Considering Oswald was mad enough to nuke american cities in 1.0 for rebelling against him and thought that was sensible strategy, who knows what Oswald will conjure up with Carolina, maybe he uses the treatment of blacks in Carolina as sufficient casus belli to go in and it's a very unpopular war since many Americans still like Carolina also Oswald coming in to save the blacks would be a nice twist in irony given what his 1.0 version did.

Oswald: We are going in to stop Carolina from treating black people like shit.
Carolinan blacks: Yaaaay!!!
Oswald: Only we can do that!
Carolinan blacks:
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Oswald: We are going in to stop Carolina from treating black people like shit.

Oswald: "My fellow Americahns, today is the day the Cokies get what's coming fah them. The New United States of America stands for liberty, peace, and justice for the Pinnacle Man. But how can we stand fah such principles if our neighbahs treat our fellow negro pinnacle brothers as 2nd class citizens. Therefore I have issued Operation Cokie-smash. The Cokies can hark the sound all they want, by the time we're through, there'll be no one left to hark the sound no moah. It's time to finish what father Abe set out to do a century ago"

Nixon (inaubible mumbling): Is this cocksucker seriously gonna have us go to war with an ally over this?
 
Considering Oswald was mad enough to nuke american cities in 1.0 for rebelling against him and thought that was sensible strategy, who knows what Oswald will conjure up with Carolina, maybe he uses the treatment of blacks in Carolina as sufficient casus belli to go in and it's a very unpopular war since many Americans still like Carolina also Oswald coming in to save the blacks would be a nice twist in irony given what his 1.0 version did.
Also, will the Confederation of the Carolinas ever be annexed by the Republican Union? I feel like it would only make sense for Joe Steele to go ahead and do it before he dies
As for the latter I'm against annexation of the Cokies. Increasing hostility and wacky cultural misunderstandings sure but Carolina is the closest the RU has to a friend
I don’t think Joe Steele will finish the Carolinas, Chuckie Oswald though..........

So, here is my argument against the annexation of my Cokie Homeland ITTL. Aside from the fact that I love the Carolinian stories, the possible culture clashes, etc, there's also a very reasonable explanation for keeping Ol' Caroline independent.

While we rightly get caught up by the crazy backstory, rages, and ultimate demise of Chuckie Oswald in 1.0, and translate that on to his 2.0 counterpart, we forget a crucial thing: he might be a bloodsoaked narcissistic megalomaniac, but he's a fairly smart bloodsoaked narcissistic megalomaniac. Yes, at the end he gave into his delusions of grandeur and nearly ended the world to "cleanse it in holy fire." Beforehand, however, he was a feared general, who captured major war goals for the Union. Then, he managed to maneuver his way into the First Consulship. Then, he managed to end over 100 years of Consular rule and establish a monarchy without everyone going apeshit. He finished the Pacification of South America fairly well, though the nuking was gratuitous. Then, he managed to organize a genocide of African Americans, which wouldn't have been easy to do. He also managed to invade and conquer the British Isles without causing WWII. He came unglued at the end because his health deteriorated at the same time the empire he had murdered millions to build came undone.

Fundamentally, Oswald is a brilliant strategic mind married to an unstable personality. Which means he understands from a strategic standpoint that war is not desirable. Aside from the African American issue (which I doubt he cares about) and a few cultural things, Carolina is for all intents and purposes the perfect Yankee puppet. They fight and die where Philly tells them too, and pay for it themselves. Ruining that is just flat out dumb. Furthermore, thanks to the mountainous terrain of Appalachia, and the woods across the country, any war against Cokie-land will become an embarrassingly difficult guerilla war. That would signal weakness, which is a death sentence. Finally, it's doubtful that he could adequately conquer Cokie Africa. They, however, can cause hell in Mittleafrika, an ally which is key to the Yankee economy. No dictator will willingly do something that could fuck with his economy unless he's too incompetent to realize that would happen. Chuckie likely is not.

In short, while Oswald most definitely is crazy, he sure as hell ain't stupid. For a variety of reasons, war with Carolina is stupid and unnecessary. Thus, I don't anticipate it happening. I could see a bunch of bizarre demands designed to humiliate Charlotte and amuse him though.

Also, although I wrote all of this with Chuckie in mind, it's a similar case with Steele
 
In short, while Oswald most definitely is crazy, he sure as hell ain't stupid. For a variety of reasons, war with Carolina is stupid and unnecessary. Thus, I don't anticipate it happening. I could see a bunch of bizarre demands designed to humiliate Charlotte and amuse him though.

Also, although I wrote all of this with Chuckie in mind, it's a similar case with Steele

You know, I can still see Oswald (or..jesus, maybe Billy Graham) might try to go for it if he starts giving into his insanity but Nixon'll be the one to convince Oswald not to give in. The power dynamic between Oswald and Nixon was something I loved in 1.0. Nixon was a psychopathic racist shithead but he was a relative voice of reason in 1960s-70s America who was also Oswald's punching bag at times as Oswald considered him above Nixon and thus abused him while Nixon appeared to just take it but was seething with anger inside at Oswald and slowly manipulating things behind the scenes to undermine Oswald and attain absolute power. I can see something similar and Nixon is caught in a Watergate esque analog and becomes a pariah in America.

Edit: Actually come to think of it, Nixon might push Oswald for war since Oswald would have the most to lose and Nixon can try to go in for some powergrab before things go wrong.
 
Beforehand, however, he was a feared general, who captured major war goals for the Union. Then, he managed to maneuver his way into the First Consulship. Then, he managed to end over 100 years of Consular rule and establish a monarchy without everyone going apeshit. He finished the Pacification of South America fairly well, though the nuking was gratuitous. Then, he managed to organize a genocide of African Americans, which wouldn't have been easy to do. He also managed to invade and conquer the British Isles without causing WWII. He came unglued at the end because his health deteriorated at the same time the empire he had murdered millions to build came undone.

He gets credit for the first two achievements but I think the latter two ought to be attributed to the NUSA bureaucracy/security forces as a whole. But we can expect him to actually be somewhat smarter/suaver in Redux. In Classic the general track of his life was gangster to murdering his whole family to being the general leading the war effort against all three Southron nations combined. In Redux all that might still be in his future but first we're getting an actual college education at one of the Union's top institutions. I don't mention that for the academics; the benefits of social acclimatization will do a lot for his ability to have genuine charisma (in Classic his appeal was based, even before he fully lost it, primarily on his "Beast"-like brutality), and take his madness in interesting directions.

And to add to the discussion on Carolina, in Classic it was in lockstep with the other Southrons and grouped in with all the other enemies. Here, the lines of conflict have already moved far beyond. Annexing Carolina would open up an ulcer on the North American continent even as the RU's visions have been turned beyond that continent's shores for twenty years.
 
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The last couple pages have been fascinating. EXACTLY the kind if comments I love: witty, inquisitive, and interesting. Now I'm off to catch up on the EU!

Also, I now physically own this, with zero regrets. Be jealous, Infees:

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Also, will the Confederation of the Carolinas ever be annexed by the Republican Union? I
As people have already pointed out , the RU has basically no reasons to invade them. Unless the Carolinas' government is overthrown by anti-america forces or the country collapses into civil war, i don't see any logical reason why the RU would invade.
 
*arrives late to the conversation, sipping a Sweet Victory soda*

Personally, having Oswald conquering Carolina or being a racist fuck to black Americans feels too easy and boring and we all know Napo is better then that. I think it should be paranoia that fuels Oswaldo insanity this time around. So obsessed with preventing people from find out his real heritage, it fuels the crumbling of his sanity to the point he’s seeing conspiracies everywhere and purges them all with brutal efficiency. Convinced the Cokies are planning something, he has the Chancellor of the Confederation replaces with an even more bootlicking brown-noising suckup. As he deteriorated further, he even starts purging his own family.

On an unrelated note, I’d like to see another culture post again soon. I honestly find those among the most fascinating parts of the WMIT as it gives a snapshot into the Madness and what it’s like for the every day people. I love the history posts too, but hearing about what shows are indoctrinating the youth over the Talkie box is a whole different kind of fun
 

AHE

Gone Fishin'
I mean, wasn’t something about the “Oswald Reforms” mentioned earlier in this TL? I don’t think he’s gonna be the psycho that Oswald 1.0 was, although he’ll have some psychopathic tendencies (I mean, if you control the RU post- Custer coup, can you not?).
 
I mean, wasn’t something about the “Oswald Reforms” mentioned earlier in this TL? I don’t think he’s gonna be the psycho that Oswald 1.0 was, although he’ll have some psychopathic tendencies (I mean, if you control the RU post- Custer coup, can you not?).
I think his reasons for things will be creepy and evil but life for the average citizen* will get a lot more fun. It's only as the clock gets closer to the final conflagration that medical conditions/raging drug addiction/festering mental illness will take their toll.

*As opposed to the higher up Party Members, whose lives will be much more knife edge for anyone suspected of wavering.
 
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The last couple pages have been fascinating. EXACTLY the kind if comments I love: witty, inquisitive, and interesting. Now I'm off to catch up on the EU!

Also, I now physically own this, with zero regrets. Be jealous, Infees:

View attachment 499911
Truly, we are in the presence of the ultimate Pinnacle Man! All hail!

On a side note, re-reading the chapters about the Immolation of Mexico and the Cuban plantations is making me wonder how many infees are still around in the RU. Are there any places that still have a segregated infee underclass, or have they all been killed or imprisoned by now?
 
Convinced the Cokies are planning something, he has the Chancellor of the Confederation replaces with an even more bootlicking brown-noising suckup.

On an unrelated note, I’d like to see another culture post again soon. I honestly find those among the most fascinating parts of the WMIT as it gives a snapshot into the Madness and what it’s like for the every day people. I love the history posts too, but hearing about what shows are indoctrinating the youth over the Talkie box is a whole different kind of fun

Now this is an interesting idea-- instead of uniting Carolina against him, he just demands more obedience and divides Carolina between those willing to give it and those unwilling. I'm imagining a scene where Oswald and the Chancellor are talking, and Oswald calls him "Governor" in a slip of the tongue-- and when the Chancellor brings it up Oswald just commits to it and goes "yeah bitch, you heard me" and leaves the guy sweating over whether Oswald is going to back that up or not.

And I second the culture posts, Destiny Road has been one of my favorite of the recent chapters. Maybe the Rounders chapter could be integrated into the greater narrative of the war somehow.
 
I mean, wasn’t something about the “Oswald Reforms” mentioned earlier in this TL? I don’t think he’s gonna be the psycho that Oswald 1.0 was, although he’ll have some psychopathic tendencies (I mean, if you control the RU post- Custer coup, can you not?).
I think most of Oswald's reform will be focused on increasing the population of the RU.
Three reasons for this:
1) Steele's costant purges and warfare are probably going to take their tool on the general population
2) If the RU ends up conquering South America like in the original version and commits genocide, Oswald will need people to colonise the new empty lands
3) Like Mao in OTL, Oswald probably believes that the only the RU can survive a nuclear war is to have as many inhabitants as possible ( if not more).

I can see Oswald openly encouraging immigration from the RU's fascist allies and even allowing relationships between pinnacle men and women regardless the color of their skins
 
As another note for the Cokies, aside from the practical reasons for CoCaro to remain independent, the story potential for it in the Oswald era is incredible. As I have remarked earlier, with the coming decadent "Super-Pinnacle-Future," and the Oswald Reforms and all their potential sexual insanity, the Cokies will decidedly not be on board. They're fundamentally reactionaries, not messianic totalitarians. Change don't sit well with em. Just imagine how nutty that could get if things like interracial polygamy happen. The Carolinas will have a collective, never-ending stroke, and I think it'll be absolutely hilarious.

Also, since TTL has as one of its "themes" the idea of building a society where all the worst aspects of America are turbocharged, I would argue you need an aspect that highlights all the terrible things in the South. The RU is too fundamentally New England Yankee to really have that in there. Thus, the Cokies pick up the slack in that department, and become the evilest Southerners you ever have seen, sir. Hark the Sound!

Also, I would like to join the chorus calling for at least one more culture update before we really get into the meat of the upcoming wars. Also, is the League of Nations still going to be a thing?
 
I think most of Oswald's reform will be focused on increasing the population of the RU.
Three reasons for this:
1) Steele's costant purges and warfare are probably going to take their tool on the general population
2) If the RU ends up conquering South America like in the original version and commits genocide, Oswald will need people to colonise the new empty lands
3) Like Mao in OTL, Oswald probably believes that the only the RU can survive a nuclear war is to have as many inhabitants as possible ( if not more).

I can see Oswald openly encouraging immigration from the RU's fascist allies and even allowing relationships between pinnacle men and women regardless the color of their skins

If the European fascists start facing a serious defeat, there could even be wholesale evacuation/deportation. Like if you're going to lose West Germania, might as well take as many of the people as you can and plant them where they're needed.

Also, I would like to join the chorus calling for at least one more culture update before we really get into the meat of the upcoming wars.

I don't know if I want a culture update right now-- they're certainly welcome, but now that we've seen things like Cuba and a preview into the Catholic camp's fault lines I think I'd rather just proceed with whatever political things need to be set up still, whether it be the opening shots of the Panama Canal campaign or a final word on whether Italy aligns with Caesar or Pope. The culture update could then be a rounders team wondering what to do now that their star player's been drafted for the Colombian front, or something else showing how war might be cutting into the bread and circuses (if it does at all, might be there's well enough bread to go around) of the Booming 30s.
 
By golly, I sure hope the RU does invade the Carolinas just to see a schism between the Fascists. :evilsmile:
Boooooo! Southern-fried Yugoslavian North Korea is best Carolina! I want them to survive just for the reactions against DiSC theory* and Sexual Marxism** and Pinnacle Production*** alone. The idea that rather than guns or drugs or liquor bootleggers will just be running porn and Yankee family planning literature over the border would be a lot of fun.

*Kink/BDSM as pioneered by Comrade-Patriot William Moulton Marston
**Race mixing to truly recreate the Pinnacle Line of Adam, as put forward by the latest scions of the illustrious Marx family, the Free World renowned Marx brothers.
***All sorts of weird family structures. I think that a book called "The Pinnacle Plateau" about how infees will eventually overwhelm the New Chosen by sheer numbers could turn a lot of people around to the idea, not unlike how the Rising Tide of Color fed into eugenics OTL.
 
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Boooooo! Southern-fried Yugoslavian North Korea is best Carolina! I want them to survive just for the reactions against DiSC theory* and Sexual Marxism** and Pinnacle Production*** alone. The idea that rather than guns or drugs or liquor bootleggers will just be running porn and Yankee family planning literature over the border would be a lot of fun.

*Kink/BDSM as pioneered by Comrade-Patriot William Moulton Marston
**Race mixing to truly recreate the Pinnacle Line of Adam, as put forward by the latest scions of the illustrious Marx family, the Free World renowned Marx brothers.
***All sorts of weird family structures. I think that a book called "The Pinnacle Plateau" about how infees will eventually overwhelm the New Chosen by sheer numbers could turn a lot of people around to the idea, not unlike how the Rising Tide of Color fed into eugenics OTL.
But mullattoes being Better is directly contradicted by TTL's Marxist Eugenicism, and if he's wrong about that, what about all those irish that got "vaccinated"...

The RU is too far deep into the Betterness as set forth by Marx, verbatim. IMO it can't happen, unless you undo everything the RU stands for.
 
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