A Shift in Priorities

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The resilience of any society is dependent on the ability of elites to insulate themselves from the day to day problems of the society as a whole. The better they able to insulate themselves the worse things will ultimately get. Bannerman's job seems to be to provide that very insulation.

I don't think that it will be Jotun's viking triathlon, (great term BTW:)) but as the economic collapse becomes evident the potential of a revolution along the lines of 1789 France becomes greater. Even worse this comes with a few potential Napoleons within the US military establishment.
 
This level of promiscuity between business and crime on TTL US upper class is going to bust eventually, probably in a very populist way.

Keep it up, rast!:)
 
¡ Hi ! ¡ SAD !:eek::(:eek:.

For Roscoe Bannerman as for myself i supose that guy and family are basically common decent/good people:). For that family, a lot of problems are created because are first generation of simple towns/rural peoples who emigrated to fast/advanced/corrupted city;), and the cultural shock maybe it be gigantic for they. Add the fact that are opening their naive/inocent eyes for the evident corruption of that upper class, and well that the reason about that family are in severe problems, and when the america darkest era occurs, will see if that family be united and survive:cool:, or be down, broken...

As for myself, i am freaking scary because will see that the upper class are how to say, corrupt, decadent, and living the life with closed eyes;), and i supose that if the elites are in big problems, the middle and lower class now are in deep s...:eek::(:eek:, and we see in this update that the american goverment in some vital aspects as security are weak.

And for last, ¡ WHOA !:eek:, the DUST BOWL/natural epic disaster maybe is worst than i think:eek:, and maybe the american food production is a totaly destroyed:(, and maybe McAdoo´s goverment are buying food from Canada by loans...:eek::(:eek:.


Peace:).
 
Being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks.
(Bible – Revelation 1:12)

Hardly able to keep straight on, Alvin Cullum York was staggering out of the only saloon to be found in this hicksville. Having soundly satisfied a tantalising thirst for alcohol, he now was being racked by hunger. He needed something to chew… – but there was no restaurant in this god-awful dump, only the wretched saloon he had just left, where no food was served.
Irresolutely, York stood swaying in front of the saloon, trying to fathom how to get something to eat. Fresh air only reinforced the gnawing feeling of near starvation.

He was billeted in the house of the local carpenter, a solid wooden bungalow at the edge of the town. Perhaps he could convince the carpenter’s wife to prepare a meal for him…
Lurching towards his Harley, York remarked a silent figure watching him. An old Navaho stood upright near the corner of the saloon, wrapped in a blanket. When the man saw that York had noticed him, he bowed and stepped closer.

York stopped. What did this prairie nigger want from him? – He groped for his scattergun, which he carried on his side, hidden below the dust jacket.
The Navaho bowed again.
“What’s up?” slurred York, scrutinising the Indian for hidden weapons.

“You are the chosen one.” said the Navaho. “Here, that’s for you. Use it wisely.”
He extended his right arm holding a small cloth bag between his fingers.
“What’s that?” inquired York warily.
“Wisdom, inspiration, and grace.” answered the Navaho. “Take it, it’s meant for you.”

Still distrusting, York grabbed the bag with his left. It weighed almost nothing.
The Navaho bowed again, turned and went away.

Ponderously, York opened the bag. It contained dried cactus slices, perhaps twenty-five of them…
York cackled in bewildered amazement. So, the old bugger had bestowed him something to chew. How had he known that York was hungry like a wolf?

Scatterbrained, he stuffed some slices into his mouth and started chomping them. Bah, the shit was bitter! But at least it helped fighting his hunger. He swallowed and jammed more slices between his teeth. The bag was empty when York started his Harley. Dropping it heedlessly, he mounted the bike and hit the road.

York almost made it to the carpenter’s house before the mescaline took effect. Forgetting his hunger, he followed the light…

The townsfolk had accustomed to drunken bikers careening around in the streets, since Bradley’s outfit had invaded the little town two days ago, and was taking precautions not to be embroiled in accidents. Most people simply kept indoors, but the carpenter had a job to do and was working in his yard.

He heard the bike approach and looked up from his work. The Disgruntled Grunt who had taken quarter in his house was one of the bosses of these bikers. A noxious drunkard, he had, however, behaved decently opposite the carpenter’s wife – so far… Well, one never knew what these intemperate goons were going to do next.

With wonder, the carpenter now watched how the bike suddenly veered from the road and drove straight into the wilderness, its rider rocking from the bumpy ground but holding tight to the handlebar and shrieking: “I’m coming! I’m coming, my Lord!”
 
:D Either Alvin York is going to become a born-again Christian or something to that effect or he's going to start his own crackpot religion-cum-personality-cult...

I lean to the first one, though. Cleaned up, off alcohol and full of religious fervor he could in time become something of a force in American society/politics.
 
Seems like that wise old Navajo indian has decided to add a traditional North american drug into the mix. It's only fair that the natives get their share in drug trade. :rolleyes:
 
¡ Hi ! ¡ LOL !:):D:).

How sounds THE HOLLY CHURCH OF YORK´S BIKERS:D:cool::D.

Yep, to many posibilities, maybe York it be creating his own corrupt evangelist cult, likely, simmilar to the 80´s television evangelists;), or because this revelation moment will it be created some kind of war´s brotherhood/ biker´s brotherhood/blackwater security group by divine revelation:eek:, or maybe he became the father of some peace hippie help america movement, will see...

Finnally because this update will it be knowing that the biker´s gangs are very well armed, and the law and state at least in towns are with fear/weak against this groups, biker´s gangs.

Peace:).
 
For diplomacy to be effective, words must be credible – and no one can now doubt the word of America.
(President William G. McAdoo)

Aged sixty-two, Dutch foreign minister Kornelis ter Laan, the sturdy son of a poor farmer, still very much enjoyed carnal lust – although hardly anymore with his wife Ida. Younger and lither dames like the two luscious Negresses currently caring for his erect member were vastly preferable.
The sojourn on Curaçao had turned out to be extremely satisfying. While Mexican President Cárdenas and US Secretary of State Hull were struggling for a peace settlement, their host enjoyed the beauties of the island, the natural ones and the female ones…

Willemstad was a very scenic place, a genuine Dutch town in tropical Caribbean surrounding. In the past, the city had been one of the hubs of slave trade; today, the Dutch Shell refinery dominated economy, processing Venezuelan oil. After the US Navy had removed all sea mines from the Gulf of Venezuela, tankers were coming and going incessantly again.

“Yeah, that’s good! – Keep it up!” ter Laan spurred the zealous black ladies.
The negotiations were on the brink of success now that the US side had accepted that President Cárdenas was in principle willing to act against drug production and trafficking in his country – but for some time would remain unable to do so. Mexican territorial integrity would be respected, as would be the old concessions of the US oil and mining companies in Mexico, while all new ones were first to be offered to US companies.

Mexico had agreed to recall her fighting men from Central America – and to discontinue all support for the rebels in these countries. Likewise, the European volunteers were to quit military service for Mexico.
There had been a heated debate about a demilitarised zone in northern Mexico and US inspection rights in this area, which in the end had led to nothing. The US would build a continuous double fence system on their side of the border, hoping to control migration and drug trafficking.

The only contentious issue still open was trade. The US wanted Mexico to buy US merchandise, not European stuff, and were eliciting with special low tariffs, which President Cárdenas claimed were still too high, pointing to cheaper offers coming from Great Britain.

Ter Laan estimated that an overall agreement would be reached in two or three days. Then, his delectable sojourn on Curaçao would regretfully come to an end…
The activities of the young ladies were coming to fruition. Ter Laan grunted libidinously. One last effort – and the climax was there… The Dutch foreign minister groaned with relief, while his jerking phallus discharged white spunk on black faces.

“That was very good, my dear bunnies. – Some champagne?”
Filling their glasses, ter Laan smiled amiably at the pair.
“Well, dames, now that the initial lust has ebbed off, a good stimulus is required to make my little man stand again. – How about stirring him up with some lesbian games?”
 
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Well, ter Laan became rather old (92 years) - and most pictures show him at very old age. Working from a portrait of ter Laan taken in 1937, he at that time was a respectable sturdy grandfather type with white hair and large grey mustache. Just the merry senior one would imagine in such a situation.
 
rast, your posts are getting less and less adequate to read during working time...:D

I don't really understand the US' way of thinking here. Even if they get some low-tarif, preffered-partner trade agreement with Mexico I'd expect that someone in Mexico will call for a consumer embargo against US goods that should work extremely well even without government support. Avoiding US goods will become a question of patriotism.

On the other side, even if Mexico can stop the drug trade (which I highly doubt), that wouldn't affect the US that much. It seems there's plenty of home-grown supply for various drugs, the Colombians started their own route by sea, and keeping the islands and central America occupied allows for drug trade through these areas at great scale - and keeps the military personnel involved in drugs as well.

On a sidenote, the sudden export successes of Britain surprises me. True, they're low-tech suppliers - but typically that's the section where competition is the highest and I don't really see how a socialist country which recently ended a civil war can be that competitive in such a market.
 
On a sidenote, the sudden export successes of Britain surprises me. True, they're low-tech suppliers - but typically that's the section where competition is the highest and I don't really see how a socialist country which recently ended a civil war can be that competitive in such a market.

Britain is the motherland of the first industrial revolution and has an enormous production capacity, ITTL only topped by the USA and Germany. Even if much of this capacity is in outdated machinery, it still can produce. And there is a huge skilled workforce at hand.

Damage and loss of life suffered in the 2nd BCW wasn't substantial. Only few areas saw intensive devastation.

They are not offering low-tech stuff but state of the art consumer goods, like motor vehicles, air planes, radio receivers, refrigerators, agricultural machinery etc., for sensationally low prices because concentrating on one or two products in each sector, as competition between British producers has been abolished.
 
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So the can gets kicked down the road yet again and the US avoids depression today at ever greater expense to the future.

Bannerman's post was an interesting window into how the economy is restructuring itself. It seems like an ever-growing percentage of the population exists to support the lifestyle of the elites.

It'll be interesting to see what the depression will be like with a larger number of service workers in addition to the industrial/agrarian character of OTL.

Since McAdoo can't get his manifest destiny on in northern Mexico, any chance he'll start clearing parts of the Caribbean? The Bahamas would be relatively easy. Cuba would take some doing, but might be the perfect way to work up all these new troops.

Unlike Mexico of course there's no border to sweep the refugees across, which is the biggest obstacle. But there are solutions (horrible, awful solutions...)
 
the question here is what will happen with the us interests in mexico in the future. Of course Mexico gave in now to the demands with regards to mining/oil resources. How long before they are going to to try to get back what is theirs. I could imagine that the us companies will have trouble finding workers for their plants, because non-cooperating with the yanquis could also be seen as a act of patriotism.
 
the question here is what will happen with the us interests in mexico in the future. Of course Mexico gave in now to the demands with regards to mining/oil resources. How long before they are going to to try to get back what is theirs. I could imagine that the us companies will have trouble finding workers for their plants, because non-cooperating with the yanquis could also be seen as a act of patriotism.

They might just bring down American workers to work in Mexico; after all with the depression going on there are going to be plenty of people who are looking for work. The labor costs may be a bit more expensive, but there is less of a worry for sabotage, and disloyalty. Or if they can't use American workers, and Mexican workers are out of the question, they could hire laborers from Central America, including Native Americans, who would be more than willing to work long hours, shitty working conditions and be wage slaves in all but name.

While non-cooperation can certainly be seen as patriotic, the Mexicans still have to make a living somehow, and not working for the oil companies is going to leave many Mexicans unemployed and restless.
 
¡ Hi !

As for myself, i find that McAdoo sayings, proverbs so freaking scary and funny at same time, well done:cool:. In anyway, i suspect that Kornelis diplomat is that how to say strange, weird, people that pass in this life and world from born to death with a total happy succesfully hedonist life, in short: what a lucky bastard:D.

For the American´s goverment the double fence for short time is one excellent idea, for protection, for creating works doing the fence, but in some time the mafia guys, the drug dealers, etc.. maybe find the weak points of the fence, and... ¡ WAIT !:eek: maybe it be when the great great depresion ocurrs and blow, inmagine what people it be jumping that fence;):D:eek::D:eek:.

I suspect that Maybe Cardenas are playing, cheating to Hull because that for a little time will instal american oil and busness offices, but because the war destruction, peoples angry, production´s delay etc... it be how to say useless:D, and other oil compaines as aghh EVEG it be making money, or maybe in six or seven months Cardenas it be broken the acords and what it be doing the american´s goverments because this situation, ¿ try to invade again México because broken the acords , treaties ?;):D;). And finnally, i suspect that the more serious damage point for the american´s economy in some time that México don´t it be buying/selling american´s products, and when the great depresion meltdown occurs, well let say that a market less for helping the american economy:eek::D:eek:.


And for last, because the acords, peace treaties a lot of good working american citizens and grunts maybe it be feel betrayed and desilusionted against the american goverment because the winners of that treaties are the oil companies and the american rich peoples:eek:;):eek:.

Peace, good luck and good night:).
 
When the time comes, even a rat becomes a tiger.
(Japanese proverb)

While the film industries from Bombay westwards to Hollywood knew each other very well and regularly compared and assessed products, the East Asian film industry, for a long time, had led a life of its own – and encountered little regard in other countries. Only the competition for the – potentially – huge markets in China and Java would eventually change that.

Even before the turn of the century, an indigenous Japanese film industry had begun to develop, mainly based on Tokyo. Initially influenced by traditional theatre, Japanese movies from the start had to contest with foreign products, which came into country from Europe and the US, while indigene products would hardly sell in non-Asian context.

The Chinese film industry, based on Shanghai, had to fight with the same problems – and the additional burden that vast tracts of the country were too poor or desolate to support cinemas. Warlordism had – early on – led to movies being used for propaganda purposes, a tendency strongly reinforced during General Chiang’s rule.

In contrast, liberal Japan had allowed free artistic development – and the growth of two overarching film trusts, the Nikkatsu Corporation and the Shochiku Company, which – applying methods copied from Hollywood in the early 1920ies – had, acting in close convention – factually as one trust, monopolised the Japanese movie market, had banned foreign films from their cinemas – and were aggressively distributing their products in China, Vietnam, Siam and the former Dutch East Indies.

While in Vietnam Nikkatsu and Shochiku were just building cinemas where exclusively their movies were to be shown – the very few cinemas existing since the time of French rule could safely be ignored, and in Siam the situation was similar, the situation in China and the former Dutch East Indies was quite different.

Movie theatres in the Dutch East Indies – mainly on Java only, however – existed since the early days of film making and there was a long tradition of importing movies from Europe and the USA. Failing to buy out the owners of these theatres, Nikkatsu and Shochiku were forced to erect their own ones – and had to accept also showing European and American films in them, because otherwise the audience would fail to show up.

In China, the former state of Manchukuo had been the door opener for Nikkatsu and Shochiku. Consequently, northern China had been firmly monopolised by the Japanese trusts and their cinema chains. But in the centre and the south, Shanghai – with support of American and European funds – had managed maintaining its ground, especially in the industrial hot spot of Guangdong, which meant that in this area also American and European movies were shown.

That in turn had, after unification, led to disaffection in northern China, where the audience was tired of being shown Japanese movies only. Subsequently, Shanghai – often invited by local communities – had started movie theatre construction in northern China, forcing Nikkatsu and Shochiku to open their cinemas for Shanghai and foreign movies, a trend which soon had spread to Korea and mainland Japan – and leading to a movement inside the Japanese studios to adapt closer to international trends – and even to ask European and American directors to work in Tokyo.

Thus, in the early 1930ies, East Asian cinema had begun a process of assimilation to the standards set by Hollywood, Babelsberg and Twickenham.
 
While non-cooperation can certainly be seen as patriotic, the Mexicans still have to make a living somehow, and not working for the oil companies is going to leave many Mexicans unemployed and restless.

True.

But they don't need to "buy American". They don't need to be very friendly to americans - or their hired workers. They don't need to sell or rent them anything. The bureaucracy doesn't need to be cooperative. The tax system doesn't need to be reliable or fair. The policy doesn't need to fight that hard against drug barons selling their stuff to these workers.

To summarize: I doubt that the US will profit economically that much from Mexico as they seem to think besides extracting ressources.
 
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