The Fredonian War; Communists Defeat Dewey

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December 16th, 2005

in 1770, one of the most tragic composers of the era was born in Bonn, Germany; Ludwig Van Beethoven, a student of the great composer Antonio Salieri, wrote fine music until 1802, when his hearing began to fade. By the end of the year, he was completely deaf, and turned to a reclusive life, away from people. The unfinished symphonies from his seclusion hint at masterpieces that never would be.

in 1773, American colonist Samuel Adams and others of his self-proclaimed “Sons of Liberty” destroy a large shipment of tea in protest against the taxes the British government were levying against the colonies. Parliament, frightened at the prospect of open revolt that this foreshadowed, hastily lowered the tax and revoked the monopoly that the British East India Company had on the export of tea to America.

in 1784, the British garrison at Saint John, surrounded by Canadian nationalists, surrenders in order to avoid starvation. The British commander at Saint John, Sir Lionel Montague, had failed to prepare for the harsh winter in Canada and had no supplies to see his men through the season.

in 1799, Jan Rudder, a Dutch mathematician and generation 2281 of the Speaker’s Line, calls together the siblings of Europe to announce that he has made a discovery that will bring the Speaker’s Dream to life; he has accidentally invented a compound that can lift heavy objects with tremendous force. The first few experiments along this path were somewhat disastrous for the Speaker’s Descendants, but it did serve to advance their knowledge.

in 1826, a new country was born on the American continent as Ben Edwards founded the Republic of Fredonia in Nacogdoches, Texas. The Mexican government at first thought the proclamation was a joke, but when thousands of Anglos began rushing into east Texas, they sent troops in to crush Edwards. This was the beginning of the Fredonian War, which lasted from 1826 to 1828.

in 4616, the Gensu province is shaken by a powerful earthquake. It is one of several that will soon prompt Emperor Chengzu to order his Imperial Scientists to find a way to predict earthquakes. Although they work valiantly, the problem is not solved within Chengzu’s lifetime.

in 1934, Richard C. Tolman, an American physicist, discovers the phenomena he calls Time Flies; it is the noise from a parallel dimension coming through a small tear in the fabric of space/time. It leads him to the discovery of the ability to travel through these rips, and the formation of a cult based on his experiences in alternate universes.

in 1950, President Dewey, wary of tangling with the massive resources of the Chinese Communists, announces that the Americans will be withdrawing from the U.N. force battling communist aggression in Korea. The move is widely denounced by the Democrats and even by anti-communists in his own party, and his political star crashes to earth. He does not seek reelection, and the Republican candidate in 1952, Dwight Eisenhower, is unable to overcome the negative image of Republicans as quitters, in spite of his own record in World War II.

in 1971, West Pakistani troops were rescued in East Pakistan by an aerial assault on the Bengali and Indian troops holding them. West Pakistan declared war against India, and attempted to conquer the north of the country in order to have a corridor through to East Pakistan. The long conflict cost the lives of millions of Pakistanis and Indians, and only ended when the two nations were brought to the bargaining table by regional power China in 1979.

in 1972, the South Chilean reactionaries abruptly left peace negotiations in Caracoa, Venezuela, citing intransigence in the Soviet States’ position. They wanted to unify their country under a single government, while the Americans were pushing for a continuation of the divided country Chile was now, half capitalist, half communist.

in 2003, Adel Yamin, the woman who has taken up with Pope Righteous I, is seen in public for the last time. She comes into a London shop to buy clothing when a group of Estellians denounce her as a harlot. Her Templar bodyguard kills a couple of the Estellians, but the citizens in the store become enraged by this and flay her alive.


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