For All Butterflies: A Copycat

[danielb1]

Yes, I'm a bit of a copycat here, given that For All Time and David Bar Elias's anti-FaT are my inspiration. My POD is Stalin dying in 1941, and the history post-WWII is vague (its intended to be mildly utopic, but not extremely so), but I'd like to throw out a few "how are the doings" and ask for suggestions for more.

For now:

Ralph Nader is currently editor-in-chief of Consumer Reports. A well-known "consumer advocate", Nader has made a career out of investigating defective commercial products and corporate fraud, and publishing his findings, and is also a major advocate and sponsor for Better Business Bureaus and an occasional lobbyist for consumer protection laws. He has written and spoken about other issues, notably environmentalism, but never sought to enter politics.

George W. Bush is the long-time owner and manager of the Houston Astros. Like many other team owners, he is both loathed and loved by the team's fans. His father, George H. W. Bush, served as a US Senator from Texas from 1971-2007, retiring due to old age and increasingly poor health. Probably H.W's other notable son is James "Jim" Bush, who is currently Secretary of Education and has had a long career focused on education reform.

Admiral John Sidney McCain III is the outgoing Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, having served a long career in the military.

The Rev. Albert Gore, Jr. unlike his father, never entered politics, instead choosing to become a Minister. He is well-known, however, as a rather activist on the pulpit, and is an important leader in the "good shepherd" movement - ecologically-sensitive Christianity. (One thing from FaT: Al Gore was a minister there as well ).

Garry Kasparov is the current President of the Russian Federation. He leads a very wide and very weird coalition, comprising just about everyone in Russian politics who isn't a Communist or a Nationalist.

Alan Greenspan was Secretary of the Treasury under President Kemp, former two-term Governor of New York, and is still, at present, a renown economic adviser. He was an important figure in the evolution of the Republican party during the 1960s-80s, and was a major member of the "new wave" Republicans, including Arizona Sen. Barry Goldwater, President Jack Kemp, California Rep. Nathaniel Branden, Gov. Robert Heinlein of California, Texas Sen. Ron Paul, and Greenspan's first Lieutenant Governor (and later Senator), David Koch. (OOC: You can tell which direction the GOP went in this TL, if you know who these guys are. No, L. Neil Smith never made it into the political mainstream, this isn't FaT).

Anyone want to drop some names for me to come up with stuff on?

 

[David bar Elias]

Intriguing stuff. (I borrowed the POD of Stalin dying in 1941 for FaE myself).

Anyone want to drop some names for me to come up with stuff on?

How about Golda Meir, Bill Clinton, Bill Gates, Robert Rubin, Ross Perot, Yassir Arafat, Alexander Haig, Hosni Mubarak, and Margaret Thatcher, for starters?

 

[Sean Mulligan]

How did John McCain become an admiral with his poor military record. He kept crashing planes and spent much of his time partying and meeting women behind his wifes back when adultery was a court martial offense. The only reason he was never severely disciplined was his family connections. He had the 5th lowest standing at Annapolis.

 

[danielb1]

A few of them:

William Jefferson Gore (long story) followed the footsteps of his stepfather and is currently the junior US Senator from Tennessee.

William Gates III is an attorney, part of the firm Gates, Allen, and Whitehead, which specializes in technology law. His firm is generally quite successful, having worked with clients such as IBM and Commodore on many occasions.

H. Ross Perot may have made his first billions in the oil business, but nowadays he's better known for purchasing and fostering a small computer company known as Ami Computers in 1983, making billions more and bringing AC's low-cost yet advanced graphics capabilities to the world.

Margaret Thatcher was Jack Kemp's counterpart in Great Britain, serving as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1978 to 1988. Her foreign policies were generally regarded as a success, but her domestic policies were quite controversial at times. An attempt to institute a "Community Charge" failed miserably, and led to her government collapsing. Her successor, Sir Geoffrey Howe, served until Labour returned to power in 1992. (I know, not too big of a butterfly from OTL).

Yasser Arafat was a college student in Cairo in 1952 who was killed in the crossfire during a failed uprising against King Farouk of Egypt.

I'll leave the others for later, but I have one addition:

After immigrating to the United States, Holocaust survivor Jack Tramiel founded a small transistor-radio manufacturer, what would later become electronics giant Commodore Inc. As of 2008, they have their hand in just about every field of electronics - stereos, televisions, various appliances, and especially computers and other hi-tech items (think an American Sony). They tend to have a very good value for the money, although Commodore (Especially in Tramiel's later years) had a reputation for suspicious business behaviors, including antitrust allegations (never quite proven, although Commodore had a thing for vertical integration; it owns its own semiconductor business, for example). Tramiel retired from the company he founded in 1997.

 

[danielb1]

How did John McCain become an admiral with his poor military record. He kept crashing planes and spent much of his time partying and meeting women behind his wifes back when adultery was a court martial offense. The only reason he was never severely disciplined was his family connections. He had the 5th lowest standing at Annapolis.

The POD is in 1941. John McCain was born in 1936. Microsoft never existed, the Republican party is a right-libertarian stronghold, Bill Clinton is Al Gore's stepbrother, and I damn near made Alan Greenspan President (I decided to make him Governor of New York and Secretary of the Treasury instead). Lots of butterflies, including giving McCain a little bit more of a work ethic (he graduates somewhere in the middle of his class in this TL).

 

[JohnJacques]

Its John Sidney McCain III not Stanley.

 

[danielb1]

Its John Sidney McCain III not Stanley.

Thanks, I corrected it.

 

[danielb1]

Golda Meir was Israel's most notable and longest-serving Foreign Minister, holding the post from 1956 until 1977, under the administrations of David Ben Gurion (1948-1953/1955-1963), Levi Eshkol (1963-8), Moshe Dayan (1968-1975), and Anne Van Pels (1975-82, 1988-1993). She retired due to ill health, and died in 1980. Her successor as Foreign Minister, Yitzahk Rabin, gave a very touching eulogy at her funeral.

General Alexander Haig had a long and distinguished career in the Army, culminating in his role as Army Vice Chief of Staff during the late 1970s. He retired in 1980, and became CEO of the defense contractor General Dynamics, a role he held until 1997. He currently is enjoying his retirement, though he appears part-time as a political pundit (especially on defense and business issues) and occasionally campaigns for Republican candidates.

Robert Rubin became a senior partner in the investment firm Goldman Sachs, where he began his financial career in the 1960s, in 1991. He became their first CEO after Goldman Sachs's formal IPO in 1996, and continues to guide one of the nation's largest and most successful investment firms.

Hosni Mubarak had a very long and successful career in the Egyptian Air Force, serving as Director of the King Farouk II Air Force Academy from 1974 to 1982, before being named Chief Marshal of the Air Force, a position he held until 1991. Allegations of political unreliability slowed his otherwise rapid rise, and prevented him from turning his military career into a political one (military leaders being very suspect in Egypt, after the failure of the Free Officer Movement's coup attempt led to a purge of senior military leadership, including Lieutenant General Anwar Sadat). He is currently enjoying his retirement, living with his family in an expensive villa in the outskirts of Cairo.

Lisa Jobs-Allen, having graduated with a degree in Computer Science from Washington State University, co-founded (with her future husband Peter Allen) Pearsoft in 1975, one of the first notable computer software companies. Pearsoft's version of BASIC was nearly universal among early personal computers, and their office software dominated the industry in the 1980s and early 1990s. Today, what is now known as Pear Technologies, Inc. has expanded into hardware, notably portable music players, PDAs, and cell phones. (try THAT for butterflies! ).

Finland's current reigning martial-arts champion is Gustav Torvalds.

Democrat Raila Obama is the current Speaker of the Illinois State Assembly, and is considering a run for Governor in 2010.

Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley's career was finished when he was convicted of corruption and election fraud in 1962.

 

[DTF955Baseballfan]

How did John McCain become an admiral with his poor military record. He kept crashing planes and spent much of his time partying and meeting women behind his wifes back when adultery was a court martial offense. The only reason he was never severely disciplined was his family connections. He had the 5th lowest standing at Annapolis.

Maybe the author decided to do a real-life (well, real-AH) version of Mark Twain's short story "Luck." (I think it was Twain - about this military "hero" who kept bumbling but just kept being int he right place at the right time.) Sure sounds like Twain if it isn't.)

But, a butterly effect giving him better skill is more likely.

 

[glenn67]

Golda Meir was Israel's most notable and longest-serving Foreign Minister, holding the post from 1956 until 1977, under the administrations of David Ben Gurion (1948-1953/1955-1963), Levi Eshkol (1963-8), Moshe Dayan (1968-1975), and Anne Van Pels (1975-82, 1988-1993). She retired due to ill health, and died in 1980. Her successor as Foreign Minister, Yitzahk Rabin, gave a very touching eulogy at her funeral.

If Anne Van Pels (nee Frank) immigrated to Israel and entered politics, she would have to Hebraize her last name or use her maiden name for professional purposes.

IOTL, Golda Meyerson legally changed her last name to Meir because Eshkol required that members of the diplomatic service change their last names to make it more "Hebrew" sounding.

 

[OAM47]

You havn't said anything about Regan

 

[danielb1]

If Anne Van Pels (nee Frank) immigrated to Israel and entered politics, she would have to Hebraize her last name or use her maiden name for professional purposes.

IOTL, Golda Meyerson legally changed her last name to Meir because Eshkol required that members of the diplomatic service change their last names to make it more "Hebrew" sounding.

Well, she wasn't in the diplomatic service during Eshkol's tenure, so there. I am aware that Golda Meir changed her name (actually, twice - first when she moved to the US as a girl, then again when she came to Israel). But I don't exactly know how to Hebraicize "Van Pels"; I guess she could use Frank for professional purposes though (she may anyway, especially if her diary is published in this TL, she'd be fairly well-known even outside of Israel.). OTOH, I might change Meir's name back to Meyerson; who says Eshkol gives the same directive in this TL? I'm cutting it on thin ice as it is giving Israel mostly the same Prime Ministers (the one sandwiched between Anne's two nonconsecutive terms is Menachem Begin, representing the rise of a right-wing party, which may or may not be OTL Likud. I don't know who succeeds her).

As for Reagan, I'm undecided. He probably won't become President - his role is taken up by Jack Kemp in this TL - but he may be Governor of California and/or have another political role. Or not, he could stick to acting.

 

[Sean Mulligan]

Hosni Mubarak had a very long and successful career in the Egyptian Air Force, serving as Director of the King Farouk II Air Force Academy from 1974 to 1982, before being named Chief Marshal of the Air Force, a position he held until 1991. Allegations of political unreliability slowed his otherwise rapid rise, and prevented him from turning his military career into a political one (military leaders being very suspect in Egypt, after the failure of the Free Officer Movement's coup attempt led to a purge of senior military leadership, including Lieutenant General Anwar Sadat). He is currently enjoying his retirement, living with his family in an expensive villa in the outskirts of Cairo.

Why do have Egypts corrupt monarchy surviving in your mildly Utopian tl? Also, what do you have against Arafat?

 

[danielb1]

Why do have Egypts corrupt monarchy surviving in your mildly Utopian tl? Also, what do you have against Arafat?

You want to know why I'm against one of the more prolific terrorists of the 20th century? Keep in mind that his reputation got some editing when he 'moderated' to become more palatable to western audiences. The differences between the classic PLO (before it 'moderated') and Hamas today are largely as to what they want(ed) Palestine to become (Arab nationalist vs. Islamic crazy), not their ultimate goal (driving the Jews into the sea and reclaiming the whole of Palestine).

As for Egypt's monarchy, they were pretty bad/corrupt but Nasser was arguably worse (though this pretty much butterflies away Sadat and some other leaders) - its more a matter of nipping the long-term consequences in the bud. It also helps ease relations between Egypt and Israel earlier, as Arab Nationalism doesn't get quite as big. There's no UAR, the Baathists also fail, Libya remains a monarchy for longer than OTL (because, without Egypt's rebellion, Muammar Gaddaffi is never inspired to do the same. I think getting rid of Gaddaffi is worthwile). OTOH, the coup against Mossadegh also fails (less western support due to a slightly less frigid Cold War), and <handwaves later> a deal is worked out with the Shah (or a different Shah, remember the Pahlavis are suspect and some of the ousted Qajars, including the second-in-line, actually live in the US!) leading to Iran becoming a fairly nice/prosperous semi-democratic constitutional monarchy.

No Nasser also means no Suez Crisis. Without the Suez Crisis, Israel's relations with African and non-Arab Muslim countries are better (they aren't seen as being in bed with Britain or France as much). On the downside, if Farouk or his successor doesn't reform, then there's an off chance that the Islamic Brotherhood may take over, and *that* would be dystopic. (Though a failed rebellion might be a good opportunity to 'clean up' a lot of the crazies, including some who would later influence Osama Bin Laden and other later terrorist groups)..

 

[danielb1]

American Astronauts Douglas Husband and Linda Kelley, Russian Cosmonaut Fyodor Lonchakov, ESA Astronaut Mario Guidoni, Indian astronaut Abida Chawla, and Israeli astronaut David Ramon were the first men (and woman) on Mars (in 2003-4, whichever is best given Mars' relative rotation to Earth) during the Ares I mission. Staying 'topside' were ESA Astronaut Jacques Perrin and Chinese taikonaut Ye Li. The mission, primarily funded by NASA and ESA, was a stunnng success, although Husband did fluff his lines when first setting foot on Mars.

Steve Wozniak was a computer engineer working for Hewlett Packard until 1977, when HP rejected a prototype computer designed by Steve in his spare time. Undaunted, he went to Texas Instruments, which accepted his employment and (mostly) the design (they did insist that he use a TI-sourced microprocessor). The wildly successful TI600 computer (rumors claim that Steve wanted to name it the TI666 but was dissuaded) helped propel him to eventually become TI's chief of product design.

The 10 largest personal computer manufacturers in 2008 are IBM, Commodore, Texas Instruments (TI), Ami Computers (AC), Packard Bell, Sinclair Technologies, Sega, Toshiba, Siemens, and Famous Amos Computers. Yes, you read that right. In this TL, one of the businesses Wally Amos founds is a technology company. He's still in the baked-goods business, though - Amos Bakery is a major competitor in the small-but-burgeoning 'shopping mall bakery' niche. Note that Dallas, Texas, has one of the largest 'Tech Corridors', with both TI and AC having their headquarters there.

 

[OAM47]

Would the Chineese really settle for simply being in oribt?

 

[danielb1]

Would the Chineese really settle for simply being in oribt?

All about the funding, space program strength, and sheer luck. China in this TL is Nationalist, and while it is actually wealthier by now than OTL (no Cultural Revolution, embraced economic reform in the 1960s-70s instead of the 1980s-90s as in OTL), it took a bit longer to fully unify, and they didn't have a significant space program until the 1980s-90s, by which point India was also involved. In this TL, the US and various European nations provided the bulk of the initial funding, with Russia in third, and small bits provided by various others. Only 8 people could fit on the initial space craft, 6 in the lander. NASA, the biggest contributor, had some resistance to the idea of an international mission at all, but budget shortfalls (combined with grand goals) forced them to pair up with the agencies that would later join the ESA.

Rest assured, though, that Ares II had a Chinese national on the lander, as well as a Japanese national and a Brazilian national (and a British national; the first ESA astronauts were Italian and French, with an Iranian staying in the orbiter.

 

[Francisco Cojuanco]

Try Ferdinand Marcos and Benigno Aquino (both Sr. and Jr.) Marcos OTL served in World War II, and Aquino Sr. was a collaborator with the Japanese.

 

[OAM47]

All about the funding, space program strength, and sheer luck. China in this TL is Nationalist, and while it is actually wealthier by now than OTL (no Cultural Revolution, embraced economic reform in the 1960s-70s instead of the 1980s-90s as in OTL), it took a bit longer to fully unify, and they didn't have a significant space program until the 1980s-90s, by which point India was also involved. In this TL, the US and various European nations provided the bulk of the initial funding, with Russia in third, and small bits provided by various others. Only 8 people could fit on the initial space craft, 6 in the lander. NASA, the biggest contributor, had some resistance to the idea of an international mission at all, but budget shortfalls (combined with grand goals) forced them to pair up with the agencies that would later join the ESA.

Rest assured, though, that Ares II had a Chinese national on the lander, as well as a Japanese national and a Brazilian national (and a British national; the first ESA astronauts were Italian and French, with an Iranian staying in the orbiter.

Ah, if its NatChi it makes sense.

 

[danielb1]

Ferdinand Marcos was a prominent political figure in the Phillipines, and served as President from 1965-69. Fear of his increasing power led to officials in the Nacionalista party rather forcefully persuading Marcos against running for re-election, in favor of Arturo Tolentino (1969-1977). Begnino Aquino, Jr., in spite of concernsrelating to his father's cooperation with Japanese Occupation forces, served as President from 1977-1981.

The world's major Aircraft (large jet, supersonic) and Rotocraft (Helicopter, Rotodyne) companies, in 2008, are:
US: Boeing, Lockheed-Northrop, Douglas-Grumman, North American Aviation, Consolidated-Vultee (Convair), Ford, Bell, Cessna, Piper-Beechcraft, and Sikorsky-Martin.
Britain: British Aircraft Corporation (BAC) (part of Panavia), Hawker-Siddeley-de Havilland, Fairey-Westland, Scottish Aerospace, and Branson Aerospace.
France: Dassault, Sud Aviation (part of Panavia)
Also part of Panavia: Daimler-Benz Aerospace, CASA, Fokker, and Alenia Aeronautica
Other Europe: Messerschmidt-Blohm, Dornier, Skoda Aerospace, Saab Aerospace, PZL
Canada: Avro, Bombardier
Brazil: Embraer
Russia: Yakovlev, Lavochkin, Ilyushin,Mikoyan-Gurevich, Tupolev, and Sukhoi.
Japan: Mitsubishi Aerospace, Toyota AvionicsIndia: Hindustan Avionics, Tata Aerospace
China: AIDC, Shanghai Aerospace

EDIT: I changed a little bit due to suggestions
List of the world's 20 largest Automobile manufacturers in 2008:
1. General Motors (US) - Chevrolet, Pontiac, GMC, Buick, Oldsmobile, Cadillac, Opel, Vauxhall, Holden, 10% stake in Suzuki
2. Ford Motor Company (US) - Ford, Lincoln, Mercury, 33% stake in Mazda
3. Chrysler Corporation (US) - Chrysler, DeSoto, Dodge, Plymouth, Imperial, Sunbeam
4. Toyota Motor Corporation (Japan) - Toyota, Century
5. British Motor Corporation (UK) - Austin, Rover, MG, Wolseley, Vanden Plas, Land Rover
6. Volkswagen-Porsche Automotive (Germany) - Volkswagen, Porsche, Skoda, 25% stake in Volvo
7. American Motors (US) - Studebacker, Packard, Crosley, Nash, Hudson, Jeep, Kaiser (alliance with Renault)
8. Honda Motors (Japan) - Honda, Acura
9. PSA Peugot Citroen (France) - Peugot, Citroen, Matra
10. Tata Motors Ltd. (India) - Tata, Lotus, 49% stake in Hindustan Motors (51% owned by Indian government)
11. FIAT S.p.A (Italy) - FIAT, Lancia, Alfa Romeo, Abarth, SEAT
12. Auto Union Group (part of the Daimler-Benz Corporation) (Germany) - NSU, Audi, DKW, Mercedes-Benz
13.. Mazda Motors (Japan) - Mazda, Amati, Kia
14. Renault S.A. (France) - Renault, Dacia (alliance with American Motors)
15. Samsung Automotive (South Korea) - Samsung
16. Mitsubishi Motors (Japan) - Mitsubishi
17. Li Automotive (China) - Li
18. Mahindra & Mohammed Ltd. (India) M&M
19. AvtoVAZ (Russia) - AvtoVAZ/Lada
20. Suzuki Motor Corporation (Japan) - Suzuki


Note that this does not count numerous smaller marques, such as Shelby, Ferrari, Rolls-Royce, or many other companies, from Saab to Ssangyong.