Era Of Ill Will

November 7th, 2005

in 1820, in the most highly-contested presidential election in U.S. history, President James Monroe emerged as the victor from a field of 9 candidates. He had captured almost a third of the electoral college votes, and when the choice was thrown into the House of Representatives, they felt comfortable enough with him to allow him to continue in office. Monroe’s second term became known as The Era of Ill Will because of the feeling of illegitimacy in his reelection.

in 1872, the Mary Celeste, a cargo airboat with 10 crewmen, set sail from New York City to Genoa, Italy. It was carrying several tons of alcoholic beverages for Italian importers, and the crew reported no difficulties during launch and the first few hours of travel. Ten days later, the ship was found floating under auto-pilot off the coast of the Azores; the crew had disappeared, and all the cargo was intact. Investigators of the incident receive a tip from a physicist at New York University that the earth was entering an interdimensional rift; he believed the rift was caused by Mlosh technology, but this part of the investigation was covered up. The mystery has never been officially solved.

in 1876, Democrat Samuel Tilden wins the popular vote in the presidential election, but the electoral college vote is less certain. Republican Rutherford B.Hayes attempts to use his influence to have Congress declare him the winner, but several more moderate Republicans balk at this blatant attempt to subvert the will of the people. Tilden gains the electoral college victory, and the White House with it.

in 1890, the farms of three Mormon collaborators are burned to the ground and the families are killed by rebel Mormon Charles Brigman and his followers. Brigman leaves a message at one of the farms indicating that he will kill three more the next day, and the day after, and keep killing until Utah Territory is cleared of federal troops. Desperate Mormon elders come to Colonel Beauregard T. Jackson and beg him to leave Utah. Jackson sends word to Washington, asking for advice.

in 1916, Socialist incumbent President Woodrow Wilson wins reelection, in spite of a tough primary challenge from A. L. Benson. The Communist candidate, Charles Hughes, also puts up a tough fight, but loses by 3 percentage points in the vote. Wilson attempts to create a League of Nations in his second term, but war-ravaged Europe is unwilling to go along with any plans put forth by a power that remained neutral during their war.

in 1944, Republican incumbent Wendell Wilkie wins reelection with only token opposition from the American Bund, and the endorsement of the remnants of the old Democratic Party. After this election, the Bund begins fielding stronger candidates at the national level, and the Democratics cease doing so. For the next 20 years, the Republicans maintain an uneasy balance between mainstream values and the racist right in America.

in 1983, the Plymouth Brethren, a murderous cult descended from the Quakers of early American colonial times, made a sacrifice of the Hendricks family of Bloomington, Illinois. Over the next week, cult leader David Hendricks, who was suspected in the murder of his family, led police on a chase across the Midwest, killing almost a dozen people with his small group of cultists. Hendricks and his followers committed suicide when police surrounded them at a motel in Wisconsin in December of 1983.

in 1408, Tunisian Caliph Habib Bourguiba, who had led the country since gaining its independence from Libya in 1377, was overthrown by local chieftains. Although many of them were infidels who had never given up the pagan faith of their fathers, the one who rose to succeed him as Caliph was Muslim chieftain Zine el Abidine Ben Ali. Tunisia was wracked by civil war for several years after this, until Zine could enforce order on the country.

in 2000, because of confusion and outright fraud in the counting of ballots in Florida, neither Vice-President Al Gore nor Governor George Bush of Texas are declared the winner of the presidential election. This draws thousands of angry partisans to the Sunshine State, who clash repeatedly over the next few days until the violence escalates into mass bloodshed. President Clinton orders the National Guard into the state to restore order, but this only increases the tension, and soon the state is in an outright civil war. This was the beginning of the Red-Blue War in America which continues to this day.

in 2002, the robot ship carrying Professor Thomas and Air Force pilot Trent Laughlin is not headed back to the Pleiades, much to their surprise, but is headed towards the center of the galaxy at incredible speed. Dr. Courtney and his ships are barely able to keep up, and he is visibly concerned about the direction they are headed in.

Christmas Day Contest! Following up on our Halloween contest, you can enter our next contest, which will be alternate histories for Christmas Day, December 25th, 2005. The same rules will apply, the top ten entries will be posted on that day, and by entering, you grant TIAH the right to electronically print your writing on October 31st, 2005, maintain your writing in our archives, and reprint your entry should we decide to reuse it in the future. TIAH only maintains full copyright over material it has originated that has been used by contestants in writing their own entries. Enter early and often - entries must be received by December 20th, 2005! Email us up to 3 entries of your best alternate Christmas Days!

We still have our standard offer - everybody who donates $10 or more through our Paypal link will become alternate history entries on the site. When you donate, I will email you asking your preference for a day & timeline; if you don't reply to me, I'll place you in a day that seems to fit your name :) Thanks for your continued support!

Forum Link not working for now - Forum has been hacked! We're working on getting it back, and will let you know once it's back up.
Fresh New Poll - Shall we use future dates in our entries?

Warp and Protocols still available; also, see the script I submitted for Bravo's Situation: Comedy. Speaking of which, the winning writers have been announced; not the ones I voted for, but you can see the one I did at http://www.marktreitel.com

Still wishing...

As your humble alternate historian enters the downhill slope of the 40's, he still has his birthday wish - a contract with a publishing company like Workman Publishing to produce a page-a-day calendar of TIAH. If you are an editor for such a company, or can place us in touch with one, please fulfill this belated birthday wish!

Contested Elections; Civil War

November 7th, 2004

in 1820, in the most highly-contested presidential election in U.S. history, President James Monroe emerged as the victor from a field of 9 candidates. He had captured almost a third of the electoral college votes, and when the choice was thrown into the house of Representatives, they felt comfortable enough with him to allow him to continue in office. Monroe’s second term became known as The Era of Ill Will because of the feeling of illegitimacy in his reelection.

in 1872, the Mary Celeste, a cargo airboat with 10 crewmen, set sail from New York City to Genoa, Italy. It was carrying several tons of alcoholic beverages for Italian importers, and the crew reported no difficulties during launch and the first few hours of travel. Ten days later, the ship was found floating under auto-pilot off the coast of the Azores; the crew had disappeared, and all the cargo was intact. Investigators of the incident receive a tip from a physicist at New York University that the earth was entering an interdimensional rift; he believed the rift was caused by Mlosh technology, but this part of the investigation was covered up. The mystery has never been officially solved.

in 1876, Democrat Samuel Tilden wins the popular vote in the presidential election, but the electoral college vote is less certain. Republican Rutherford B.Hayes attempts to use his influence to have Congress declare him the winner, but several more moderate Republicans balk at this blatant attempt to subvert the will of the people. Tilden gains the electoral college victory, and the White House with it.

in 1916, Socialist incumbent President Woodrow Wilson wins reelection, in spite of a tough primary challenge from A. L. Benson. The Communist candidate, Charles Hughes, also puts up a tough fight, but loses by 3 percentage points in the vote. Wilson attempts to create a League of Nations in his second term, but war-ravaged Europe is unwilling to go along with any plans put forth by a power that remained neutral during their war.

in 1944, Republican incumbent Wendell Wilkie wins reelection with only token opposition from the American Bund, and the endorsement of the remnants of the old Democratic Party. After this election, the Bund begins fielding stronger candidates at the national level, and the Democratics cease doing so. For the next 20 years, the Republicans maintain an uneasy balance between mainstream values and the racist right in America.

in 1983, the Plymouth Brethren, a murderous cult descended from the Quakers of early American colonial times, made a sacrifice of the Hendricks family of Bloomington, Illinois. Over the next week, cult leader David Hendricks, who was suspected in the murder of his family, led police on a chase across the Midwest, killing almost a dozen people with his small group of cultists. Hendricks and his followers committed suicide when police surrounded them at a motel in Wisconsin in December of 1983.

in 1408, Tunisian Caliph Habib Bourguiba, who had led the country since gaining its independence from Libya in 1377, was overthrown by local chieftains. Although many of them were infidels who had never given up the pagan faith of their fathers, the one who rose to succeed him as Caliph was muslim chieftain Zine el Abidine Ben Ali. Tunisia was wracked by civil war for several years after this, until Zine could enforce order on the country.

in 2000, because of confusion and outright fraud in the counting of ballots in Florida, neither Vice-President Al Gore nor Governor George Bush of Texas are declared the winner of the presidential election. This draws thousands of angry partisans to the Sunshine State, who clash repeatedly over the next few days until the violence escalates into mass bloodshed. President Clinton orders the National Guard into the state to restore order, but this only increases the tension, and soon the state is in an outright civil war. This was the beginning of the Red-Blue War in America which continues to this day.

Election Denouement

November 4th, 2004

in 1720, King George of Great Britain grants the Mlosh of the colony ship that landed in Ireland British citizenship. This moves rankles the Irish, who have been chafing under British rule for centuries. Before long, though, they come to appreciate their alien neighbors, as the Mlosh help them win independence from Britain.

in 1828, President Andrew Jackson wins reelection after the abolition of the Electoral College allows him to be popularly elected. The people support Jackson fanatically; so much so that, when he dissolves the Congress dominated by his opponents, they muster in the streets of Washington to keep the National Republicans from organizing support against him. When Jackson outlaws the opposition party, though, he goes too far, and it ignites a civil war between the rival political factions.

in 1856, Walt Whitman, 37-year old journalist from New York, is elected to the presidency at the head of the Communist Party ticket. Whitman brings the Marxist-Thoreauvian political theory of the 1840’s to life, and leads America to a brave new world of social justice. While there are some bumps along the way, Comrade Whitman is still remembered as one of the finest presidents to serve the country.

in 2637 AUC, the first representatives from Vinland took their seats in the Senate in Rome. Vinland had been considered a barbaric province for so long that when the Vinlandians appeared in the latest Roman finery, several observers reported being shocked that they hadn’t come in loincloths and tattoos. The sophistication that the first Vinlandians presented to the Senate helped them bring their province up to full equality in the Republic by the end of the decade.

in 1922, Howard Carter discovers the tomb of Tutankhamen in Egypt. When Carter brings King “Tut’s” mummy out, he brings to life an ancient curse along with it. Within a year, every member of Carter’s expedition is dead, and the mummy of Tutankhamen has vanished. Bedouins in the desert often tell tales of seeing the ancient Pharoah returning to his dusty grave.

in 1924, Thomas Edison, who had run against his better judgement, is defeated in the presidential race by Progressive candidate Robert M. LaFollette of Wisconsin. Edison, who had run as a Democrat, was relieved to have lost, and in his memoirs even claimed to have deliberately sabotaged his campaign. He became a good friend of President LaFollette’s even backing him in his 1928 race for reelection.

in 1952, in an astonishingly tough campaign, Governor Adlai Stevenson of New York defeats General Dwight Eisenhower for the presidency. Governor Stevenson’s slogan, “Let’s talk sense to the American people” outshone the unimaginative “I like Ike” of the opposition, and his articulate vision for the future gave people far more confidence in his ability to lead the nation.

in 1980, after defeating incumbent President Ronald Reagan for the Republican presidential nomination, Representative John Anderson of Illinois takes on Senator Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts in the general election and emerges triumphant. Anderson’s liberal Republicanism is almost a 180 degree turn from Reagan’s conservative activism, and it inspires many young people who had been turned off by the old-line conservatives to take a new look at the Republican Party. Anderson easily won reelection in 1984, and his ideals continued to shape the party for decades after.

Impeachment

The state of TIAH

February 5th, 2007

Digg this

Alternate Historian's Note: We are working on a new project – a collection in book format of several timelines with more-or-less complete stories inside them – The Fall, the Tolman timeline, the Mormon War, the Lascaux Cave story, and more – that will have our NaNoWriMo novel, After, included with it. Once they're edited together, we'll put the lot up for sale on Lulu. 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. And, speaking of side projects, Guest Historian Stephen Payne has one, Crimson Kiss, available for free on Lulu. Check it out and put up a review!

in 1937, newly-reelected President Franklin Roosevelt begins his push to expand the Supreme Court to 15 members in order to create a liberal majority on the High Court. In spite of spirited Republican opposition, Roosevelt's immense popularity carries the day, and 6 new Justices are sworn in the following spring. With their help, the New Deal takes its place as entrenched law in short order. Unfortunately for the liberal movement, conservatives take over the court in the 1950's and 60's, and America's support structure is dismantled in the 1980's. The importance of this structure is made clear to the nation when the stock market crashes in 1987 and savings & loans across the country collapse due to corruption brought about by deregulation. The crisis ushers in a new liberal era with the election of President Jesse Jackson in 1988, who turns America around with a radical restructuring of the nation's resources. Although the wealthy wail about having to return to tax rates mirroring those of the 1950's, the country as a whole is strengthened by his policies and supports him for his landslide reelection in 1992.

in 1988, a federal court in Florida hands down a pair of indictments for Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega on drug trafficking charges. After Noriega makes a call to Langley, Virginia, the indictments are quietly squashed. President Reagan, who had been considering sending troops down to Panama to capture the dictator, is warned off of the action by Vice-President Bush, a former CIA director.

in 2007, after President Bush killed almost a dozen members of the White House Press Corps and 2 Secret Service agents while joyriding a tractor, impeachment papers were drawn up in the House, with reluctant bipartisan support. The White House immediately denounced the effort, saying that the charge of manslaughter did not rise to “High Crimes and Misdemeanors” as required by the Constitution. Representatives argued back that the charge had been reduced to manslaughter only because of White House pressure on the local District Attorney – video of the event clearly showed the president laughing maniacally as he ran down the reporters.

Tybee Bomb	In 1958 the Tybee Hydrogen Bomb is lost by the US Air Force off the coast of Savannah, Georgia. By a perverse twist of fate, it would detonate at the height of the Cuban Missiles Crisis, spooking the trigger-happy Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Curtis 'Bombs Away' LeMay into believing ..
.. that America was under attack. The cool head of President Joseph P Kennedy was required to question why Georgia should be the chosen target for a Cuban nuclear launch. A serial womaniser and prohibition profiteer, Joe was an old hand at self-preservation by avoiding unnecessary fights.
~ entry by Steve Payne from counter history in context - you're the judge!

In 1924 the Royal Greenwich Observatory briefly began broadcasting the hourly time signals known as the Greenwich Time Signal or the 'BBC pips'. The short-fused inhabitants of the Red Planet known as Mars found the pips irritating to say the least, and transmitted back a high pitched shriek ..	Royal Observato..
.. that deafened mankind. You just need a firm hand when dealing with noisy neighbours.
~ entry by Steve Payne from Counter History in Context - You're the Judge!

Charles de Gaul..	In 1962 French President Charles De Gaulle calls for allowing Algeria to be an independent nation. In so doing he fulfilled a promise made during his leadership of the La Grande Armée Afrique. Later that year De Gaulle was assassinated by the settler Organisation armée secrète terrorist ..
.. group who then made a Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI).
~ entry by Steve Payne from counter history in context - you're the judge!

In 1971 crew members of the Apollo 14 Mission Alan Shepard and Edgar Mitchell aboard LM, Antares land on the Moon at Fra Mauro formation. By the end of the year both would be held at the Atlanta Plague Center, suspected carriers of a virulent space bug.	Apollo 14
~ entry by Steve Payne from Counter History in Context - You're the Judge!

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Desperate

John McCain	[After Hanoi] the Iraqis knew [the Air Pirate] McCain was tough. Not to be trifled with. So they let him know they meant business. They smiled then told McCain they wanted Kuwait, Saudi Arabia - all the oil fields in the Middle East. McCain looked over their faces ... Then he showed these men of will what will really was. ~ 1991: Last ditch effort to avoid Gulf War.
US President

In 1991, US President John McCain arrived in Baghdad in a final diplomatic effort to avoid war against Iraq. Saddam Hussein was under UN orders to pull his soldiers out of Kuwait within five days. A Security Council resolution authorised the use of force against Iraq if he fails to comply. Then something strange happened. The strangest thing.

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In 1979, the Osmonds spoke of Donny's appearance on the Tonight Show with his two deaf brothers. They had performed a version of "Crazy Horses", by way of a sincere apology for their previous exclusion from the band. It was a cheap stunt and they were absolutely seething with anger. Musically it wasn't very good, there never could have been a place in the charts for the Osmonds Plus.

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Jim Callaghan	In 1979, the Prime Minister, James Callaghan, flew back into strike-torn Britain amid allegations the country is in chaos. Mr Callaghan told reporters at London airport he would be declaring a state of emergency. He said: "I promise if you look at it from the outside, I don't think other people in the world would share the view that there is mounting chaos". Mr Callaghan has been attending a four nation summit in Guadeloupe when many MPs felt he should have stayed in Britain to deal with the widespread industrial unrest. Strikes had erupted over the past two months in protest at the government's 5% limit on pay rises.
Prime Minister

He was absolutely right, and absolutely wrong. The crisis was indeed over, but he himself was no longer in control. Decisions had been made in Callaghan's absence. He himself had been ousted in a secret coup d'etat, and replaced by Lord Louis Mountbatten, the Interim Prime Minister.

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Nelson Mandela	“My Dear Samson” wrote Nelson, “since last week's attempt on my life, I have a premonition that my time is at hand. Some will try again, and I think this time he may succeed.” ~ Samson Zola. In Laura Resnick's dystopia, years of civil war had torn apart the dream of a Rainbow nation. Samson Zola prepared to assassinate the President of South Africa, Nelson Mandela. Even though he loved him like a father, he saw the need to return South Africa to its people.
Alternate Tyrant

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In 704 AUC, rather than live with the ignominy of being named an Enemy of Rome, Julius Caesar surrendered to the Senate and disbanded his army. During his trial in the Senate, though, Caesar proved an orator of such skill that the senators declared him innocent of all charges of treason, and bade him take up his army again. Although Caesar led the Republic again as Consul, he was always wary in the uses of power, and future consuls followed his example.

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In 12-7-19-10-17, Caohtchihuan of Tegucigalpa, renowned for his plain speech and rational thought, published the tome that has come to be known as Rationality. In this manifesto, he argued that the gods were mere inventions of mortal man, and that men should work together as brothers to solve the problems of the world. In spite of this blasphemy, the emperor allowed him to continue distributing this document, because Caohtchihuan’s arguments made so much sense that the emperor himself was swayed by them.

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Stephen R. Donaldson	In 1968, Stephen Reeder Donaldson languished in Vietnam. By inclination a conscientious objector, he had been compelled to serve in the armed forces. Much later, and after dropping out of his Ph.D. program and moving to New Jersey in order to write fiction, Donaldson made his publishing debut with the first "Covenant" trilogy in 1977. That enabled him to move to a healthier climate. He now lives in New Mexico. Donaldson's two year compulsory military duty would be the deep undercurrent of his escapist fantasy writing. In “The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, the Unbeliever”, the protagonist was a leper struggled with disempowerment in a Land he did not really believe in.
Unbeliever

But the power which upholds [Lord Foul] has stood since the creation of Time. Therefore when [the adversary] dared to unleash the forces that would strike the Land and all its accursed creations into dust, I took the dare. Yes, and laughed until there was doubt in his face before the end. ~ Invitation to Betrayal.

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In 1779, Quebec's British governor attempts to rally what few loyalists remain in the province to the cause by issuing a call for a militia to defend the province from the Canadian nationalists. Lord Weatherby's militia is so shot through with spies that it quickly becomes of more use to the nationalists than to the British fighting to keep them down.

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In 1920, the League of Nations formed in Geneva, Switzerland. The European-led organization has provided an alternative to war for over 8 decades, and has provided the framework for international trade and commerce that has made the world run so smoothly. Although the League could have been torn apart in its early days, its swift action against Japan and Germany in the 1930’s proved that it was capable of providing a voice for all nations, large and small.

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In 1921, Zion City, Illinois, made smoking, drinking, and listening to jazz music mandatory for all citizens over the age of 21. The town fathers had grown very tired of Prohibitionists in their community.

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In 1972, President Hubert Humphrey welcomes the last American soldiers home from Vietnam. Although the withdrawal was slow, the peace secured by President Lyndon Johnson in 1968 seemed to be holding. Humphrey had crushed his opponent in '68, former Vice-President Richard Nixon, and with America finally out of the conflict in southeast Asia, was cruising to reelection in November.

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In 1981, Richard Allen Boone died. Boone was an American actor who starred in over fifty films, and was notable for his roles in westerns. Most famously, he was the star of Have Gun, Will Travel. In 1965, he came third in the Laurel Award for Best Action Performance. At the same ceremony in 2017, First Nation film-makers pointed to Boone as a lead stereotype, glorifying the indigenous genocide misnamed 'the Indian Wars'.

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Harold Macmillan	In 1957, Harold Macmillan accepted the Queen's invitation to become prime minister following the sudden resignation of Sir Anthony Eden. The appointment was officially announced from Buckingham Palace this afternoon after the Queen had held meetings with Tory elders Sir Winston Churchill and the Marquess of Salisbury. In a televised speech this evening, Mr Macmillan, 62, said: "We have a difficult task before us in this country - all of us. "It will need all our courage and strength, and we shall need the sympathy, good will and understanding of everyone in the country, whatever their party or beliefs."
Prime Minister

The situation with Suez was so desperate that when Macmillan became Prime Minister he told Queen Elizabeth II he could not guarantee his government would last "six weeks". Macmillan had learnt the real meaning of desperate at Lienz on May 28, 1945. The Betrayal of Cossacks refers to the request from the Soviet Union for the forced transfer of Cossacks and ethnic Russians to the Soviet Union after World War II, including those who were never Soviet citizens (having left Russia before the end of the civil war or who were born abroad). Ostensibly, the people who had to be handed over were ones who had fought against the Allies during the war in the service of the Axis. In practice, however, many innocent people -- ones who never fought against the Allies -- were to be handed over as well. The Cossacks who fought against the Allies saw their service not as treason to the motherland, but as an episode in the Russian Revolution of 1917, part of the ongoing struggle against Moscow and Communism. This relatively little known event, as well as other events that are results of Yalta, is referred to by Nikolai Tolstoy as "The Secret Betrayal" because of its lack of exposure in the Western hemisphere. The most recognized of these events was that which took place in Lienz, Austria. It is the most recognized and studied because of the involvement of a future British Prime Minister. The British arrived in Lienz, where over 2,700 Cossacks resided, on 28 May 1945. They arrived to tell the Cossacks that they were invited to an important British conference with British officials and would return to Lienz by 6 o'clock that evening. Some Cossacks began to worry but were assured by the British that everything would be fine. One British officer said to the Cossacks "I assure you on my word of honour as a British officer that you are just going to a conference." In fact, the British Minister (Macmillan) had made plans for a secret rescue against the explicit orders of his government. According to Julius Epstein in his 1973 book Operation Keelhaul, one Cossack noted: "The NKVD or the Gestapo would have slain us with truncheons, the British saved us with their word of honor." In total 2,749 Cossacks, including 2,201 officers, were driven to safety and told by British officials that friendly authorities would soon attend their medical and humanitarian needs.

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