Balance of Power (Gameplay Thread) - Epilogue and Game Over

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

There is no genocide (OOC: that word didn't exist in 1904 ) against Jews or any other group of people in Russia.

Yet the statistic is quite suspicious.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

You must be logged in to read this quote.

x Abdul Hamid II

[Spamage]

You must be logged in to read this quote.

x Abdul Hamid II

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

There is no state-sponsored wanton killing of Jews, only dealing with violent traitors who seek to aid the German invaders and destroy Russia from within. As you accuse of us of murdering our own people for no reason, thousands of proud Russian Jews are on the front lines defending their homeland.

[Donerail]

In particular, we note that many Jews are currently suffering ill-treatment at the hands of the Russians. In order to assist those suffering under Russian oppression, particularly given that some have claimed that the Jews are ancient cousins of the Japanese, we welcome all those Jews in Russia to immigrate to our vibrant Jewish communities in Yokohama and Nagasaki or in any other part of Japan they may wish to settle in. The Japanese government will offer temporary shelter, health care, transportation and food for the first six months of settlement (until they can establish themselves and settle in Japan) to these immigrants fleeing Russian aggression. They shall be given complete freedom of religion and at least some measure of educational autonomy should they be willing to accept our offer.

We reiterate our current policy and note that it remains in effect.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

There is no state-sponsored wanton killing of Jews, only dealing with violent traitors who seek to aid the German invaders and destroy Russia from within. As you accuse of us of murdering our own people for no reason, thousands of proud Russian Jews are on the front lines defending their homeland.

All we've did was noting that a number of Jewish victims is disturbingly high.

But if you're reacting like you were accused of something, then maybe you have reasons to feel as an accused.

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

In particular, we note that many Jews are currently suffering ill-treatment at the hands of the Russians. In order to assist those suffering under Russian oppression, particularly given that some have claimed that the Jews are ancient cousins of the Japanese, we welcome all those Jews in Russia to immigrate to our vibrant Jewish communities in Yokohama and Nagasaki or in any other part of Japan they may wish to settle in. The Japanese government will offer temporary shelter, health care, transportation and food for the first six months of settlement (until they can establish themselves and settle in Japan) to these immigrants fleeing Russian aggression. They shall be given complete freedom of religion and at least some measure of educational autonomy should they be willing to accept our offer.

We reiterate our current policy and note that it remains in effect.

There is already and there will continue to be emigration from Russia; we will not force any Russian civilians to stay in Russia and if they wish to settle in Japan that is their choice.

[Donerail]

Indeed; we are merely reminding the global community that Japan's previous policy remains in place so there isn't really a need to create as big an uproar over this - as the Tsar just stated, they are allowed to leave, and we repost our current policy to restate that they have somewhere to go if they choose to leave.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

We, His Sacred and Imperial Majesty, Sultan Abdul Hamid II,

Padishah, Sovereign House of Osman, Sultan of Sultans, Khan of Khans, Commander of the Faithful and Successor of the Prophet of the Lord of the Universe, Custodian of the Holy Sanctuaries, Emperor of Rome, Emperor of The Three Cities of Constantinople, Adrianople and Bursa, etc. etc.

Do hereby proclaim:


To commemorate our victory in the Great Russian War and the amazing development of the Ottoman Empire, reversing years of misfortune and stagnation, we order a commission of the new official state flag.

The flag shall consists of a white cresent on the left, four white stars (symbolizing Anatolia, Azerbaijan, Kurdistan, Mesopotamia and Syria) in the right corner, on the red background.




x Abdul Hamid II

[CLARENCE 2015!]

I am delighted two of our closest allies in the world have signed a pact...

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

We wish to invite the Shariff of Mecca for an official visit to Constantinopole.

Given Mecca is under the British rule, we shall invite the Shariff as an important religious figure in the Muslim world, not a political leader. Likewise, we shall host him as Caliph, not Sultan.

[Oldiesfreak1854]

You must be logged in to read this quote.

x King Vittorio Emanuele III of Italy

x Prime Minister Pierre Waldeck-Rousseau

x Kaiser Franz Ferdinand I of Austria-Hungary

What in the world are you signing this for? This is a transaction between my nation and Italy. I fail to see how this affects Austria at all.

All right.  I didn't realize that.

[Oldiesfreak1854]

A Declaration of His Imperial Majesty, Kaiser Franz Ferdinand I, Regarding the Proposed Peace Treaty with the Russia

You must be logged in to read this quote.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

Since I assume my visit to liberated Azerbaijan will be over by next turn, I shall immediately depart after that on a historic, cross-oceanic diplomatic trip to meet with President McKinley in Washington, D.C.

While my voyage aboard the battleship won't cut me off entirely from communications, that means a lot of orders will be given by the Grand Vizier and other members of my inner circle.

[Lumine]

Announcement: Tomorrow (yes, tomorrow, they are 50% ready) we will get the 1904 DNC and RNC (tickets already determined), an update on the Congo, the first results of the Afghan Expeditionary Force and the Invasion of Morocco. Just in case anybody has anything else to add to those issues before I give you the update, feel free to send a message or post something up until I post the update.

[free my dawg]

Orders sent.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

The Ottoman Empire offers either temporary or permanent asylum to all people of Jewish descent, as well as other targeted minorities, threatened by an internal violence within Russia.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

His Royal Majesty King George I of Greece


Your Majesty,


I cannot express how happy I was to live to see this historic moment when Greek and Ottoman troops meet on the battlefield, for the first time as allies, not bitter enemies. I truly believe we were able to finally overcame our long and difficult past and enter the era of reconciliation and friendship.


x Abdul Hamid II

[Lumine]

OOC: I need to check if I have all the answers, but we should be close to Turn Eight.

Event – Democratic and Republican National Conventions!

TO: United States.

William McKinley’s second term was just as active as the first one, and a lot more polemic. After leading his nation against Spain and Russia, after fighting his way on the Philippines and Venezuela, and after the mysterious death of William Jennings Bryan and an impeachment attempt, President McKinley has quickly become a divisive figure, both hated and loved across the nation. But he will not be the candidate, as he has chosen to respect Washington’s example and not run for a third term. With McKinley gone, the election will probably be close, and the parties scramble to find the man who would be the next President of the United States.

RNC:

In a way, the Republicans had an easier time ahead of themselves thanks to the existence of a frontrunner: Secretary of State John Hay. Hay was a neutral and statesmanlike figure, a gentleman, and he was very popular with the party. Without Hanna there to be the other “elder statesman” and Roosevelt dead, it seemed Hay was going to get an easy nomination. Alas, no man can get through a convention without enemies, and several candidates gave their best as well:  Speaker Joseph Cannon’s influence was growing and growing, and entered the fight as a native son. Senator Charles Fairbanks was also a candidate, just like the Attorney General, Philander Knox. La Follette had announced he wasn’t a Presidential candidate, but that didn’t stop people from putting his name into the ballot.

First Ballot Results: (994 delegates)

John Hay: 744
Charles Fairbanks: 112
Philander C. Knox: 89
Joseph G. Cannon: 72
Robert La Follette: 32
William McKinley: 12
William Howard Taft: 3
Theodore Roosevelt: 2

As a result, and without a ballot needed, Secretary of State John Hay was nominated as the Presidential nominee. When he recommended La Follette as his running mate, as McKinley did, the Progressives jumped with joy, although the conservatives weren’t pleased at all. Fairbanks was presented as a possible choice, and managed to get more than 300 hundred delegates to back him. In the end, the power of the party machine defeated him, and the Republican ticket was McKinley/La Follette.

DNC:

The Democratic Party truly had a complicated situation. They had an election they could finally win, but they had lost Bryan, who, even if he was a two times loser, was the man who could have called himself the frontrunner. Senator Joel Stone could have been a choice after standing up to McKinley, but he chose not to run as well, given a strong endorsement to an underdog, Gov. Alexander Monroe Dockery, who chose to run. Facing him was a team of several Governors serving as stalking horses and native sons, two popular judges: Parker and Gray, former President Grover Cleveland (introduced on the ballot without his consent), General Nelson Miles, and the biggest threat to Dockery: William Randolph Hearst, who had been planning for the occasion for months.

After a series of chaotic balloting, the Governors were the first ones to go, most of them going for Dockery or defecting to Hearst and his radicals. Tammany Hall distrusted Hearst and his allies, but without Bryan to help them they couldn’t simply block him, forcing them to find their own candidate. Gray and Miles went down in flames very quickly, turning the convention into a three-way fight between Dockery, Parker and Hearst, which soon turned into Dockery v. Parker by the seventh ballot once it was evident Hearst would not unite the party. Ever the opportunist, Hearst promised Dockery funding and his media Empire in exchange for his support to get the VP nomination, and eventually bullied him into accepting. Parker thought having no known positions would win him the nomination, but Hearst was able to outmaneuver him and portray him as an empty suit and as being too bland to take on Hay. That, and the memory of what had happened last year was enough to force a definitive result in the eight ballot.  

As a result:

Alexander Monroe Dockery: 516
Alton B. Parker: 452
William Randolph Hearst: 21
Richard Olney: 7
George B. McClellan Jr: 3
Grover Cleveland: 1
 
It was hard to get Hearst as the VP nominee, but he finally managed to achieve at least something of what he wanted, having gone from political newcomer to Congressman to VP nominee in two years. And, of course, most Democrats were thrilled with Dockery, which meant that, while facing some division, the Democratic Party was going to able to take on Hay/La Follette almost at full strength. Four years ago nobody could have predicted such a match-up, but here it was: America’s potential clash of the titans.

Event – Invasion of Morocco!

TO: All players.

Morocco was a country in trouble, and that for an increasing number of reasons. As one of the few independent countries in Africa (along with Abyssinia) and thank to its geopolitical situation it was bound to be a target at some point, and the chronic instability and the open war between the Sultan and Raisuli only made the country a more likely target. Original predictions had in mind Germany and Spain as the potential attackers, but with one too busy wrestling with Russia and the other with an overtly complicated and unstable political situation, it was up to an international alliance of France, Italy, the Ottoman Empire and the United States to declare war and send their fleets to destroy all resistance. Ion Perdicaris provided a justification, but he was soon ignored in light of the circumstances.

30.000 men (20.000 Italians, 8.000 Frenchmen and about 2.000 Turks and dozens of modern ships sailed to Morocco, quickly taking control of the seas and landing on all the main cities, forcing Abdulaziz and his court to retreat. While the Royal Army of Morocco fought the landings, they were quickly defeated with the massive naval support the allies had. Tangier, Casablanca, and Rabat were quickly taken, but with limited ground support and with the population openly against the invaders, it was impossible to keep pushing forward. Alas, the Sultan was not going to be able to launch a counteroffensive, as a violent civil war was launched by Raisuli, who took control of most of the interior and the Rif, and Abdelhafid, the Sultan’s brother, who was declared Sultan in Marrakech and acknowledged in the south up to Agadir.

As a result of all this, the allies control the three main ports and the seas, but will need reinforcements if they are to really conquer the country and engage the three enemy armies: Abdelaziz’s Royal Army, Raisuli’s Rif guerrilla and Adbelhafid’s noblemen and tribesmen.

Event – Leopold II in trouble, Belgian Parliament discussing seizing Congo from him:

TO: All players.

In light of a very energetic protest from most of the world powers, the Belgian Parliament has finally decided to act after discovering the truth in the reports of the dire situation of the colony. While the French offer was swiftly rejected (as it was seen as too opportunistic), the Ottoman Plan was taken very seriously, sparking discussions that would lead into a potential vote on transferring the Congo to the government instead to the King. Leopold II will fight and do everything he can to try and save his colony, but the way things stand, and provided the world powers keep their distance, it seems the Parliament will vote to strip him of the enormous African colony.

Event – Afghan Expedition defeated at the Khyber Pass, mutinies in India!

TO: United Kingdom.

Despite the best attempts of the British General Staff to push for a swift expedition that would retake lost territory, Afghanistan has proved once again by Alexander the Great was the only foreign leader to actually conquer the country. In a grim repeat of the Elphinstone disaster and the recent destruction of thousands of British troops, the Expedition proved unable to fight the Afghans, not even by using Indian troops, who quickly protested how expendable they seemed to be to the British officers. In the end, disaster struck at the Khyber Pass, where the expedition was ambushed and almost destroyed, sending shockwaves through Central Asia (it seems the Afghans are intervening in some way in Turkestan), humilliating the Balfour government and causing mutinies across India.

[Dr. Cynic]

France will be sending a further 10,000 mobilized and fully equipped infantry and cavalry as well as 1/4 of the Foreign Legion into Morocco. The rest will remain to deal with the Senoussi rebels in Libya. I will also be sending a further 4,000 French troops into Libya.

[free my dawg]

OOC: Aren't Ceuta and Melilla Spanish?

[Lumine]

OOC: Aren't Ceuta and Melilla Spanish?

My mistake, it has been corrected!

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

We will send 1000 of additional troops to Morocco.

Also, I shall send a congratulatory telegram to both Mr. Hay and Mr. Dockery on becoming nominees of their respective parties.

OOC: Technically, neither the United States nor us has declared a war on Morocco. We are just participating in peacekeeping operation

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

For domestic use, to boats the population's spitis, this is a version of a letter to Tsar Ferdinand:

You must be logged in to read this quote.

For international use, our position is "Bulgaria still got some time to comply with our generous terms".

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

Orders sent.