Ugly Rumours

Tony Blair	"We are the folk of England, who have not spoken yet." ~ Poet T.S. Eliot
Ugly Rumours

In 2004, the summer's anti-war protests in London now reached a level of intensity unknown since the 1956 Suez Crisis when Prime Minister Anthony Eden had been sacrified to effect a u-turn of British Foreign Policy. The Establishment played the same ill-health card, with Prime Minister Tony Blair forced to resign as a consequence of an irregular heart beat. Previously Tony Blair has said he was "absolutely fine" after hospital treatment the previous October to correct an irregular heartbeat. Mr Blair arrived back in Downing Street after undergoing a procedure at London's Hammersmith hospital, seemingly set upon a third election victory. Spokesman Simon Wilde said the risk of recurrence was "very low" and that the "atrial flutter" had been eliminated. Regrettably, Simon Wilde requalified this position, the Prime Minister's condition had recurred and it was in the interests of this relatively young man to step aside from the strains of great office whilst his health recovered. Three months later, incoming Prime Minister Robin Cook announced British troop withdrawals. Cook said that the British people understood now that the ethical Foreign Policy he had been prevented from executing at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office needed Prime Ministerial direction. Thankfully, Blair recovered to assume great office. Today, he is the Chancellor of Oxford University, where he studied in the earlier seventies. It was during his time at University that he demonstrated a rebellious streak and a love of rock and roll - playing guitar in a band "Ugly Rumours" - which he retains to this day.

~ quotation by Steve Payne

In 1969, Allegheny Airlines Flight 853 DC-9 almost collided in flight with a Piper PA-28 near Fairland, Indiana, but soul-deeps of the Kickapoo Indians averted the crash.	Allegheny Airlines
The DC-9 touched down with incident at the co-ordinates for Indianapolis. Instead of the state capital, they found Fall Creek Settlement, sparsely settled by fur traders who were greatly intrigued by the crew's pale faces.
~ entry by Steve Payne

Berlin 2010

In 2010, Heinrich Gimpel's thoughts were provoked by the sight of the radioactive remains of Philadelphia's Liberty Bell in Adolf Hitler Platz. Isolationist decision-making had kept the States out of the Second World War, forcing America to confront Germany and Japan alone a generation later. Yet now Germany and Japan faced a more insidious threat from an enemy fighting a different kind of warfare. Gimpel was not altogether sure that the Third Reich could defeat the insurgents in Iraq.

~ variant from Steve Payne: extensive use of original content has been made to celebrate the author's genius.

Before the world moved on the Gunslinger Roland Deschain and his friends Cuthbert Allgood and Alain Johns conceived a plan to stop the Barony's elite and "The Good Man" John Farson from siezing the supplies of Mejis oil. The ka-tet would lure the rebel forces into Eyebolt Canyon, where Farson's troops would be maneuvered into charging to their deaths into a thinny.

~ variant from Steve Payne: extensive use of original content has been made to celebrate the author's genius.

László de Almásy

In 1941, in the North African desert Loose Cannon Colonel "Ned" Lawrence and companion Major Keyes found, by chance, a man in desperate need of a friend - Count László de Almásy. Almásy and lover Katherine Clifton had escaped by plane when jealous husband Geoff Clifton had tried to kill them. The plane had crashed in the desert, and Almásy had been forced to leave Katherine in "the cave of swimmers".

~ variant by Steve Payne: extensive use of original content has been made to celebrate the genius of Susan Shwartz and Michael Ondaatje

Slave Revolt	In 1739, Stono Rebellion, the largest slave uprising in Britain's mainland North American colonies prior to the American Revolution, erupted near Charleston, South Carolina. Jemmy, the leader of the revolt, was a literate slave who had correctly identified this final chance for freedom. On September 29, the Security Act of 1739 would take effect requiring all white males to carry arms on Sundays.
Three other factors led to Jemmy's success; a yellow fever epidemic had weakened the power of slave holders, there was talk of a war between Britain and Spain, and accounts of slaves who had obtained their freedom by escaping to Spanish-controlled Florida gave the Carolinian slaves hope.
~ entry by Steve Payne

In 2127/2006, Mullah Elijah Rafsanjani receives some advice from an unexpected source – his son Muhammed. Father and son should jump in the Hussein-Sadat time dilation device and speak to an authority regarding the issue of Justice vs. Consumerism. Yes, head back to 2006 and speak to the charismatic Iraqi cleric Muqtada al-Sadr.	Muqtada al-Sadr
~ entry by Steve Payne

Bobby Kennedy	In 1993, Barry N. Malzberg published his counter-history masterpiece In the White House. Joe Kennedy, Jr., does not survive World War II and instead Father Joe turns to playboy son Jack who was elected US president in 1960. In the wake of the Bay of Pigs fiasco, Jack Kennedy's presidency collapses after the firing of CIA director Allen Dulles, deputy CIA director Charles Cabell, and Deputy Director of Operations Richard Bissell.
The story ends in Dallas, where Bobby decides to end his brother's life for betraying the family and letting down the Ambassador, the formal title their father insisted on his sons using.
~ entry by Steve Payne