For All Time

I read a lot, and as such, alternate history is one of my favorite subgenres of science fiction. The question “could it have been different?” is almost always certainly answered “yes.” The world we live in, in terms of history, I believe, is a fluke. An accident. There was never any guarantee our world would evolve as it has, that historical events would unfold as they have.

 In my time as an alternate history reader, I’ve read heaps of novels exploring the subject.  A 10-volume saga detailng a world where the Confederate States of America secured sovereignty during the US Civil War and the ensuing century of warfare on the North American continent was one of my favorites, as was an 8-volume epic supposing reptilian alien invaders had rudely interrupted World War Two, necessating a desperate alliance between the Allied & Axis armies. Alternate History is infinetely thought-provoking and limitless in possbility.

 One of my favorite stories in this field has never been published in print form, but came into existance as a series of newsgroup posts to an alternate history based newsgroup on google back around the turn of the century (late 1999-2002). This novel, which amounts to roughly 161 pages when formatted, shows a world eerily similar to our own, turned on its head and twisted into a dark mirror image. For All Time, written by an early blogger known only as “President Chester A. Arthur” has a theme that the road to hell is paved with good intentions, and became disturbingly realistic during the september 11th attacks. In the current era of international instability, terrorism and the gradual slide-into-hell of domestic politics, it became even more relevant.

 For All Time posits a world where President Roosevelt died in the last days of 1941, just after the US entered World War Two. His successor, President Henry Wallace, takes the helm of the nation and proceeds to be the worst leader the United States ever has. As a result of his failed foreign & domestic policy, the War is bungled. It ends later, and more brutally (three atomic bombs on Germany & Japan and generous helpings of mustard gas all around), with the Allies fragmented and the Soviet Union dominating most of europe. This grim post-war world goes gradually downhill and by the 70s & 80s, the world is rather dark and apocalyptic.

 The UK cracks apart from nationalist terrorism, the Soviet Union is dominated by hard-line Stalinists, Western Europe Africanizes into contrant warfare and squabbling dictatorships, the United States is beset by waves of civil unrest & race riots throughout the 50s and 60s, and the French briefly resort to state-sponsored cannibalism. And, of course, Charles Manson runs for President, not to mention the dozens of cities and millions of people who perish in nuclear fire. Rock n’ Roll is never born, American Football is replaced with soccer, and Richard Nixon founds this worlds equivalent of McDonalds. It’s a disturbing read that flows like a train-wreck. Some serious psychopaths find themselves with a whole helluvalotta power, like this guy, who becomes Premier of the USSR after a rather destructive nuclear war with China.

 So where am I going with all this? Well, basically, FaT ain’t so different from our world. In fact, most of the problems encountered early in that timeline, as in the late 40s, early 50s, are similar to what’s happened since 9/11. The ensuing breakdown of society has clear parallels with what is going on today, from short-sighted, bigoted politicians to the publics apathy for problems over seas and at home. A reliance on easy solutions (like atom bombs dropped on troublesome enemies or withdrawing from confronting rival powers) and inability for the traditional “good nations” like the UK and US to work together leads to an increasingly chaotic world. FaT’s nuclear doctine is disturbingly probable…atom bombs seen as just really big conventional ordinance, and their accepted use in war. By the 1970s, the effects of nuclear weapons have affected the planets climate in ways unimaginable in our history.

 The problems posed in FaT mostly all befell us, albiet we dealt with them differently. Men like Martin Luter King led our civil rights movement while men like Meir Kahane were marginalized. All too often these days, fanatics guide our actions through manipulation of the media & the political/educational system. We could easily have fallen into a new dark age just as easily as we solved our problems peacefully.

Disturbingly enough the first decade of this millenium reads like the first decade of For All Time, thus far. I highly recommend anyone give it a once-over, with a wikipedia page open handy to glance unfamiliar names.