TLKNES: Belle Epoque

Deadline is here.

No more revisions. I'll still accept orders though, so long as I haven't already bypassed your section. Still time to get those stories/word-building things in. Even if it's just a flag, I'll happily take it.
 

Ma Xinyi, the Commander who Subdues Island Barbarians, and his troops march across New Guinean territory. Ma Xinyi leads by himself the troops. They have to expand their colony and bring glory to China. So far, Ma Xinyi's troops have faced only mother nature. They have not had any problems at all so far.

The troops are all pretty happy, for they see that China is becoming a Great Power. Having colonies means a lot. It means that China is on par with European powers. At least, this is how the Chinese people think of it. They are proud that China, after a century of humiliation, is once again a great power. It has also helped the Chinese feel better over their jealously over Korean and Japanese industrialization.

As the troops move forward, a whistling sound is heard and ten wooden spears fly towards the Chinese troops. By sheer luck, no one is injured.

"It must be natives.", Ma Xinyi thought. The natives never really gave any problem to Ma Xinyi and his men. Whenever they met them, they were few in numbers and underequipped, so they were easily taken care of.

"Men!", Ma Xinyi shouts, "Fire!"

The Chinese form a straight line and fire at the direction from which the spears came. Screams are heard. A few seconds later, Chinese soldiers charge against the enemy only to see that all the natives, only twelve men, are dead.

"Continue marching!", Ma Xinyi orders.

And so the Chinese, without any trouble at all, continue their expansion.
 
Alright, to level with everyone I want to say that the update is being worked on, but I'm also on vacation so my access has been a bit limited at best. I have finished a couple of the wars, and am working on the rest as we speak, but I don't feel comfortable giving an ETA.

So feel free to use this time for more world-building! :p
 
BREAKING NEWS!

Paraguay annexes china and institutes a draft from this region and injects all recruits with a new brain-washing drug that makes these chinamen brutally loyal to Paraguay. This has grown the Paraguayan military enormously and now all must fear the might of Amon Savag 'till he goes back into his slumber.
 

Link to video.

The song is recorded in the 19-teens but it is typical of 1880s 'parlour songs' in the USA.​



What follows is an update of the political parties i first introduced in the pre-thread. In a recent update, TLK introduce the Washingtonians. This is my effort to meld the established background, the introduction of this new, now-dominant party, and the events of the updates to-date. Hopefully its plausible considering what has happened. Elections should be not in this update, but the next, so I am starting to consider how each party would run the USA for the next four turns if they were to the executive powers.


An Analysis of the American Political Landscape, December 1882

With only a little more than a year remaining to the 1884 elections, it is perhaps worth revisiting the American political landscape.


Background

The modern American political system has evolved into multi-party system effectively dominated by several conservative parties, who, due to vote-splitting, often have to govern through consensus. Since the devastating war of 1812, federalism has become increasingly popular and this led to the development of the Constitutional Party. Its pro-centralist, modernist economic philosophy, married to much of the conservative ideology of the democratic party it was founded from, has assured that it has largely been dominant since its inception (though with some notable, but transient, losses to both the Whig and Democratic parties in the 1840s and 1860s).

Another centralizing influence arising from the losses of the war of 1812 was the empowerment of the executive branch at the cost of disempowering congress. Congress, along with anti-federalist sentiments, after 1812, was largely seen as having been instrumental in the loss of New England (with many in congress very sympathetic to the secessionist cause). Ultimately, in addition to empowering federalism, this made congress a scapegoat, politically, and much of their power was transferred to the presidential cabinet and the executive branch.

With government largely influenced or led by the modernist Confederalist party, industrialization of the nation has proceeded at a breakneck pace and today the USA effectively competes with both Great Britain and France in manufacturing. Indeed married to the focus on developing industrial (steam)engines, the extensive use of slavery in resource development (agriculture, mining), infrastructure (rail and canal building), and in manufacturing itself often means that American textiles and machinery can very effectively compete in foreign markets. At the same time, they have been avid supporters of western expansion and the various homesteading and western plantation acts have pushed the American population westward, while also providing an outlet for white freemen who cannot compete with slaves for employment as manual labor. The resources of the west, as well as a government focus on creation of investment vehicles and opportunities through a number of well-developed stock exchanges have also attracted manufacturing and industrialization, and in this timeline, western industrialization, often again based on slave labor, is much more developed then it was in our timeline

Immigration has been constant and continuous, especially from white European states, though a brief period in the 1860s that saw the Levin party in power resulting in a temporary reduction in those coming from predominantly Catholic countries. This has since reversed and immigration continues unabated. Most immigrants have moved west to establish homesteads or manage the smaller western manufactories.

Relations with native Americans have been poor, with those taking up arms against the western expansion of the USA being beaten decisively and their people sold into slavery far from their homes in the eastern mills and mines, or even as distant as Korea or Brazil. Those who have surrendered their lands have been forcefully deported to Sequoya instead (though the Democratic party has repeatedly advocated a forceful push to annex Sequoya without concern for its peoples).


American Political Parties in late 1882


Whig Party:
  • Liberalism (argue to extend some rights to slaves, gradual abolitionism thereof)
  • Economic nationalism (national banks, federal financial infrastructure)
  • Pro-federalism- continue to centralize authority in Richmond
  • Increasingly isolationist

The Whig party has made some headway in the last two years. In many ways they are similar to the current Constitutionalist government, in that they are modernist and centralists. They are also much more liberal, believing in the eventual and gradual emancipation of slaves, not for financial reasons as outlined by the Constitutionalists, but for ideological reasons as well. The Whig party is also more isolationist and advocates a peaceful end to the Patagonian conflict even if it means more territorial sharing between Chile and Britain.

Of late they have completely abandoned their historical protectionism of American industry and advocate freer trade with all friendly nations.

The Whig are led by James G. Blaine.



Democratic Party:
  • Conservatism (against extending any rights to slaves, against abolitionism in any form)
  • Against Economic Nationalism (believes that private financial institutions should govern mechanization or commercial development)
  • Free Market (private banks)
  • Agrarianism (harkening to a biblical pastoral idealism)
  • Western Expansion (Manifest Destiny, anti-native)
  • Militarist and Revanchist (advocate recovering Michigan in particular)
  • Pro-immigration (white Europeans anyway)
  • Anti-federalism (devolve more power to the states)

The last year has seen the Democratic Party bleed members with almost a third of its membership abandoning them to join the new Washington party. Despite this, they have made considerable gains in actual political power, by allying themselves with the new Washingtonians and gaining control of congress. In conjunction with the Washingtonians they have done everything they can to torpedo any efforts to reduce slavery or extend further rights to them, while pushing for a harder stance against Britain in Patagonia and elsewhere.

In addition to their pro-militarist, anti-abolitionist agenda, the democratic party appears to be focusing on the rural vote, presenting themselves as champions of the plantation-owners and farmers and making promises of regulating slave prices to ensure industrial demand does not price labor outside the reach of the plantation owners. They are also critical of the Constitutional party’s efforts to subsidize industrialization and modernist development, saying that this should be left to market forces.

The democratic party is led by Thomas A. Hendricks


Constitutional Party:
  • Moderate Conservatives (though previously very conservative, have recently flirted with gradual abolitionism)
  • Economic nationalism (national banks, federal financial infrastructure, investment tools through stock exchanges, subsidies for mechanization)
  • Free Trade (do not believe that the now well established American industrial machines needs protections and increasingly sees foreign protectionism as a threat)
  • Industrialist and Modernists
  • Western Expansion (Manifest Destiny, anti-native)
  • Pro-immigration (white Europeans anyway)
  • Pro-Federalism (continue centralist policies)
  • Militarism (their willingness to go head to head with Britain in Patagonia has done much to renew a flagging opinion of their military dedication)

Under President Forrest’s administration, the Constitutional party has favored modernism over conservatism and has been flirting with the abolishing slavery (albeit over time scale of one generation and for reasons relating to economy and not to ideology). Despite this, the last year has seen the party engaged in bitter debate both externally and internally and the Constitutionalists were delivered a bitter pill when many of their supporters left, en masse, along with much of the Democratic party, to form the new Washington Party who have been able to seize control of Congress in the 1882 elections.

Despite this set-back, President Forrest is quick to point to his successes in Peru and Bolivia, where an American-backed negotiation brought an end to war and bloodshed and helped cement the USA’s role in influencing politics in the Americas.

Additionally, American involvement on the side of Chile against British imperialism has proven extremely popular at home and has helped paint President Forrest as a strong man of firm convictions. The party hopes to use that image to paint his successor in similar colors.

Lastly, the business community, especially urban industrialists and commerce is largely supportive of the Constitutional party due to their subsidies for mechanization and for assisting in the establishment of new stock exchanges making western investment easier and more rewarding financially.

With President Forrest unable to serve a third term in office, his secretary of state, James Ewell Brown Stuart, will lead the party.



Washington Party:
  • Conservative (against any reform to the slavery act)
  • Pro-Business and Pro Industry
  • Trade as a political and military tool (advocate favoring trade with close military allies like Brazil and Chile at the expense of others)
  • Expansionist and Militarist (call for the return of Michigan, more involvement throughout the Americas, expansion of the Patagonia conflict, investment and modernization of the military and navy)
  • Pro-Immigration

Having only just formed in the last 18 months, the Washingtonians have proven wildly successful in gaining support within the Democratic and Constitutionalist parties and attracting former members of those parties.

Washingtonians feel that the Constitutional party has abandoned its supporters and its roots by advocating the abolition of slaves (no matter how gradual or for what reason), and that further, they have not gone far enough in standing against British imperialism. They believe that what the Confederalist are very careful to call the ‘Patagonia Conflict’ or a ‘regional affair’ should be expanded to a full-blown war against the British, one that might see the USA regain lost Michigan.

They are led by Pierre Gustave Toutant-Beauregard.



Levin Party:
  • Anti-Immigration
  • Anti-Naturalism
  • Anti-Catholic
  • Protestantism
  • Temperance
  • Traditionalism

A recent string of bad leaders has left the Levin party with little influence in national politics.

Freemen Party:
  • Freeing and emancipation of slaves
  • Emancipation of women
  • Liberalism (verging on laissez-fair libertarianism regarding civil issues)
  • Free Market
  • Pro-Immigration (all immigrants)
  • Anti-Federalism
  • Reduced role for government
  • Individualist anarchism

Due to their championing complete and immediate abolitionism and the emancipation of all races and genders, the Freeman party’s main support is amongst those who cannot vote. Despite this they have a small and growing number of supporters amongst idealists, artists and academics who have embraced Andrew’s ideology of Individualist anarchism.

Despite a relatively small following, the Freemen Party has been very vocal in national dialogue and under the influential and charismatic leadership of Stephen Pearl Andrews, has of late grown somewhat.

 
It's been brought to my attention that maybe I wasn't too clear with my last post. I'm on vacation right now, and my only internet has been through my phone. I'm working on the update by hand, but I won't be able to post it until I get home, which will be in the next few days. That's why I was pushing everyone getting their orders in by the deadline. So next time make sure you all get them in, and you won't have to wait. :p
 
<--- is so awesome he crashes the NES when he joins.
 
<--- is so awesome he crashes the NES when he joins.

Psh, don't flatter yourself.

Finally back, gotta catch up on some work, and more importantly sleep, and then I'll begin catching up with this. :goodjob:
 
Finally back, gotta catch up on some work, and more importantly sleep, and then I'll begin catching up with this. :goodjob:

TLK,

I just wanted to say that despite the relative quiet of the thread, many of us are still very excited to continue. And while you may not have had time to work on the update, there is still a continuing enthusiasm for this project from the player-base. We look forward to a time when you have the chance and the inclination to return.

Cheers,
Immac.
 
Same here, this NES is awesome.
 
Me too.
 
This is what you get for having Bob Saget as your picture.
 
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