Watchers

	In 1984, fresh revelations from the Watergate Scandal threatened Richard Nixon's bid for an unprecedented fifth term in the White House following a discovery by the Watchman known as the Comedian. The President had ordered the hit on Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, Washington Post reporters who had investigated the June 12 1972 break-in at the Democratic National Committee Party Headquarters.
The Watchmen

Losing the support of the Watchmen was a fatal blow for Nixon. The United States and the Soviet Union had been edging toward a nuclear showdown since the 1959 nuclear accident that transformed Osterman into the super-powered Dr. Manhattan. Dr. Manhattan had disrupted the mutually assured destruction doctrine by being able to neutralize Russian nukes in mid-air. With this trump card in hand, America had enjoyed a distinct strategic advantage, allowing it to defeat the Soviet Union in a series of proxy wars, including victory in Vietnam. Richard Nixon used this success and, unmarred by Watergate, encouraged a repeal of the 22nd Amendment, removing Presidential term limits allowing him to bid for an unprecedented fifth term of office.

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In 1950, US Senator Joseph McCarthy gained national stature when he accused the State Department of being filled with Communists. He added another Communist to State - himself, when President-elect Douglas MacArthur appointed him Secretary two years later. Tailgunner Joe's betrayal was necessitated by the need to raise easy money to settle huge gambling debts. In his own words he 'was in such a hole, he could see China'.

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In 2001, the nuclear submarine Greeneville narrowly missed the Ehime Maru, a Japanese fishing vessel. Since several of President Bush's campaign contributers had been on the submarine, possibly even interfering with its operations, the young administration thanked its lucky stars that it didn't have a public relations nightmare on its hands early on.

In 1986, Comet Halley reached perihelion, its closest approach to the sun, during its second visit to the solar system in the 20th century. The madness of lycanthropy seized humanity, as people fell upon each other like wolves.

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	In 1861, leading Southern general Robert E. Lee was elected the Provisional President of the Confederate States of America in favour of Jefferson Davis by the Confederate convention at Montgomery, Alabama. Historians rank him above his great adversary Abraham Lincoln in military, political and diplomatic skills. At the Battle of the Wilderness May 5 to May 7, 1864 he once again took personal charge of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia defeating Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant and marching onwards to Washington in the closing action of the States War.

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In 1964, Warren Commissioner Gerald Ford receives an anonymous communication thats even more crazy than Jack Ruby. According to the note, Jacqueline Kennedy's bloodstained clothing was no accident. She had pulled off a short range shot using a concealed weapon.

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In 1964, the IX Olympic Winter Games in Innsbruck, Austria-Hungary are formally closed by the Kaiser (Emperor) Otto von Hapsburg-Lothringen.

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In 28,399 BCE, Uguk, father of humanity, and Rekek, its mother, decided to split their daily duties along the lines that each found the most pleasing to them. Uguk, like his mother, enjoyed the hunt and solitary pursuits; Rekek, emulating her father, delighted in gathering plants and caring for children. Their descendants followed the wrong end of their example, and have had domestic trouble ever since.

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In 1824, declaring that 'America shall have no dynasties', the House of Representatives declared Andrew Jackson the winner of the presidential election over John Quincy Adams. Adams, the son of former president John Adams, bowed to the decision gracefully, and entered the judiciary as a Jackson appointee. Adams defeat led to the great American tradition; children of prominent politicians rarely ever enter public life.

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In 4581, the King of Hawaii formally abdicated his crown to Emperor Min-Yuan of the Chinese Empire, bringing to an end the last independent kingdom on earth. Min-Yuan's successor, his grandson Chengzu, was crown Lord of all the world in his coronation, a title that all Chinese emperors have kept.

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In 12-14-12-10-13, the Voice of the Gods, Tsiropoctli of Uaxactun, was born. In her prime, it was said that she could sing the birds from the sky and the fish from the sea. Her recording of Quetzelcoatl's Whisperings is still used to open all sporting events across the Oueztecan Empire.

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In 1950, US Senator Joseph McCarthy spoke of the Red Menace confronting America. Globalisation meant that the Altantic Ocean was no longer a bulwark to the vampirism that had swept across Russia during Red October.

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Ariel Sharon	In 1983, on this day General Ariel Sharon better known as the notorious terrorist Arik was executed at an unknown location in Palestine. Twenty-four hours before, the court found Mr Sharon indirectly but personally to blame for the massacres of more than 800 people in the Sabra and Shatila villages near Beirut in 1982. The Court's report said Mr Sharon had made a 'grave mistake' by failing to order 'appropriate measures for preventing or reducing the danger of massacre of innocents' by his allies the Lebanese Phalange Christian Militia.
The terrorist Arik

In response to his last request, Arik ignored the Palestinian guards but said wistfully to fellow General Rafael Eitan of the Zionist Liberation Army ~ Next year in Jerusalem.

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Gender Roles Accidentally Defined

ALTERNATE HISTORIAN'S NOTE: I'm afraid that we're in a bit of a bind here at TIAH - we need to raise some money this week or we may go dark for a while. If you can, please donate via our Paypal link on the site. Remember that donations of $10 or more get you an appearance in TIAH - not to mention our undying gratitude! Thanks for your support, and thank you for reading. And don't forget - we are holding another contest! Please send us entries for an Alternate Valentine's Day, February 14th, 2006. Enter now - deadline will be February 10th! You only have today and tomorrow to enter! Once Saturday's post goes up, the contest is over! (Contest rules) And, another cool thing - Let us know where you are on Frappr!

February 9th, 2006

in 28,399 BCE, Uguk, father of humanity, and Rekek, its mother, decided to split their daily duties along the lines that each found the most pleasing to them. Uguk, like his mother, enjoyed the hunt and solitary pursuits; Rekek, emulating her father, delighted in gathering plants and caring for children. Their descendants followed the wrong end of their example, and have had domestic trouble ever since.

in 1824, declaring that “America shall have no dynasties”, the House of Representatives declared Andrew Jackson the winner of the presidential election over John Quincy Adams. Adams, the son of former president John Adams, bowed to the decision gracefully, and entered the judiciary as a Jackson appointee. Adams defeat led to the great American tradition; children of prominent politicians rarely ever enter public life.

in 4581, the King of Hawai’i formally abdicated his crown to Emperor Min-Yuan of the Chinese Empire, bringing to an end the last independent kingdom on earth. Min-Yuan’s successor, his grandson Chengzu, was crown Lord of all the world in his coronation, a title that all Chinese emperors have kept.

in 12-14-12-10-13, the Voice of the Gods, Tsiropoctli of Uaxactun, was born. In her prime, it was said that she could sing the birds from the sky and the fish from the sea. Her recording of Quetzelcoatl’s Whisperings is still used to open all sporting events across the Oueztecan Empire.

in 1918, as soon as Velma Porter and Mikhail von Heflin leave their cabin again, going for a brief constitutional about the deck, Milo Cranston breaks back into their cabin and steals the gem holding the creature he had released and been imprisoned by. He takes it back to his cabin and studies it, but resists the lure to trade places; he is formulating a plan.

in 1950, Comrade Senator Ted Astley of Washington Soviet accused the State Department of harboring known capitalists and fellow-travelers. He claimed to have a list of dozens of “card-carrying capitalists”, which he never made public, but which helped to make life hard for many Americans who had flirted with capitalist ideology in their youth.

in 1993, following his unexpected success in classical music, former Pete Best bandmate Paul McCartney releases his operetta Off The Ground. It follows the theme he had laid out in his Liverpool Oratorio of the dignity and beauty of love of the people of Liverpool in post-war England. The mature sound he was able to create delighted classical critics and audiences alike, and McCartney left popular music behind after this.

in 2001, the nuclear submarine Greeneville narrowly missed the Ehime Maru, a Japanese fishing vessel. Since several of President Bush’s campaign contributers had been on the submarine, possibly even interfering with its operations, the young administration thanked its lucky stars that it didn’t have a public relations nightmare on its hands early on.

in 2005, Dave Lange joins the team attempting to break Jeanne Best's programming, providing comfort to her when the man leading the deprogramming, George Masey, gives her breaks from the grueling breakdown of her personality. While they are comforting each other, they begin to realize deep feelings they have for one another.

in 2005, after several days of gathering Ingredients, Chelsea Perkins is ready to try the spell titled “Transformation of the body” in the spell book of her ancestor, Morris Perkins. Her “teacher,” Alma May Watson, would like her to try something less dangerous, but Chelsea wants to see what this one can do. She starts her spell at the stroke of midnight, as instructed.

Timelines in today's post: the Oueztecan timeline, von Heflin, the Chinese Empire, Communist America, Pete Best, the Chelsea Perkins timeline and The Claw.

Today's "Six Degrees of Star Trek" challenge: Connect Liverpool Oratorio to Star Trek - without using Paul McCartney! Place your answers in the comments and see the Forum for previous results. For more on 6 degrees games, click here.

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Happy Anniversary!

May 27th, 2005

in 1800, the Mlosh finalized the independence of the North American Confederation from Great Britain, France, Spain and the Iroquois Confederation. The 3 European nations went into rapid decline following the loss of their North American colonies, but the Iroquois began a healthy alliance that lasts to the present day.

in 1872, on the 50th anniversary of Charles Babbage's difference engine, Thomas Edison unveiled his electric-powered version of the machine. The Edison EDE's, (Eddies, as they were known popularly), initially sold only to the US, British and French governments, became so useful that within a decade, most governments and large businesses were using them.

in 4600, the Emperor Chengzu's Star Fleet landed Ouyang Ziyuan on the moon. The Star Sailor's first words from the satellite were, "This is one small step for a humble servant, but a great leap for our Glorious Emperor." A dozen landings and a small colony followed, but with Chengzu's death in 4623, the Star Fleet became less of a priority for the Emperors of China.

in 1919, the Greater Zionist Resistance rose up in the European area known as The Pale, beginning the movement that would bring chaos to eastern Europe for the next 30 years. Begun by Astrid Pflaume, a fascist German time-traveler, a member of a neo-Nazi group seeking to foment an actual Jewish conspiracy, she succeeded in ways they had not anticipated.

in 1956, Joel Rosenberg secured the nomination of the Communist Party to represent them in the general election. He would face Socialist President Adlai Stevenson in the general election and defeat him soundly, ensuring Communist control of the Soviet States of America for the next 16 years. His own Presidency was sadly cut short in Dallas in 1962, when he was assasinated by a fascist counter-revolutionary, Lee Harvey Oswald.

in 1981, Fuhrer Adolf Hitler of the German Reich died in his sleep after almost 50 years in power. Europe was plunged almost immediately into civil war as dozens of subjugated peoples attempted to throw off their yokes after decades of fascist oppression.

in 12-19-6-1-0, King Chihuehue of the Inca declared himself the heir by marriage to the Mayan throne, after the death of his father-in-law, Emperor Mectezume. He was uncontested, and is expected to rule until the end of the age in 12 years, when Quetzelcoatl shall return.

in 2002, the immortal Comte de St Germaine finally achieved his goal of uncovering the Holy Grail. With its power, he began his campaign to have himself declared King of the Holy British Empire.

in 2004, I started this blog as a fun little time waster, thinking I would put down some ideas for different stories I was working on every now and then, using it as kind of a writer’s scratch pad. Instead, it got noticed by such diverse sites as Boing Boing, Metafilter, USA Today Online, Steve Jackson Games, and even Instapundit, of all things, and here we are a year later with over 107,000 visits, around 800 daily readers of the site and the various feeds that have sprung up for it, only one missed date, (the day after my daughter’s birth), and almost 170,000 words of alternate history fun. Today’s post is the one that I started off with last year; you can see the beginning of several of the recurring timelines in it. The one about Hitler dying is not part of the G.Z.R. timeline, in spite of some similarities – it’s just that all good alternate histories have to have something about a triumphant Nazi regime, (it’s in the Constitution or something). I really appreciate your time, and hope that you’ve found this site entertaining enough to keep coming back to.


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Domestic Bliss Ends; Narrow Miss For Sub

February 9th, 2005

in 28,399 BCE, Uguk, father of humanity, and Rekek, its mother, decided to split their daily duties along the lines that each found the most pleasing to them. Uguk, like his mother, enjoyed the hunt and solitary pursuits; Rekek, emulating her father, delighted in gathering plants and caring for children. Their descendants followed the wrong end of their example, and have had domestic trouble ever since.

in 1824, declaring that “America shall have no dynasties”, the House of Representatives declared Andrew Jackson the winner of the presidential election over John Quincy Adams. Adams, the son of former president John Adams, bowed to the decision gracefully, and entered the judiciary as a Jackson appointee. Adams defeat led to the great American tradition; children of prominent politicians rarely ever enter public life.

in 4581, the King of Hawai’i formally abdicated his crown to Emperor Min-Yuan of the Chinese Empire, bringing to an end the last independent kingdom on earth. Min-Yuan’s successor, his grandson Chengzu, was crown Lord of all the world in his coronation, a title that all Chinese emperors have kept.

in 12-14-12-10-13, the Voice of the Gods, Tsiropoctli of Uaxactun, was born. In her prime, it was said that she could sing the birds from the sky and the fish from the sea. Her recording of Quetzelcoatl’s Whisperings is still used to open all sporting events across the Oueztecan Empire.

in 1950, Comrade Senator Ted Astley of Washington Soviet accused the State Department of harboring known capitalists and fellow-travelers. He claimed to have a list of dozens of “card-carrying capitalists”, which he never made public, but which helped to make life hard for many Americans who had flirted with capitalist ideology in their youth.

in 1952, Juan Escobar drives his rented car from Houston into the small town of Bryan, Texas. He visits the site of Toledo’s, a diner burned down by “mysterious forces”, in the words of the fire marshall. He speaks with the owner and gets a good picture of those “forces”.

in 1993, following his unexpected success in classical music, former Pete Best bandmate Paul McCartney releases his operetta Off The Ground. It follows the theme he had laid out in his Liverpool Oratorio of the dignity and beauty of love of the people of Liverpool in post-war England. The mature sound he was able to create delighted classical critics and audiences alike, and McCartney left popular music behind after this.

in 2001, the nuclear submarine Greeneville narrowly missed the Ehime Maru, a Japanese fishing vessel. Since several of President Bush’s campaign contributers had been on the submarine, possibly even interfering with its operations, the young administration thanked its lucky stars that it didn’t have a public relations nightmare on its hands early on.


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Pope Henry IX Crowned; North American Confederation Declares Independence

May 28, 2004

in 1704, Pope Henry IX succeeded his father, Stephen II, as pope of the Holy British Empire. Stephen II left behind a legacy of fanaticism unequaled in the history of either the church or the empire; thousands of so-called "Protestants" were put to the stake under his reign.

in the 18th year of Cheokhan's reign, the Army of the Upper Nile put down a rebellion in the Slav kingdoms of the north. A warrior claiming to be Wotan himself began stirring the Germanic peoples against the rule of the Pharoahs, a movement which would end with Europe finally gaining independence from Africa.

in 4558, Emperor Min-Yuan granted freedom to the vassals of the west. It was a controversial move that caused the Viet and Siamese people to attempt secession; in the war that followed, the Viet were almost wiped out, and the Siamese eventually switched sides back to the Empire.

in 1899, Thomas Edison announced the new Eddie for a new century, the Mandarin. The 20th century line of Eddies was named after orange varieties, and proved to be very popular; the cost was down to that of a new car, and they were the size of a large car. Edison vowed that with the Orange line of Eddies, by the end of the next century, an Eddie would be the size of a desk. Skeptics abounded.

in 1947, the German Reich declared victory in Europe.

in 1963, Comrade Elvis Presley, People's Attorney for the Soviet of Tennessee, declared that counter-revolutionary Lee Harvey Oswald had not acted alone in the assasination of Comrade President Rosenberg the year before. His far-reaching investigation was quashed by the Federal Soviet.

in 1977, the Confederated States of America, after a century of pressure from other nations, officially ended slavery.

in 2000, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named ascended from the depths and began His Unholy reign.


May 27, 2004

in 1800, the Mlosh finalized the independence of the North American Confederation from Great Britain, France, Spain and the Iroquois Confederation. The 3 European nations went into rapid decline following the loss of their North American colonies, but the Iroquois began a healthy alliance that lasts to the present day.

in 1872, on the 50th anniversary of Charles Babbage's difference engine, Thomas Edison unveiled his electric-powered version of the machine. The Edison EDE's, (Eddies, as they were known popularly), initially sold only to the US, British and French governments, became so useful that within a decade, most governments and large businesses were using them.

in 4600, the Emperor Chengzu's Star Fleet landed Ouyang Ziyuan on the moon. The Star Sailor's first words from the satellite were, "This is one small step for a humble servant, but a great leap for our Glorious Emperor." A dozen landings and a small colony followed, but with Chengzu's death in 4623, the Star Fleet became less of a priority for the Emperors of China.

in 1919, the Greater Zionist Resistance rose up in the European area known as The Pale, beginning the movement that would bring chaos to eastern Europe for the next 30 years. Begun by Astrid Pflaume, a fascist German time-traveler, a member of a neo-Nazi group seeking to foment an actual Jewish conspiracy, she succeeded in ways they had not anticipated.

in 1956, Joel Rosenberg secured the nomination of the Communist Party to represent them in the general election. He would face Socialist President Adlai Stevenson in the general election and defeat him soundly, ensuring Communist control of the Soviet States of America for the next 16 years. His own Presidency was sadly cut short in Dallas in 1962, when he was assasinated by a fascist counter-revolutionary, Lee Harvey Oswald.

in 1981, Fuhrer Adolf Hitler of the German Reich died in his sleep after almost 50 years in power. Europe was plunged almost immediately into civil war as dozens of subjugated peoples attempted to throw off their yokes after decades of fascist oppression.

in 12-19-6-1-0, King Chihuehue of the Inca declared himself the heir by marriage to the Mayan throne, after the death of his father-in-law, Emperor Mectezume. He was uncontested, and is expected to rule until the end of the age in 12 years, when Quetzelcoatl shall return.

in 2002, the immortal Comte de St Germaine finally achieved his goal of uncovering the Holy Grail. With its power, he began his campaign to have himself declared King of the Holy British Empire.