The 4th Of July

The state of TIAH

July 4th, 2006

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in 1531, Emperor Cuitlahuac of the mighty Aztec Empire declares the Americas independent from Europe and declares war against all European powers who are staking a claim on the continents. Spain, already defeated once in battle by the Aztecs, tries to negotiate with the Emperor, but Portugal, England and France, stung by the “arrogance of this savage chieftain,” in the words of King Henry VIII, declare war against the Aztecs. Although costly, the Aztecs maintain control of the Americas through the protracted war, and when Cuitlahuac leaves the empire to his son in 1552, the Europeans have nothing but toeholds in the western hemisphere.

in 1776, Congress votes to adopt the Declaration of Independence written by the eloquent Virginian, Thomas Jefferson. Few Americans remember this day, because celebrations center around the actual date of the Declaration's signing, August 2nd. Some purists have pushed for a holiday on the 4th of July, but with the Second of August so entrenched in the American consciousness, there is little chance of moving America's Birthday up a month.

in 1776, after much wrangling, the Continental Congress in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania decides not to adopt the harshly-worded Declaration of Independence that has been written by Virginia's Thomas Jefferson. Half of the delegation, outraged at the lack of courage shown by their colleagues, walks out in protest. Jefferson remains one of the few pro-independence voices left behind, and he argues his case before the Congress with all the eloquence at his command. But, those left behind are timid men who have no desire to cut off ties with their motherland, and Jefferson, too, ends up walking away from them. With this splintering of the rebellion, England is soon able to vanquish the colonies and reestablish control over their American possessions.

in 1946, American band leader Glenn Miller, the world's most popular entertainer, hosts a USO concert in Berlin. Hundred of thousands, including many occupation troops, turn out for the event, so many in fact that police force road closures and fans climb onto rooftops, balconies, and lampposts to see or hear the show. Miller plays many of his classics, such as In the Mood, Tuxedo Junction, and Moonlight Serenade, which strike an uplifting chord with the war torn German civilians and homesick American soldiers. The highlight of the three hour concert was when Miller was joined on stage by celebrated Berlin cabaret singer Dora Gerson and together performed Miller's new composition, a swing rendition of Schenkt Man Sich Rosen im Tirol. Not to be outdone, Benny Goodman schedules a concert for the following month in Tokyo. -entry written by Co-Historian, Ryan Hackel-

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South Pole

The state of TIAH

January 16th, 2007

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Alternate Historian's Note: We have a side-project that was announced over the weekend – a collection of several timelines with more-or-less complete stories inside them – The Fall, the Tolman timeline, the Mormon War and more – that will be up for sale on Lulu, as soon as we have it edited together. If you would be interested in this, or would like to suggest something for inclusion in the collection, please email me and let me know. Meanwhile, enjoy Guest Historian Stephen Payne's entry for today, followed by the continuation of our NaNoWriMo novel.

Modern Day Univ..	In 1809 the Peninsula War reached a decision at the Battle of La Coruña when 16,000 British troops under Sir John Moore were defeated by an equal number of French troops under the command of Marshal Soult. The British faced two overwhelming setbacks with Sir Arthur Wellesley recalled to ..
.. face a Court of Inquiry and Spanish allies smashed by Napoleon. Victorious, Soult expelled British forces from the Iberian Peninsula, a catastrophe from which the anti-Napoleonic alliance never recovered. The struggle for the mastery of Europe was over as French hegemony was firmly established across the continent.
~ entry by Steve Payne from counter history in context - you're the judge!

In 1942 Field Marshall Bernard Law Montgomery receives intelligence that Franco-German reinforcements are travelling through a corridor of neutral Spain. He chooses to strike first. In true Monty style he visits the individual companies of the British Eighth Army and carefully readies them ..	Monty
.. for the battle with La Grande Armée Afrique.
~ entry by Steve Payne from Counter History in Context - You're the Judge!

Ernest Shacklet..	In 1909 Ernest Shackleton's expedition find the magnetic South Pole where the team are sucked into the powerful vortex. Multidimensional energies fold space and time, sending them to the court of that most shrewd of monarchs, King George V of Great Britain just minutes before the entrance ..
.. of a most surprising guest. Defeated General George Washington, arriving from the Colonies to sue for final settlement terms. Shackleton convinces George V to avoid substantive discussions until he can brief him fully on his 1776.
~ entry by Steve Payne from counter history in context - you're the judge!

In 1412 a powerful and influential Florentine family the Medicis are ..	Medicis
.. made official bankers of the Papacy. The Medici Bank remained a vital power broker in Western Europe until the conclusion of the Great Patriotic War in 1946. A decision was reached in the struggle for mastery in Europe as the Romanov established their political hegemony, replacing the papacy with the Orthodox Church which dominates the continent until this very day.
~ entry by Steve Payne from Counter History in Context - You're the Judge!

After(cont.)
Darkness crept over him just in time. Jake donned the night-vision goggles and looked out across the field at the ranch house. There were a few bright spots that he had to look away from – the windows, he guessed – and a couple of guys outside with flashlights. No huge security detail on the outside, at least not that he could see.
He scanned the entire area for more guards; there was a deer-blind with someone inside, and nobody else. The true believers, he guessed. That would also cut down on the number of people who could guard the president, which worked in his favor. He took one more look around, saw no additional security, and then slithered back to the creek bed where the others waited.
Once he felt that he was far enough away from the ranch house to not be seen, he stood up and looked around again. He caught a glimpse of something moving out of the corner of his eye, and ducked just in time to avoid a fist sailing through the air where his head had been. He caught the fist in both hands and twisted hard, flipping the man to the ground. He smacked the man in the back of the head twice, as hard as he could, and felt the body go limp. He let go, and the soldier slumped to the ground, unconscious. Jake whirled around, but saw no one else. The fact that this guy had seemed to come out of nowhere didn't make him feel confident about that assessment, though. He pulled the guy's shoelaces out and used them to tie him up, then ran back to the creek bed as fast as he could.
When he got to the jeep, the others looked worried, which didn't make him feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Pulling off the night-goggles, he asked, “What's wrong?”
“They're drafting the entire state,” Janice told him. “We're gonna be heading into a lot of opposition.”
“More than you know,” Jake said. “We gotta spring the president now. I just got jumped by one of the goons guarding him.”
Eli cocked the hammer on his gun and said, “Lock and load, baby.”
Jake shot a look at him and told him, “Never say that again.”
Eli deflated and whispered, “OK.”
Jake looked the three of them over and wished that he had taken that assignment in Afghanistan when he had the chance. “Everybody got a weapon?” They all showed him their guns. “Let's get this over with, then.”

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Raven

Hari Seldon	In 926 Foundation Era, on the Planet Terminus, a vault opened and Hari Seldon emerged. This time, in flesh and blood, not the holograms of the previous eight crises. His prediction of the eventual fall of the Galactic Empire, and the apocalyptic predictions around that event, was the reason behind his nickname 'Raven' Seldon. By 20,069 Galactic Era, Seldon had decided that his initial plan was insufficient. He required a panic button.
Psychohistorian

Biographer Gaal Dornick reported that 'had been working up until his last moments on psychohistorical equations; his activated Prinie Radiant was discovered clutched in hand. According to Seldon’s instructions, the instrument was shipped by his colleague Gaal Dornick who had recently emigrated to Terminus.' This was a lie, Gaal Dornick brought Hari Seldon's cryogenically frozen body to the periphery of the galaxy, to be activated by the Prinie Radiant nine hundred thirty years later.

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In 1961, President Dwight Eisenhower addressed the nation for the last time in office, issuing a strange warning.

'We face a hostile ideology [communism] global in scope, atheistic in character, ruthless in purpose and insidious in method ... [warning about what he saw as unjustified government spending proposals] [that] we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by [Ike leans forward for emphasis] the congressional military industrial complex... Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together.'

Richard M Nixon was seething with angry. Not only had Ike failed to back him during the campaign, not his former boss was trying toreally spoil things for him.

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In 1596, there were so many black people in England that Queen Elizabeth I demanded that they be expelled from the country. An edict from the Queen, at first it brought no action. However it was then followed up by a Royal Proclamation, issued in 1601.

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In 1776, the defeated General George Washington is astonished by the generous final settlement terms being offered to from King George IV at Buckingham Place. Prepared for the humiliation of crushing terms for the vanquished republicans in the Colonies, rather King George IV proposes a genuine partnership for Anglo-America based on local representation and self-governing taxation. 'No victors, no vanquished' chips in his shadowy adviser Ernest Shackleton by way of explanation.

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In 1819, Simón Bolívar proclaims the Republic of Baja California, the predecessor nation to a twenty-first century mega state on the west coast. Today Spanish speaking citizens enjoy the world's highest per capita income and literacy rates.

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In 1942, Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr. Was born in Louisville, Kentucky on this day. Aged just eighteen, Clay, Jr. won the Gold Medal at the Rome Olympics. Four years later Clay beat Sonny Liston to take the World Heavyweight Boxing Championship. Clay had driven to Sonny's home in Denver at one o'clock in the morning, shouted for Sonny to come out and fight him on the spot, and set up a huge bear trap on the lawn. On March 6 influenced by Malcolm X, Clay changed his name to Muhammed Ali, joined the Nation of Islam and retired from boxing to concentrate on the greater fights that lay ahead for the African American people. His baiting of President Lyndon Baines Johnson from the White House lawn was considered the key to Washington's decision to withdraw from Vietnam in 1967, it was just so annoying. Just like Arthur Ashe, draconian measures would be taken by the Division to prevent Clay giving the game away. He really had the establishment on the ropes.

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In 2232 AUC, the Empire of Mali in Africa declared war on its northern neighbors of Rome. The Republic had been encroaching on Malian territory for decades, and the settlement of a small town on Mali’s eastern border by Romans was the final straw. The war between Mali and Rome lasted almost seventeen years, and killed millions in Africa and Europe.

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In 1775, following the example begun by the witch-hunters of Salem, Polish Christians burn 9 women at the stake in Kalisk. The witch-hunter movement reaches its peak in the 19th century as countries that were simply full of witches were taken over by Christians and put to the torch.

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In 1860, Russian playwright Anton Chekhov was born in Taganrog, on the Sea of Azov. His comedies of manner helped the noble class in Imperial Russia forget the troubles of the day like the crushing poverty of the serfs and the communist agitation of the Americans. His last play, Good Comrade Wilson, was a skewering indictment of the communist system as practiced by America.

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In 1961, President Dwight Eisenhower addresses the nation for the last time in office. While his speech begins with time-worn platitudes, he then veers into conspiracy theory, warning Americans of the Military-Industrial Complex and the consequences of its takeover of the country. Just before he starts naming names, though, he suddenly clutches his chest and falls over dead from a heart attack. Most politicians attributed Ike’s remarks to delirium brought on by the heart attack he was obviously suffering from as he began his speech.

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In 1971, British spaceflight Commander's wife Mrs Bert Smith confessed to her sister Betty that she wasn’t sure her Bert would be back tomorrow despite her optimistic statement to reporters. The ill-fated Apollo 13 mission had been too much trouble, it really had.

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Kennedys	A Review of PBS' 'The American Experience: Bobby & Teddy' ~ Tonight, PBS airs the third part of its five-part series on the Kennedy brothers, Bobby and Teddy, and the way they shaped the life of a generation--the tumultuous times that brought President Kennedy to the Oval Office continue to reverberate down to the 2008 election. The first two episodes focused primarily on the family life of the Kennedys, one of the wealthiest and most storied political families in American history.

The first episode was a masterwork on the emergence of ethnic politics in the early part of the last century, and the rise of the Irish Catholics in Boston, from 'Honey' Fitz to James Curley to Joe Kennedy Sr.'s storied career, culminating in his time serving as the American Ambassador to the Court of Saint James. The second episode took up the experience of the family during the Second World War. Like any American family, it was marked with tragedy and triumph, the deaths of Joe Jr. and John leaving indelible mark on Bobby and Teddy, the family's youngest sons, as well as their sisters Eunice and Patricia. The death of their brothers forced father's vast political ambitions to include his daughters, a move some Kennedy biographers have described as proto-feminism; others, noting Joe Sr's ambition, suggest that the post war era leading up to Pat running Bobby's Congressional campaign, and later, her own Senatorial run in California, were just another form of Ma Fergusonism, a way to expand the Kennedy family sweep throughout the country. The third episode ended on a high note, with Bobby becoming Governor of Massachusetts as Teddy took over his Congressional seat. Nonetheless, the looming shadows of the Nixon Administration were problematic--the simmering crises across the globe, from the wars in Cuba and Vietnam, to flashpoints like Czechoslovakia, and the Civil Rights Movement. Though as Governor, there was relatively little that Bobby could do, in the lead up to his election, the third episode noted his reaction to the attacks on Freedom Riders and muted disgust at Nixon's refusal to meet with the leaders of the Civil Rights' Movement during the March on Washington--an action that galvanized Bobby's idealism, while Patricia saw an opportunity to capture the black vote and propel Bobby to the White House at the end of Nixon's second term in 1968. Tonight's episode promises new revelations regarding the conduct of both the Kennedys and Nixon during the 1968 election. Numerous books have been written alleging dirty tricks on both sides--Patricia mobilized the ethnic machines to their fullest, as well as achieving a mass registration drive of black voters--while Nixon, in full flights of paranoid fantasy, hoped to use the power of the federal government to smash 'that damned Catholic choir boy.' The final two episodes will focus on the first and second terms of the Kennedy Administration, with a wildly expanded access to documents, staffers, and family members to create an in-depth psychological profile of the President, his Attorney General, and the Supreme Court Justices he appointed....

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