels: Robert P. McCulloch, London Bridge, America, Britain, Arizona.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Alternate Nations Source: Wikipedia Labels: Franquisto, Oueztecan , Earthquake, America, Founding Nations.
Story Tags Permalinks: Post, Day. Browse Thread: Alternate Nations Source: Wikipedia Labels: Clarence Darrow, Supreme Court Justice, America, President William Taft , Ohio.


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10 destination adventures recommended by 'Women's Health'
Check out 10 destination adventures for outdoor fitness via Women's Health online.
Women's Adventure
Check out 10 destination adventures for outdoor fitness via Women's Health online.
Registration is now open for Washington Outdoor Women's (WOW) annual fall workshop, dedicated to bringing together women and girls (aged 9-12) for a weekend of fishing, hunting and outdoor-skills education.
The results are in from the 2013 Spafinder Wellness Reader's Choice Awards and New Life Hiking Spa in Killington, Vermont has been selected as one of the top ten spas in the world as "Best for Outdoor Adventure".
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks has scheduled a winter skills workshop in its popular Becoming an Outdoors-Woman program for Jan. 31 through Feb. 2 in Red Lodge.
Adventures for Women provides winter backpacking tips and equipment recommendations.
For an extraordinary winter getaway, join Adventure Woman for 7 days of whale watching, snorkeling, sea kayaking and swimming in Magdalena Bay off Mexico's Baja Peninsula.
This week, Dan Small Outdoors Radio features World-champion 3-D archer Joella Bates, outdoor writer Mark LaBarbera, fishing guides Scott Bretting and Pat Kalmerton, and adventure traveler Dave Bayer. Jeff prepares for the St. Paul and Wisconsin Ice Fishing Shows. Dan hunts turkeys with the American Wild Turkey Hunting Dog Association.
For the past 20 years, the Becoming an Outdoors-Woman Workshop has offered women, 18 and older, a chance to learn or sharpen outdoors skills.
The 2013 American Camper Report details camping participation and provides data and analysis on camping trends throughout the United States. For the first time, the report also takes an in-depth look at the buying behaviors of camping participants to provide insights about practices and preferences.
Adventure Women offers river cruise on India's Ganges River.
The ladies over at Adventure Moms share a couple of their favorite pieces of gear.
AdventureWomen invites you to join them for a week-long women's ski vacation in Montana near Yellowstone National Park.
Registration is now open for the Becoming an Outdoors-Woman Baja Island Adventure on March 15-22, 2014, in La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico.
The Ohio Division of Wildlife is teaming up with Ohio Outdoors-Woman Inc. to host the 20th annual Becoming and Outdoors-Woman (B.O.W.) workshop, scheduled for October 4-6, 2013.
The Cabela's in La Vista, Neb. is hosting a "Ladies Day Out" on October 5, 2013.
Come to Cabela's Saturday October 5th for our Ladies' Day Out event – a celebration of women outdoors.
The Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department is partnering with Vermont Outdoors Woman (VOW) to offer a free women's hunter education field day at Jackson's Lodge in Canaan, VT on September 27.
The Greene County Department of Recreation will offer a free three-week introductory sporting clays class for women. "Women's Intro to Sporting Clays" will be held at 5:30 p.m. every Thursday from Sept. 5 to 19 at Hunting Hills in Dilliner, PA.
"Bossy Hens" presents the inaugural Louisiana Women in the Outdoors event on September 13-15, 2013.
Sponsored by the North Dakota Game and Fish Department, this Becoming an Outdoors-Woman "Beyond BOW" event is designed for women with previous hiking or backpacking skills, or those that are in good physical condition.


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February 25,2010
SELF Live: Black Eyed Peas
Last night I caught the Black Eyed Peas at Madison Square Garden, and while so many aspects of their futuristic show were out of this world, the biggest standout was...
Courtesy of Zooey Deschanel
Jennifer Iserloh, author of Secrets of a Skinny Chef (Rodale), lightens up a fatty Italian indulgence.
This speedy, savory meal pairs well with a workout. Quinoa is an unexpected source of energizing iron and amino acids, protein's building blocks, to nourish newly toned muscles. Body bonus: Potassium in the grain can help beat bloat.