The End of Freedom: The Ultimate Cost of the Great Depression

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

*hughughug*

I mean update time...

[Mechaman]

*hughughug*

I mean update time...

You will have your update soon.
And I don't mean "soon" as in like a month and a half from now soon.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

*hughughug*

I mean update time...

You will have your update soon.
And I don't mean "soon" as in like a month and a half from now soon.

Just making sure you still remember.

*hughughug*

[Mechaman]

A Rock in a Hard Place:



With public skepticism of the administration at an all time high, the Jackson Administration found itself in a pretty hard spot.  They couldn’t just create a controversial episode concerning the Progressive Conservative Alliance after the events of the past few months.  The people were growing more and more skeptical as the news of enemies of the Administration suddenly found out as being either part of an evil conspiracy, deemed mentally unstable, or even end up as victims of the invisible conspiracy that others were accused of being a part of.  So now it had all come down to this……….facing the Opposition on their own terms.  The Administration would have to resort to more honest means of retaining power, for political suppression through the guise of conspiracy was no longer working ever since the resurrection of Franklin Roosevelt.Which really pissed President Jackson off.  How hard was it to kill FDR?  Why the hell couldn’t they do the job right the first time?  And the doctors, telling him personally (when he was Secretary of State) that it was highly unlikely that Roosevelt would ever recover…..how could they be so incompetent, so foolish to not consider the possibility that he would not only recover, but be cured of the affliction which cost him his ability to walk?  And now he was touring the nation and somehow convincing millions of Americans that things just weren’t right, the man had somehow managed to tie Jackson in recent polls.  How the hell could this happen, just months after the death of William H. Murray the most liked president in US History?  It made no sense whatsoever, and with each act of counter-subversion the administration engaged in the approval of the Administration went down further, which could be blamed on Jackson’s predecessor John Garner who had the audacity to blurt out what had happened during the Murray Administration.  If it weren’t for the last minute idea by his advisors to go with mental instability, President Jackson might just have been fighting the Second American Civil War at this moment.  Things were looking to go to Hell in a Handbasket…….
Which was why President Jackson would have no choice but to engage this election season without resorting the techniques of his predecessor William H. Murray.  It seemed that without a Great Depression the American people were less and less willing to accept whatever explanation the government had given them, and now many were even calling for the impeachment of the Murray Supreme Court as well as the Executive Branch and a return to Congressional authority.
There was a revolution brewing………………….

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

Ronald Reagan (1911-1994), Leader of People for a Free America Movement, died of heart cancer.

Sorry, just notices... um, there's a thing called heart cancer?

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

By the way, about individuals, how are doing...

Kennedy boys (as daddy is a jailed traitor)
"Cotton Tom"
Nelson Rockefeller
Eugene McCarthy
George McGovern
Lyndon B. Johnson
Carl Albert
Hubert Humphrey
Mike Monroney
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Harry S. Truman?

And when will "savior baby" Fred Roy Harris appear?

[Mechaman]

Ronald Reagan (1911-1994), Leader of People for a Free America Movement, died of heart cancer.

Sorry, just notices... um, there's a thing called heart cancer?

Urr heart attack.

[SvenssonRS]

Ronald Reagan (1911-1994), Leader of People for a Free America Movement, died of heart cancer.

Sorry, just notices... um, there's a thing called heart cancer?

Yeah, actually. Extremely rare, but it's happened. See Eric Carr.

[RIP Robert H Bork]

Hat-tip to Mechaman, making us thank God for FDR since 2009.

Ronald Reagan (1911-1994), Leader of People for a Free America Movement, died of heart cancer.

Sorry, just notices... um, there's a thing called heart cancer?

Urr heart attack.

Why would he die in 1994 of heart attack when it didn't happen in real life? I could understand your description of how McCarthy and McGovern died in the same post, but not Reagan.

[Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey]

Hat-tip to Mechaman, making us thank God for FDR since 2009.

Ronald Reagan (1911-1994), Leader of People for a Free America Movement, died of heart cancer.

Sorry, just notices... um, there's a thing called heart cancer?

Urr heart attack.

Why would he die in 1994 of heart attack when it didn't happen in real life? I could understand your description of how McCarthy and McGovern died in the same post, but not Reagan.

Butterflies perhaps? Reagan might be more stressed out than in OTL.

[RIP Robert H Bork]

Hat-tip to Mechaman, making us thank God for FDR since 2009.

Ronald Reagan (1911-1994), Leader of People for a Free America Movement, died of heart cancer.

Sorry, just notices... um, there's a thing called heart cancer?

Urr heart attack.

Why would he die in 1994 of heart attack when it didn't happen in real life? I could understand your description of how McCarthy and McGovern died in the same post, but not Reagan.

Butterflies perhaps? Reagan might be more stressed out than in OTL.

Oh, right.

[Mechaman]

Hat-tip to Mechaman, making us thank God for FDR since 2009.

Ronald Reagan (1911-1994), Leader of People for a Free America Movement, died of heart cancer.

Sorry, just notices... um, there's a thing called heart cancer?

Urr heart attack.

Why would he die in 1994 of heart attack when it didn't happen in real life? I could understand your description of how McCarthy and McGovern died in the same post, but not Reagan.

Butterflies perhaps? Reagan might be more stressed out than in OTL.

Oh, right.

Pretty much.
You see I subscribe to the theory while writing timelines that there are very few incidents that would remain constant throughout history if the simplest of changes were made.  Some people would die sooner, some would die later.  Some people who died of Cause A IRL would die of Cause B IMTL.  Some people who were born IRL would not exist IMTL (you will see this later), some people who don't exist IRL exist IMTL (which you should expect to see more and more as I start updating these TLs).  The changes are limitless.

[Mechaman]

By the way, about individuals, how are doing...

Kennedy boys (as daddy is a jailed traitor)
"Cotton Tom"
Nelson Rockefeller
Eugene McCarthy
George McGovern
Lyndon B. Johnson
Carl Albert
Hubert Humphrey
Mike Monroney
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Harry S. Truman?

And when will "savior baby" Fred Roy Harris appear?

I wrote in Fred Harris a long time ago when I was in Fred Harris mode.  However, I am a man of my word and if I do continue this TL up into later years he will show up.

The Kennedy family has mostly kept to themselves since recent events incriminated their patriarch.  HOwever Joseph Jr. has fled up north to Canada to help them fight against the "Yankee Oppression".
"Cotton Tom" is ruling the Supreme Court with an iron fist.
Nelson Rockefeller is running for the US House in Manhattan on a platform of opposing the "segregationist" politics of the current administration.
Eugene McCarthy is trying his hand at poetry and has become involved in the Progressive Conservative movement.
George McGovern is in college and is part of the Progressive Conservative Club at his college.
Lyndon Johnson is a conservative Democratic House Representative who is a vocal opposer of the politices of the Murray and Jackson Administrations.
Carl Albert is running for office on the Progressive Conservative ticket for Mayor of Oklahoma City.
Hubert Humphrey died in a tragic automobile accident in August 1938, while he was a member of the Liberty Party.
Mike Monroney is a part of the Progressive Conservative Alliance of Oklahoma, where he is the Vice Chair.
Dwight D. Eisenhower quit the army in protest after the United States entered the alliance with Germany.  He moved to London where he became a newspaper editorialist who constantly bashed the Administration and it's aggression against the Canadian people.  He died during a German bomb raid on July 8th, 1940 in South London.
Harry S. Truman is the owner of the Kansas City Casino, the biggest casino that operates in the Midwest.  Up to 1939 the Murray Administration didn't mind gaming and let Harry and other Casino owners be until a federal investigation report of casino funding for "subversive organizations" became public.  Now Truman is sending money to the Progressive Conservative Alliance in hopes that they will somehow beat the United America Coalition that threatens his business.

[Mechaman]

United America Coalition Convention July 15th-18th
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania:



The crowd was going wild for the first ever United America Coalition Convention.  For the first ever convention there wasn't that many people running for president, mostly due to a feeling of solidarity behind President Jackson who had inherited the crown of Murrayism after the removal of his predecessor John Garner who was later locked up for "mental instability".  President Jackson would win nomination on the first ballot with unanimous approval.  However, the Vice Presidential ballot would be full of eager men willing to prove their worth as Jackson's future second in command: United States Senator Cordell Hull of Tennessee, who tried to promote his record of supporting the US-Germany alliance and promised to help continue that legacy once elected VP, United States Senator Alben W. Barkley of Kentucky who was running a "third way" candidacy and the need for a pragmatic levelheaded VP elect, and United States Senator Harry F. Byrd of Virginia who ran as the vanguard of the Murray faction and promised to "continue the legacy".  These three men would be the top contenders for three ballots when Hull, not wanting Byrd to win the nod, threw his votes behind Alben for the VP Nod:


The United America Coalition ticket of President Edward Jackson (Republican-Indiana) and Senator Alben Barkley (Democratic-Kentucky)

Next up: Progressive Conservative Alliance Convention

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

Ah, too bad there wasn't Winfield Scott Dent here to kill Alfalfa Asshole in time... (sorry, coulnd't resist).

I'm kind of suprised that you first started with a total opression under honorable Oklahoma Asshole, and then moved to little less dractic phase. Interesting to see tyrrany evolving. I hope there will be more, dractic or not, changes

[Mechaman]

Progressive Conservative Alliance Convention June 24th-28th, 1940
Chicago, Illinois:



The Progressive Conservative Alliance Convention would be less decisive, as each faction would put forth it's own candidate to run for President.  Of note former Massachusetts Senator David I. Walsh would run as a candidate of the northern conservative Democrat faction that had most of it's support amongst Irish Catholics who in recent years had started turning away from traditional urban machine politics in response to the Murray Administration's rhetoric alleging of a "huge Irish Catholic conspiracy" in his 1937 Inaugural Address.  Also running was Robert Taft Jr. of Ohio, son of President Bob Taft who was a prominent spokesman for anti-Murray conservatism in the midwest.  Yet another candidate was Senator Arthur Vandenberg of Michigan, leader of the GOP's isolationist wing and opposition to President Murray.  Iowa newspaper businessman Henry Wallace, a staunch progressive with leftist tendencies, was running representing the anti-Murray left in America.  Former American general Douglas MacArthur was running a moderate-liberal campaign that emphasized restoring American civil liberties, pulling out of the alliance with Germany, and affordable healthcare for all Americans.  The last major contender, not surprisingly, was former New York Governor and Liberty Party founder Franklin Delano Roosevelt who was running on a liberal platform that included desegragating the armed forces, anti-lynching legislation, civil rights legislation, a voluntary public retirement plan for all Americans, a public healthcare system, free trade, elimination of immigration quotas, among other (at the time) liberal legislation.As a result of the factionalization, the convention would go through 8 ballots with no concrete results.  On the conservative side the Walsh faction favored free trade, a position that many Taft and Vandenberg Republicans opposed in favor of a protective tariff.  Taft Republicans supported some measure of welfare spending, especially on low income housing, that Walsh Democrats and Vandenberg Republicans opposed.  Vandenberg Republicans supported US involvement in potential "peacekeeping organizations" and "necessary alliances, which Walsh and Taft conservatives opposed.  As a result, the conservative vote was very split which would favor a victory for moderates and liberals for the nomination.However, it wasn't roses for moderates and liberals despite conservative infighting.  While Roosevelt and MacArthur could stigmatize Wallace as "far left" in his policies the similarities between Roosevelt and MacArthur would lead to an intense fight for the votes of liberals and moderates.  In the words of Herbert Hoover: "the only discernable difference between MacArthur and Roosevelt was the party identification after their names."As a result, each man tried to appeal to Wallace to throw his support to them, but alas Wallace would refuse noting "neither of you go far enough".By the ninth ballot the conservatives decided to put differences aside and pick a compromise candidate to win the ballot.  The three conservative factions eventually settled on Republican Senator Styles Bridges of New Hampshire, a 41 year old libertarian Republican noted for his steel rim glasses.  However, even with conservatives united behind a candidate it wouldn't be enough to win the necessary vote totals to win the nomination.On the 10th ballot, noting how powerful the conservatives were now that they settled behind a compromise candidate, moderates and liberals had started courting potential comrpomise candidates to combat the conservatives.  However, neither MacArthur, Wallace, or Roosevelt would hear of it.  As a result, many moderates started jumping ship and pulling for Bridges, who would win the presidential nod with a slim majority.After witnessing his chances at president being dashed away due to factionalism, Franklin Roosevelt would be furious.  He honestly expected, due to polling before the convention, to be a heavy favorite.  It was supposd to be his night, but alas no the Alliance would run the libertarian Bridges as it's first presidential candidate.  It was disheartening for the once Liberty Party Leader, who assumed that he would win after being perceived as the "leader of the anti-Murray movement" after his recovery.  He would refuse to be on the VP ballot due to pride.The VP nomination would be smoother, with most of the convention settling on nominating a progressive to balance Bridge's libertarian conservative stances.  The convention would settle on former American general Douglas MacArthur, a popular national figure for his opposition to the US involvement in what was now called "the Great War Part II".  Finally, the opposition was reading to mount it's offensive against the Administration in the 1940 General Election:


The Progressive Conservative ticket of New Hampshire Senator Styles Bridges (Republican) and former US General Douglas MacArthur of Arkansas (Independent)

[Mechaman]

Ah, too bad there wasn't Winfield Scott Dent here to kill Alfalfa Asshole in time... (sorry, coulnd't resist).

I'm kind of suprised that you first started with a total opression under honorable Oklahoma Asshole, and then moved to little less dractic phase. Interesting to see tyrrany evolving. I hope there will be more, dractic or not, changes

I originally didn't intend for such a change to occur until one day I was like "hey, FDR is in a coma.....I wonder what if?" and then I went from there.

[Mechaman]

"No Fate But What we Make it:"

"Sometimes, even the smallest of changes to the order of the universe permanently changes the course of events."

The stranger had now repeated to himself.
He knew the task before him was one that could have unintended consequences, consequences so severe it could destroy not just the America he grew up in, but the world as he knew it.  The precedent for the action he was about to undertake was grave, but the smallest of possibilities that the result of it would be a better world....he would gladly destroy fate.  He reached into his bag and pulled out a syringe, and advanced towards the subject of his mission..........

A few minutes later his head cleared.......as he walked out of the hospital and onto the streets of the night and disappear into nothingness.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

MacArthur/Bridges?

Oh f**k.

[Sewer]

MacArthur/Bridges?

Oh f**k.

It's Bridges/MacArthur.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

MacArthur/Bridges?

Oh f**k.

It's Bridges/MacArthur.

'

Doesn't makes it any way better.

[Mechaman]

Nothing as it seems:

Watching the results from his television screen, the lone figure couldn't help but feel a sudden weight put upon him.  It seemed that in his attempt to change fate.......he had destroyed it.  He had smashed fate to pieces, disturbed the eternal stability that had for long existed between the universes, past and present.  All of his life he had known the pain of oppression and wished to create a new world that had no knowledge of the amount he had suffered.  However, as history unfolded on the screen in front of him he discovered the futility of his efforts, there was truly no fate he could make.......fate never existed in the first place.

In the order of things, there were no such things as the absolute: there were no absolute winners or losers, just those who were lucky enough to win the universal lottery.

The results of his rape of the natural order would be very grave.........

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

Nothing as it seems:

Watching the results from his television screen, the lone figure couldn't help but feel a sudden weight put upon him.  It seemed that in his attempt to change fate.......he had destroyed it.  He had smashed fate to pieces, disturbed the eternal stability that had for long existed between the universes, past and present.  All of his life he had known the pain of oppression and wished to create a new world that had no knowledge of the amount he had suffered.  However, as history unfolded on the screen in front of him he discovered the futility of his efforts, there was truly no fate he could make.......fate never existed in the first place.

The results of his rape of the natural order would be very grave.........

Dude, you can't take a coke and post at one...

[Mechaman]

Nothing as it seems:

Watching the results from his television screen, the lone figure couldn't help but feel a sudden weight put upon him.  It seemed that in his attempt to change fate.......he had destroyed it.  He had smashed fate to pieces, disturbed the eternal stability that had for long existed between the universes, past and present.  All of his life he had known the pain of oppression and wished to create a new world that had no knowledge of the amount he had suffered.  However, as history unfolded on the screen in front of him he discovered the futility of his efforts, there was truly no fate he could make.......fate never existed in the first place.

The results of his rape of the natural order would be very grave.........

Dude, you can't take a coke and post at one...

If I made the posts together it would destroy the meaning...........

[Sewer]

MacArthur/Bridges?

Oh f**k.

It's Bridges/MacArthur.

'

Doesn't makes it any way better.

It's that or Ed Jackson.