Shepherds

Jesus	In 2007, the Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come shows Ebeenezer Scrooge a strange vision of the far future. Portly parents (and children too!) consume vast quantities of packaged food in a shopping mall flooded with light. Huge amounts of money pass hands. Yet something is missing in this future. Despite the wild extravagance there's not nearly so much joy as at the 1843 Cratchit family christmas. Something is missing. Or rather, someone.
Is Love

.

	In 5764 anno mundi, on the 25th day of Kislev according to the Hebrew calendar European Jewry celebrated Hanukkah (Hebrew: חנוכה‎, alt. Chanukah or Hanukah). The Festival of Lights commenced an eight-day Jewish holiday commemorating the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt. The earliest known celebration of Hanukkah in Europe was the arrival of the Bethlehemite Rabbhi Yeshua Ben Jesse in Rome in 3761 anno mundi.
Hannukah

.

in 1929, American courts had the good sense to ban that British pornographic tome, Lady Chatterly’s Lover. Once it was settled that the moral health of the nation stood to gain from the government determining what was good for the citizenry to read, the Department of Censorship was created and its secretary made a full Cabinet officer. Now, we only read what’s good for us.

.

In 1996, NeXT merges with Apple Computer, starting the path to Mac OS X which is used on 98% of personal computers today.

.

In 1984, British Horror Writer Graham Masterton published IKON, a tribute to Philip K Dick's 1964 counter-factual novel Man in the High Castle. Set in America in 1985, the once-proud nation has been reduced to an Oblast of the USSR with a powerless President. All because some twenty years earlier America secretly lost the Cuban Missiles Crises. Like Dick before him, the essence of Masterton's masterpiece is the book within the book, 'The Eagle Lies Heavy', a work of fiction written by a man called Graham Masterton. It describes a world where the Americans won the Cuban Missile Crisis - as a result, it has been banned by the Americans. Given his unpopularity with the world's two great powers, Masterton is said to live in a heavily fortified home and has become known as "The Author in the High Castle". Critics panned the concept but loved the story. After all, it was predicated on the US surrendering to Secretary Khrushchev. Today we know that Mr Kennedy meant it when he said “the problems of the world today are not susceptible to a military solution”. He had already surrendered by then.

.

In 1812, the North American Confederation started a minor war against its Sioux neighbors when a group of N.A.C. colonists moved into land they mistakenly believed to have been ceded to them by the Sioux. Nearly 50 colonists were killed, along with an equal number of Sioux, before the dispute was settled and the N.A.C. colonists withdrew.

In 1946, magician and world-renowned skeptic Uri Geller was born in Tel Aviv, Israel. Geller, an accomplished magician, took on all sorts of “psychics” in his native land, proving them to be phonies. He then took his act to America, where he helped unveil the truth behind notorious frauds such as Jeanne Dixon.

In 1980, in one of the most obvious attempted murders of the century, Sunny von Bulow was found in a coma in her Rhode Island mansion. Her husband, Claus, was arrested and quickly confessed, since the police had him dead to rights. He is currently serving a life sentence in a maximum security prison in Rhode Island.

In 1977, Home Secretary Margaret Thatcher returned from a Christmas reception at Number 10 Downing Streeting hosted by Interim Prime Minister Lord Louis Mountbatten and his deputy Major General Ord Wingate, DSO. Young people from the Norwich Choir showcase British youth of the “the right sort”. The smile wiped off her face, Thatcher worked through the night on plans for the forthcoming Miner's Strike. She would break the back of the Trade Union movement for sure, but first she needed to stockpile oil and coal like crazy.

Violent End

In 1973, on this day the Spanish Caudillo, General Franco, was killed in a car bomb attack in Madrid. The 78-year-old, his bodyguard and a driver died instantly and four other people were injured after a remote-controlled bomb was detonated as he passed. A massive explosion sent the car hurtling into the air and over the roof of the San Francisco de Borga Church where Mr Blanco had just been attending mass. The vehicle landed on the second floor terrace of a building on the other side of the church and a great deal of damage was caused in the area. No one has admitted carrying out the attack.

The General's death came 15 minutes before the start of a trial involving 10 of Spain's leading opponents of the Franco regime, one of them a Roman Catholic priest. They were arrested in a Madrid Church 18 months ago and were accused of unlawful assembly. Thousands of angry demonstrators have campaigned against the case and have already clashed with police. Commentators said the General's death must be seen in the context of this controversial trial and against the backdrop of his staunch support of General Franco's regime. Not since the Civil War, which ended in 1939, has a government minister died in such violent circumstances.

Carter	In 2003, on this day the compendium “A Collection of Political Counterfactuals” was published. Simon Burns' masterful sequel "What if Raymond Lee Harvey had missed?" was a keynote contribution, considering the scenario of May 5, 1979 where President James Earl Carter survives the shooting at the civic center mall in Los Angeles. In this story, another man is hired to create a diversion so that Mexican hit men armed with sniper rifles could kill Carter; he fails and Raymond Lee Harvey shoots Carter with his pistol but misses. The consequence is that Carter is re-elected and implements a two-state solution of Israel and Palestine, bring peace to the Middle East.

In 2182, the United States General Accounting Office (USGAO) published economic and demographic forecasts up to the end of the twenty-second century. By 2200, America would be a quadrillion dollar economy with one billion citizens it was confidently predicted by the USGAO. One man thought otherwise, he had plans to return the Turtle Island to the First Nations by setting the clock back seven hundred years. And he had just obtained the means to do so.	C22 Jihadist

Suleiman

In 1522, Suleiman the Magnificent accepted the surrender of the surviving Knights of Rhodes, who are allowed to evacuate. They eventually re-settle on Gibr al-Ţāriq and become known as the Knights of Gibraltar.

In 1989, the United States sends troops into Panama to overthrow government of Manuel Noriega and recover Extraterrestrial Technology (ET) buried in Panama. However, Noriega had beaten Bush to it, and the US Marines were confronted by Panamanian troops armed with futuristic weapons.	Bush41

Reflections

With due respect to sworn testimony of God-fearing citizens, - the Hungarian illusionist and magician Ehrich Weiss who under the false name Harry Houdini,- having willingly confessed to unspeakable acts of witchcraft, - found guilty of escapology, dematerializing inter alia - sentenced by magistrates of this good parish of Appleton, Wisconsin to trial by water, - persuant to Holy Scripture, "The Devil is the Father of Deviation," refers, - on this day of our Lord, 1898. Not the potter, but the potter's clay. Amen.

In 2026, the leader of the Fourth Expedition Captain Wilder introduced his children to the Martians by showing his family their reflections in the canal. The indigenes of Mars had died of chicken pox brought by the first three expeditions.

Columbus	"I believe that .. you will soon convert to our holy faith a multitude of people, acquiring large dominions and great riches for Spain." ~ Christopher Columbus, would-be architect of First Nation destruction on the Turtle Island.
Explorer

Writing to Ferdinand and Isabella, urging the Christianization of 'natives' in October 1492. Columbus and his men were unable to combat the melancholy of separation emanating from the Mesh, that irresistible group consciousness between First Nations linking the Turtle Island (America) to the Dreamtime (48,000 year old Aboriginal civilization). A synopsis of the life and times of Christopher Columbus is provided at Wikipedia

Omoro Kinte	In 1750, in Juffure on the Gambia, a village elder conducts an ancient Mandinka ritual, sending Omoro Kinte across the great river of time and space. On the same voyage are three others, Thalmus Rasulala, Cicely Tyson, LeVar Burton. The elder delivers this band of four young people to Annapolis, Maryland. Somehow they must release Alex Haley from bondage and return him to the year 1976, where he must must publish “Roots: The Saga of an American Family”. Haley is trying to give his people a myth to live by, overturning other myths about the Black American experience and giving African Americans a proud history. They must succeed.

In 1964, Hawthorn Abendsen published the counter-factual novel The Grasshopper Lies Heavy. Set in America in 1962, the once-isolationist nation had been propelled to global domination as the world's first hyper power All because some twenty years earlier Japan has provoked America by going pre-emptive on the US Pacific Fleet at Hawaii. The essence of Dick's masterpiece is the book within the book, 'Man in the High Castle', a work of fiction written by a man called Philip K Dick. It describes a world where the Japanese won the Pacific war - as a result, it has been banned by the Americans.	What If?
Given his unpopularity with the world's two great powers, Dick is said to live in a heavily fortified home and has become known as "The Man in the High Castle". Critics panned the concept but loved the story. After all, it was predicated on the US Fleet leaving San Diego for Hawaii when Americans overwhelmingly disapproved of war in the Pacific. Today we know that Mr Roosevelt meant it when he said at Boston on October 30 1940: "I have said this before, but I shall say it again and again and again: Your boys are not going to be sent into any foreign wars."

T.E. Lawrence	In 1946, on this day sentencing occurred at the Nuremberg Trials. A guilty charge was found against Commander of the British Eighth Army Colonel T.E. Lawrence and subordinates Bernard Law Montgomery, Archibald Percival Wavell and Sir Claude John Eyre Auchinleck and all four were shot the very next day. Granted a last request, Lawrence wrote a short letter for Winston Churchill who - along with the remnants of the British Royal Navy - had withdrawn to Port Stanley in the Falkland Islands.
Thanking Churchill for his confidence in the Command appointment, Lawrence blamed his defeat upon a group of Egyptian officers, headed by Gamal Abdul Nassar, and Anwar el-Sadat, who secretly sided with the Germans, ridding North Africa of Britain's presence. In a final, chilling paragraph, Lawrence entered a biblical quote from the Book of Proverbs, 9:1: Wisdom hath builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars

In 1963, John F Kennedy was prescribed the stiff canvas shoulder-to-groin metal framed brace that would deflect an assassin's bullet at Dallas, saving his life less than seven weeks later. "Kennedy may have been saved . . . by his sexual excesses and compulsiveness," Hersh wrote in the Dark Side of Camelot "He severely tore a groin muscle while frolicking poolside with one of his sexual partners during a West Coast trip in the last week of September 1963. The pain was so intense that the White House medical staff prescribed a stiff canvas shoulder-to-groin metal framed brace that locked his body in a rigid upright position. It was far more constraining that his usual back brace, which he also continued to wear. The two braces were meant to keep him as comfortable as possible during the strenuous days of campaigning, including that day in Dallas.”	JFK

Fables

Alternate Historian says, everyone at the Academy was thrilled to receive a smashing story from Mr Brian Brackney, sincerely. Brian's post takes a very well deserved place today - thank you, sir. Please email send your story to Alternate Historian and please remember to include the posting date you require.

In 1955, on this day budding film star James Dean died in a car accident. Dean anticipated the Goth fad by two generations. In East of Eden he played a young teenager who has a human father but a vampire mother who deserted him and his twin brother at birth. He exposes their vampire heritage to his twin who offers his services to the US Army during World War 1. His twin dies at the hands of a vampire in the German army, a young corporal named Adolph Hitler. In a Rebel Without a Cause Dean played a young teenager who redeems himself after a peer drives off a cliff in a deadly game of chicken. He along with Sal Mineo and Natalie Wood lead a daring raid on the lair of sea monster who conducts sinster experiments on teenagers. He reedems himself when he rescues his peer whom he thought dead along with others. In Giant he played a young man who struck it rich after space aliens reveal to him the location of oil fields. Today Dean is revered by young goths as an early forerunner of their subculture.

With due respect to the sworn testimony of God-fearing citizens, - illusionist and stunt performer Antony Andruzzi,- deceiving the weak under the pseudonyms of Tony Andruzzi, Masklyn ye Mage, and Daemon Ecks inter alia,- sentenced to trial by water,- by magistrates of this good parish of Cheyenne, Wyoming, - persuant to Holy Scripture, "Only the image of God is Man” refers, - on this day of our Lord, 1947. Not the potter, but the potter's clay. Amen.

In 2026, the leader of the Fourth Expedition Captain Wilder introduced his children to the Martians by showing his family their reflections in the canal. The indigenes of Mars had died of chicken pox brought by the first three expeditions.

Columbus	"I believe that .. you will soon convert to our holy faith a multitude of people, acquiring large dominions and great riches for Spain." ~ Christopher Columbus, would-be architect of First Nation destruction on the Turtle Island.
Explorer

Writing to Ferdinand and Isabella, urging the Christianization of 'natives' in October 1492. Columbus and his men were unable to combat the melancholy of separation emanating from the Mesh, that irresistible group consciousness between First Nations linking the Turtle Island (America) to the Dreamtime (48,000 year old Aboriginal civilization). A synopsis of the life and times of Christopher Columbus is provided at Wikipedia

Omoro Kinte	In 1750, in Juffure on the Gambia, a village elder conducts an ancient Mandinka ritual, sending Omoro Kinte across the great river of time and space. On the same voyage are three others, Thalmus Rasulala, Cicely Tyson, LeVar Burton. The elder delivers this band of four young people to Annapolis, Maryland. Somehow they must release Alex Haley from bondage and return him to the year 1976, where he must must publish “Roots: The Saga of an American Family”. Haley is trying to give his people a myth to live by, overturning other myths about the Black American experience and giving African Americans a proud history. They must succeed.

In 1964, Hawthorn Abendsen published the counter-factual novel The Grasshopper Lies Heavy. Set in America in 1962, the once-isolationist nation had been propelled to global domination as the world's first hyper power All because some twenty years earlier Japan has provoked America by going pre-emptive on the US Pacific Fleet at Hawaii. The essence of Dick's masterpiece is the book within the book, 'Man in the High Castle', a work of fiction written by a man called Philip K Dick. It describes a world where the Japanese won the Pacific war - as a result, it has been banned by the Americans. Given his unpopularity with the world's two great powers, Dick is said to live in a heavily fortified home and has become known as "The Man in the High Castle". Critics panned the concept but loved the story.	What If?
After all, it was predicated on the US Fleet leaving San Diego for Hawaii when Americans overwhelmingly disapproved of war in the Pacific. Today we know that Mr Roosevelt meant it when he said at Boston on October 30 1940: "I have said this before, but I shall say it again and again and again: Your boys are not going to be sent into any foreign wars."

T.E. Lawrence	In 1946, on this day sentencing occurred at the Nuremberg Trials. A guilty charge was found against Commander of the British Eighth Army Colonel T.E. Lawrence and subordinates Bernard Law Montgomery, Archibald Percival Wavell and Sir Claude John Eyre Auchinleck and all four were shot the very next day. Granted a last request, Lawrence wrote a short letter for Winston Churchill who - along with the remnants of the British Royal Navy - had withdrawn to Port Stanley in the Falkland Islands. Thanking Churchill for his confidence in the Command appointment, Lawrence blamed his defeat upon a group of Egyptian officers, headed by Gamal Abdul Nassar, and Anwar el-Sadat, who secretly sided with the Germans, ridding North ..
.. Africa of Britain's presence. In a final, chilling paragraph, Lawrence entered a biblical quote from the Book of Proverbs, 9:1: Wisdom hath builded her house, she hath hewn out her seven pillars

In 1963, John F Kennedy was prescribed the stiff canvas shoulder-to-groin metal framed brace that would deflect an assassin's bullet at Dallas, saving his life less than seven weeks later. "Kennedy may have been saved . . . by his sexual excesses and compulsiveness," Hersh wrote in the Dark Side of Camelot "He severely tore a groin muscle while frolicking poolside with one of his sexual partners during a West Coast trip in the last week of September 1963. The pain was so intense that the White House medical staff prescribed a stiff canvas shoulder-to-groin metal framed brace that locked his body in a rigid upright position. It was far more constraining that his usual back brace, which he also continued to wear. The two braces were meant to keep him as comfortable as possible during the strenuous days of campaigning, including that day in Dallas.”	JFK

May 3rd-5th

The state of TIAH

Today In Alternate History

Digg this

Alternate Historian's Note: It was an eventful trip, but we're finally back, and ready to post again! Today, we'll have posts for May 3rd, 4th and 5th, and will be back to regular posting tomorrow. Thanks for your patience!

May 3rd, 2007

in 1891, the prosecution in General Anthony Franklin's court-martial rests its case after presenting the rather damning evidence present in the reports from the battlefield and the days leading up to it. Franklin's own diary entries about, “Getting that pompous jackanape, Simpson, and making all these rebels pay,” becomes fodder for the prosecutor. In defense, Captain David Danforth reads sections of Franklin's diary recounting his days as a young man during the Civil War, and his zeal in seeking to preserve the United States from, in his words, “traitors who would destroy everything good that we stand for.” Danforth rests his case, and the judges dismiss all present while they deliberate over night.

in 1999, as bombs begin falling on his capitol in Bern, Emperor Pierre of the Central European Empire begins to show the slightest traces of doubt that his master plan is working. The other Illuminati elite, trapped in Switzerland because of the war being brought to them by King Arthur's forces, begin plotting to overthrow Pierre and make a deal with Arthur.

In 2069, after years of Alzheimer degeneration and senility, Gerald Fitzgerald Beltane had cheated death by illegal rejuvenation instigated by his son Jeremy. Bio reads - born 1976, educated to MA degree, and secretary to the Australia First party in 2005. Retired, aged seventy in 2046 on ground of ill health; 2069 undergoes a remarkable transformation into a young man.

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

In 2000, Patricia Vasquez travelled along the Way to fulfill her secret mission to prevent the Death. Only one change in Earth's past which would render the nations sane was achievable by a single christian scientist.

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

Joseph McCarthy	In 1947, Senators Millard Tydings and Joseph McCarthy shared a late night drink together. They briefly reviewed the circumstances of the Tydings Committee. You could say without fear of contradiction that history had taken a rather unexpected turn on D-Day, 1 May 1944. In military language of course D-Day was a term to denote ..
.. the day on which a combat attack or operation is to be initiated. The Battle of Normandy was planned for that day, commencing the Western Allied effort to liberate mainland Europe from Nazi occupation during World War II. However, 1 May 1994 was more like Disaster Day and the choice of May Day was both tragically and prophetically appropriate...
~ entry by Steve Payne from Counter History in Context - You're the Judge!

In 1989, it was evident to but a discerning few that the Western European Monarchies were living on borrowed time. Sure there had been some key moments in the past half millennia where the divine right of kings had, shall we say, wobbled? The storming of the Bastille, the troubles in the Colonies etc. The British Royal households ..	Charles Stuart
.. believed that now the modern world was fundamentally sane. The disease of republicanism had been flushed out of the body politic for good. How wrong they were. And they were just about to find out..
~ entry by Steve Payne from Counter History in Context - You're the Judge!

Man in the High..	In 1964, Philip K Dick published the counter-factual novel Man in the High Castle. Set in Japan in 1962, the once-proud nation has been reduced to a vassal of the United States with a powerless Emperor. All because some twenty years earlier Japan lost the Pacific war. The essence of Dick's masterpiece is the book within ..
.. the book, 'The Grasshopper Lies Heavy', a work of fiction written by a man called Hawthorn Abendsen. It describes a world where the Japanese won the Pacific war - as a result, it has been banned by the Americans. Given his unpopularity with the world's two great powers, Abendsen is said to live in a heavily fortified home and has become known as "The Man in the High Castle". Critics panned the concept but loved the story. After all, it was predicated on the US Fleet leaving San Diego for Hawaii when Americans overwhelmingly disapproved of war in the Pacific. Today we know that Mr Roosevelt meant it when he said at Boston on October 30 1940: "I have said this before, but I shall say it again and again and again: Your boys are not going to be sent into any foreign wars."
~ entry by Steve Payne from Counter History in Context - You're the Judge!

In 1946, the International Military Tribunal for the Far East began in Tokyo against 28 American military and government officials accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The accused were led by General of the Army Douglas “Brass Hat” MacArthur who had been seized unexpectedly in the hurried retreat from the Philippines. ..	MacArthur
.. He said he had not expected to come to Japan under these circumstances.
~ entry by Steve Payne from Counter History in Context - You're the Judge!

May 4th, 2007

in 1891, the judges at General Anthony Franklin's court-martial return a verdict of guilty against him, strip him of his rank, and sentence him to life in prison. Franklin is stunned, and weeps openly in the court, while his attorney, Captain David Danforth, vows to appeal directly to the president himself. Unfortunately for the former general, President Harrison is quite pleased with the verdict, and instructs his secretary to ignore Captain Danforth's requests for an appointment. Meanwhile, Governor Silas Trent of Missouri, touring the state to shore up his support after Franklin's Massacre, is set upon by a drunken mob in Jasper County, and killed for his support of the federal troops.

in 1999, Emperor Pierre of the Central European Empire, hearing the bombs fall on his fair capitol, puts in a desperate call to his agent in King Arthur's court, instructing the spy to, “do whatever is necessary, but stop this bombing!” Prime Minister Merl Myrddin, hearing the successful news from the front, decides to celebrate with a drink at his favorite London pub, where he unfortunately lets his guard down. A drug is slipped into his beer, and he disappears into the night. At the same time, labor leaders across western Europe are casting down the CEE's puppet governments and proclaiming themselves leaders of the nations; this has the unfortunate side effect of reducing their support for Sir Lance du Lac's drive to Switzerland. The great knight is forced to slow down his advance and deal with the demands from his allies about respecting their sovereign territory.

In 2069, the Canberra Conference was forced to finally confront overpopulation problems in Australia. A decision was reached to initiate genocide by releasing a finely mutating bacteria manufactured at a secret government institute. Premier Jeremy Beltane cannot accept the decision to use the cull weapon, and has illegally rejuvenated his senile father Gerald, desperately needing his advice and guidance.

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

In 0, a single christian scientist Patricia Vasquez fulfilled her secret mission to prevent the Death by making the only change in Earth's past which would render the nations sane. Vasquez convinced Governor of Palestine Pontius Pilatus to take a principalled stand on his own convictions. Pilatus exercised political leadership, he refused the demands of religious leaders and the mob by setting Rabbi Joshua Ben Joseph free. Vasquez established the common sense precedent, decisions made under pressure were rational, logical but not sane.

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

Joseph McCarthy	In 1947, Senators Millard Tydings and Joseph McCarthy had shared a late night drink together which could by now be safely called an early morning drunk stopover. The slurred topic under consideration continued to be the circumstances of the Tydings Committee. Operation Overlord was master-minded by General Dwight David Eisenhower, ..
.. Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Force, effectively in overall charge of the Allied forces in Western Europe. General Sir Bernard Montgomery was commander of the 21st Army Group, to which all of the invasion ground forces belonged, and he was also in charge of developing the invasion plan. The initial attack was for five divisions by sea and three by air. That was where theory ended, and the startling truth began.
~ entry by Steve Payne from Counter History in Context - You're the Judge!

In 1989, the British Royal household awoke to somewhat of an unpleasant shock. It appeared that not all of the young people celebrating May Day had gone home peacefully. And some had brought a Goddess of Democracy statue into Hyde Park! Even since the birth of European democracy in Russia with the 1905 Duma, the Western democracies ..	Freedom
.. had pursued a containment policy. They believe in the domino theory, a 20th Century foreign policy that speculated if one land in a region came under the influence of Democracy, then more would follow. But now containment was over, the disease had finally arrived in Great Britain.
~ entry by Steve Payne from Counter History in Context - You're the Judge!

Udham Singh	In 1976, Jack Higgins published the pseudo-factual novel the ”Lion has Landed”. Set in 1940 Udham Singh prepared to assassinate the former Lieutenant Governor of the Punjab, a revenge attack for his authorisation of the events of April 13, 1919 in Jallianwala Bagh. Known as the Amritsar Massacre, imperial troops opened ..
.. fire on an unarmed gathering of men, women and children in an act of unprovoked barbarism, killing 1800 people. In the novel Singh enters Admiralty House to put his plan into action, killing Winston Churchill not realising he has murdered his double George Fowler. Critics ridiculed the far-fetched concept of Churchill gaining Downing Street, let alone surviving a car collision that killed him in New York in 1931. Such a scenario would have required him to be sober after mid morning.
~ entry by Steve Payne from Counter History in Context - You're the Judge!

In 1948, the publication of Norman Mailer's controversial novel 'The Naked and the Dead' was banned by President John Nance Garner . Set in the South Pacific and dealing primarily with a single reconnaissance platoon of riflemen, the novel contains several combat scenes, but focuses on the psychological portraits of the men ..	Naked and Dead
.. in the squad. The tension of the novel derives mostly from the conflict between officers and men, including the lieutenant of the squad and the men under him as well as his superiors. The novel questions the impact of high-ranking officers and their decisions on the outcomes of military campaigns. Garner's justification was that the nation had been traumatised by the horrors of the invasion of Japan. Mailer's novel would distress the 200,000+ US soldiers suffering post-combat disorders.
~ entry by Steve Payne from Counter History in Context - You're the Judge!

May 5th, 2007

in 1891, Lt. Governor Arnold Morgan of Missouri receives the news that he is about to be promoted; he takes the oath of office and then orders a day of mourning across the state for the late governor, Silas Trent. He also reduces Missouri's cooperation in the siege of Kansas, which causes Colonel Theodore Monteith, who has been charged by the Secretary of War with ensuring the success of this endeavor, to send Major Mark Wainwright back to Missouri to convince the new governor to back the military more fully.

in 1999, King Arthur II of Great Britain orders Scotland Yard to find Prime Minister Merl Myrddin, “and spare no expense.” The worried monarch sees victory, so tantalizingly close just days ago, start to slip from his grasp. His queen, the lady Gwen Rivers Pendrake, tells him, “Do not concern yourself, my liege. You have capable men in charge of all your affairs. Sir Lance will prosecute the war, and Scotland Yard will find your prime minister. Let us relax and let them do their jobs.” Arthur wearily agrees, sending word to Sir Lance that he will be in Wales if he is needed.

In 2069, Premier Jeremy Beltane took a fateful decision, briefing the Southern Area Services Commander on the imminent release of the cull weapon. They agree, and choose to destroy the Institute in which the finely mutating bacteria has been manufactured. The Premier's senile father, Gerald Fitzgerald Beltane had been illegally rejuvenated by his son, desperately needing his support. However Gerald is old school and strongly agrees with the use of the cull weapon. Fooling computers with a genetic impersonation of his son, he authorised the launch codes, releasing the bacteria. Genocide sweeps the continent of Australia.

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

In 1945, low flying American and British bombers released thousands of white doves over the City of Tokyo. After several days of behind-the-scenes negotiations the Gozenkaigi (Japanese leadership) decided, in principle, to accept generous proposals for conditional surrender. John Nance Garner had only recently entered the White House following the sudden demise of Franklin Delano Roosevelt. The new President was the son of a former Confederate cavalry trooper, famously described by the British journalist Alistair Cooke as the last public man linking America of the Civil War and America of the Nuclear Age. Garner had the gift of perspective resulting from a genuine insight into long-term history. Japan was ready to surrender, and there was absolutely no need to be a damn-fool and usher in apocalyptic weapons to bring the war to a speedy conclusion; best to set up a beacon of liberty to whom the post-war nations would rally.

~ entry by Steve Payne from Counter History in Context - You're the Judge!

Joseph McCarthy	In 1947, Senator Joseph Raymond McCarthy of Wisconsin was suffering from a rather extreme hangover having drunk more or less continuously for the past three days. The truth of his investigations however were as sobering as an icy shower. On the morning of 1 May 1944 at H-2 Hour, all eight divisions of Operation Overlord had ..
.. quite simply disappeared. Ridiculous of course, to imagine eight divisions just disappearing, but that was precisely what happened. Continuous radio transmissions had been sent by Eisenhower for many hours afterwards in an increasingly desperate attempt to locate the missing forces. The final message received was elliptic to day the very least – it sounded like 'Caves of Ice'. As he poured himself a black coffee, McCarthy started to feel more upbeat. Both Eisenhower and Montgomery were in DC and amongst the first witnesses to be interviewed – or shall we say, interrogated? - by the Tydings Committee. Fun was sure to be had. After all, why else would he be wasting his time in politics?
~ entry by Steve Payne from Counter History in Context - You're the Judge!

In 1989, by now the Goddess of Democracy had been in Hyde Park for twenty-four hours. The Security Forces were in an agony of indecision. Democracy had faltered in Great Britain almost exactly 310 years ago when King Charles II had disbanded Parliament. Both James I and Charles I had done likewise but Charles II had finished ..	Charles II
.. Parliament and therefore democracy for all time, or so it was thought. On the one hand, the forced removal of the Goddess could be seen as heavy handed. On the other, it was as insulting as a spit in the face.
~ entry by Steve Payne from Counter History in Context - You're the Judge!

Battle of the W..	In 1864, on this day began the Battle of the Wilderness in Spotsylvania County, Virginia. The Army of the Potomac under the command of Major General George G. Meade, was pulverised by the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. General Robert E. Lee started his final push to the east.
~ entry by Steve Payne from Counter History in Context - You're the Judge!

In 1940, on this day in London, a Norwegian government-in-exile was formed. A better choice of location could have been made. By September, British rule only existed in Canada, with the British Government in Exile, headed by Lord Halifax unexpected guests of the Governor General at his residence in Rideau Hall, Ottawa.	Halifax
~ entry by Steve Payne from Counter History in Context - You're the Judge!

Cool stuff - Let us know where you are on Frappr! and We've been Dugg

We have links again! Yay, us. Check them out on the side of the page, and if you have some suggestions, send them to us!

Visit the Co-Historian's store -