Precious

Albino Alligators	In the Gorean month of En'Kara, an exquisite sale was made at the great market city of Corcyrus - seven rare albino alligators. Ligurious paid the counter-earth smuggers in Double-Weight Gold Tarn Disks. En route to their new owner, the Tatrix, Sheila, the alligators broke lost and escaped into the Vosk River. The current whereabouts of the alligators – and also Ligurious – is uncertain, although they are presumed to be at liberty in the southwest of Ar.
Missing

On the other side of the sun, law enforcement officers in Brazil continued to investigate the other side of the transaction - the disappearance of the mammals from a university zoo in the western state of Mato Grosso. Their theory – which was close to the truth - was that they may have been stolen to be sold abroad. The animals, said by officials to be worth around $10,000 (£5,070) each, have no skin pigment and their eyes are a distinctive pink. Most of albino alligators born in the wild do not survive because their skin colour makes them vulnerable to attack. They were last seen when they were fed on New Year's Eve, but they were missing when a zoo official went to feed them again on Wednesday morning. Police say there was no sign of a break-in at the zoo which contains more than 800 animals spread across 11 hectares (27 acres) hectares of parkland. The alligators were said to be young with an average age of around two years, and only one albino alligator is now left at the zoo. Police say the rarity of the alligator will make the investigation difficult as the people involved in the illegal trading of such rare species are very secretive. The apparent theft also highlights a wider problem. Animal rights activists say Brazil accounts for 10% of the world's illegal trade in animals, mainly parrots and other birds, which are often sold in Europe and the United States. Or further afield, shall we say. In their contentions with Priest-Kings, Kurii, savage denizens of the Steel Worlds, concealed within the asteroid belt, have frequently had recourse to human allies, and subversion. In accord with such projects, Kurii have occasionally sought to place and support congenial administrations in key cities. One such city is Corcyrus. Corcyrus is ruled by a beautiful woman, the cruel, arrogant, much-hated Sheila, an agent of Kurii.

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In 1477, Charles the Bold is the victor of the Battle of Nancy, sustaining the Duchy of Burgundy which persists to this day as a polity inside the European Union.

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In 4288, Shehzaada Khurram, venerated Indian governor for the Chinese Empire, was born in Agra. His patronage was responsible for the creation of the finest art and architecture to grace southeast Asia. The Taj Mahal, his greatest achievement, is almost as impressive a palace as the Forbidden City, itself.

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Balrog	In 1916, combat tension combined with an over-active imagination amplified by the experience of the Battle of the Somme had traumatised Second Lieutenant John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, eleventh battalion Lancashire Fusiliers. "Gandalf lifted his staff, and crying aloud, he smote the the Bridge [of Khazad-Dum] before him. The bridge cracked. Right at the Balrog's feet it broke. With a terrible cry, the Balrog fell forward, and its shadow plunged down and vanished. But even as it feel it swung its whip, and the thongs lashed and curled around the wizad's knees, dragging him to the brink. He staggered and fell, grasping vainly at the stone, and slid into the abyss".
Tolkiens Phantasm

Inside a military field hospital Tolkien fought a mental battle to defeat the phantasmagoric projections of the Somme. A battle, he would both win, and lose, and win again. Like Kurt Vonnegut fifty years later, Tolkien's need for expression sought out escapist literature, and his own fight was portrayed in this animated scene from the Mines of Moria. And also later, when he finally defeated the Balrog in the well of the Abyss.

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In 1994, former Speaker of the House Thomas ‘Tip’ O’Neill dies at his home in Boston. O’Neill had a short reign at the top of the House’s hierarchy after being elected to the position in 1977. He feuded with the newly elected President Carter, and was notoriously unhelpful in passing the Democratic president’s agenda. He was replaced in the next election cycle by Texas Representative Barbara Jordan, who was much more willing to stand up for the party’s values.

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Nelson Mandela	“Believe”, Nelson once said to me, “you must always believe.” ”I believe the time has come.” ~ 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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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

Mud?" His leper's caution quivered. "I need soap, not more dirt." "This is hurtloam," repeated Lena. "It is for healing." She stepped closer and thrust the mud toward him. He thought he could see tiny gleams of gold in it. He stared at it blankly, shocked by the idea of putting mud in his cuts. ~“Golden Boy”

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In 1986, the Asimov Plan came close to failure because of the arrival of an agent of the random, Mikhal Gorbachev. Asimov had not forseen that an individual could arise who would be both committed to the interregnum's political philosophy, yet a gambler who was prepared to risk all to save the future. The agent of the random was eventually lured to his south russian dachi in August 1991 to destroy the Second Foundation. However, in so doing, he left his main fleet, which was turned against him by Second Foundation agents in his absence, thus ending his rule.

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In 1781, American rebel Benedict Arnold sacks the city of Richmond, in one last act of defiance before fleeing to Canada. With the American revolution largely at an end, Arnold and his revolutionary comrades felt that a statement had to be made against those who capitulated so quickly to the British. General Arnold, of course, was an instrumental figure in the fight for Canadian independence.

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In 1953, the side-splitting slapstick comedy En Attendant Godot by the playwright Samuel Beckett, made its debut in Paris. Widely regarded as Beckett’s masterpiece, it has been translated and filmed in several languages, delighting audiences around the world.

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In 1781, Thomas Gainsborough completed his masterpiece The Two Georges, depicting King George III and General George Washington's historic agreement which established the British North American Union. The Sons of Liberty considered Washington a turncoat. Two hundred and fifteen years later they would succeeed in snatching this symbol of national unity just before the arrival of King Charles III's visit to the State capital of Victoria.

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Constitutional Crisis

The state of TIAH

March 22nd, 2007

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Alternate Historian's Note: I promised you a collection, and we are working on it – but real life is getting in the way. Fortunately, the worst part of the real-life problems we were having has been resolved. I have found new employment (yay!). We're going to aim for an April release for the collection, and will make more announcements about it as we draw closer to actually making that a reality. And, speaking of April, our Guest Historian, Stephen Payne, suggested that it was time for a contest, so we're going to have an April Fool's Day Contest! Email us up to 3 entries for an alternate April 1st and we will post the best 10, with your own credit and link to your website (if you have one). My lovely Co-Historian says that if we can get 30 entrants, we can offer an ultimate winner a complimentary TIAH mug, but we only have 3 entrants so far! Get researching those alternate histories now, folks! The deadline is March 29th.

in 1956, television writer and archivist Peggy Dale Taylor is born in Bryan, Texas. In addition to her freelance work on several television series, she is best-known for her complete histories of Starsky & Hutch, T.J. Hooker and Star Trek. She is a fixture at many fan conventions around the southwest and is often used as a fan liaison by the television networks.

in 1972, after the overwhelming passage of the Equal Rights Amendment by the US Congress, feminists across the country gear up for the state-by-state ratification process. Their years of preparation for this process pay off as 37 states immediately place the amendment on their legislative dockets. In 1973, after much spirited debate, Tennessee becomes the 38th state to take up the ERA, and ratification by the state places protection for both genders into the constitution.

in 2007, President George Bush instructs his staff to disregard the subpoenas to appear before Congress to explain their actions in a growing number of scandals. Even his fellow Republicans are upset with him over this, but they don't see how far he is willing to go. When Attorney General Alberto Gonzales essentially refuses to enforce a subpoena on himself, Congress turns to their Sergeant-at-Arms. Former Secret Service agent Bill Livingood makes contact with his old colleagues before heading over to the White House, and is told that the SS men around the Bush administration will probably not let him take anyone into custody. He attempts to execute the subpoenas anyway, and is thrown out of the White House and roughed up. This insult outrages the vast majority of Congressmen, and the House takes up impeachment proceedings against Gonzales. With virtually no friends on either side of the aisle, Gonzales is impeached and ordered removed from office within the week. However, President Bush refuses to acknowledge the Congress' power to impeach his attorney general. “We're at war, and I'm the commander-in-chief,” he says to a group of reporters coming to see Gonzales' expected exit. “In order to preserve our national security, I need the best team possible around me, and Attorney General Gonzales is part of that team. He's not goin' anywhere.” When Vice President Cheney attends his usual meeting with Republicans in the Senate the next day, he is given an earful by Senators who are unhappy with being ignored. Several of them are also somewhat fearful of their election chances – their party's standing at a 21% approval rate, and Bush himself is down to 12%. Rather unhelpfully, he tells them to “Grow a pair,” and storms off. House Speaker Pelosi calls for articles of impeachment against the Vice President and President, which Bush goes on national television to denounce. A firestorm of protest swirls around the capitol, the majority of which is very pro-impeachment. The House passes the articles, and the Senate trial is merely a matter of formality – the vote against Cheney is 90-9, and the vote to remove Bush is 71-28, with Senator Tim Johnson of South Dakota unable to attend the vote. Speaker Pelosi takes the presidential oath of office and heads a large delegation of Congressmen and protesters to the White House. The Pentagon, contacted by Bush, refuses to send soldiers to his aid, and most of the Secret Service goes over to Pelosi when she enters the White House. Cheney flees the country, flying in his personal jet to the new Halliburton headquarters in Dubai. A significant minority of the population continues to support Bush, and he escapes Washington to their warm embrace in the western US. For years afterward, the Bushistas, as they become known, agitate for separation from the larger country around them. When the former president dies in 2014, their numbers fade to nothing and one of the nation's darkest chapters is brought to a close.

Memorial	In 1621 with the pilots suffering from the melancholy of exclusion emanating from First Nation group consciousness, the Mayflower and Speedwell ..
.. run aground as the Pilgrims fail to establish Plymouth Colony. A peace treaty is signed with Massasoit of the Wampanoags. In return for repairs to the Mayflower and Speedwell, the survivors agree to peacefully return to Southampton, where a memorial was built to their failed mission.
~ entry by Steve Payne from counter history in context - you're the judge!

In 1979 Margaret Thatcher put down an Early Day Motion censuring the British government, which led to the defeat of the Labour administration of James Callaghan. Now she could implement the program of change the establishment had planned since the mid-1960s. It would not after all be necessary to install a military government ..	Louis Mountbatt..
.. headed by an Interim Prime Minister such as Lord Louis Mountbatten. A shopkeeper's daughter, she told Mountbatten, what mattered was the business of the shop, not the dressing in the window.
~ entry by Steve Payne from Counter History in Context - You're the Judge!

Comet Hale-Bopp	In 1997 the comet Hale-Bopp had its closest approach to earth and was notable for inciting a degree of panic about comets not seen for decades. In November 1996, amateur astronomer Chuck Shramek of Houston, Texas took a CCD image of the comet, which showed a fuzzy, slightly elongated object nearby. When his computer sky-viewing ..
.. program did not identify the star, Shramek called the Art Bell radio program to announce that he had discovered a 'Saturn-like object' following Hale-Bopp. UFO enthusiasts, such as remote viewing proponent Courtney Brown, soon concluded that there was an alien spacecraft following the comet. Rumours that the comet was being followed by an alien spacecraft gained remarkable currency, and inspired a mass suicide among followers of the Heaven's Gate cult. They were right to worry.
~ entry by Steve Payne from counter history in context - you're the judge!

In 1965 Bob Dylan 'goes electric,' releasing his first album featuring electric instruments, Bringing It All Back Home. He was electrocuted before the recording was completed.	Bob Dylan
~ entry by Steve Payne from Counter History in Context - You're the Judge!

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