America's Funniest President: Mo Udall Presidency & Beyond
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Yup! Alot of stuff coming in. It's definitely a brigther and greener version of the 1990s right now. What is everyone thinking of now if they were in this time period?Great recap of the new millennium. A very hopeful time indeed for everyone
Me, likely would still have moved from California to Georgia and would be in elementary school by the end of the decade. Though unlike OTL me, I would've been diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome as a kid (mainly because taking a child to a psychologist for that sort of stuff would be common) and gotten some social skills training and some therapy to help handle it, which would've made some easier in the long run.
Alot of the classics people grew up on and read like Magic Tree House and Animorphs are still classic and I'd argue would be abit more prevelant, especially the latter, even with the mainstream prominent rise of graphic novels 10-15 years earlier than OTL
Winter 2000- Goodnight Chuck
Winter 2000- Goodnight Chuck
Final Peanuts Sunday Strip out on Febuary 13, 2000, published the day after the passing of Charles Schulz
Final Peanuts Sunday Strip out on Febuary 13, 2000, published the day after the passing of Charles Schulz
As the year 2000 came, people wondered what would be coming along with getting a reminder of what would be left behind. As the celeberations were dying down and all the preparations to avert the "Y2K" problem would kick in and thus avert problems, life continues on. Politics remained the key thing in what people were discussing over. The GOP would be running Arlen Specter as president again though many noted he seemed more exhausted than previously, a reminder over on how he was pushing 70. The Democrats meanwhile were looking for their own candidate though they were unsure over on chances of winning and many have noted that there were wasn't any prominent figures willing to run at the very least. That said, they still had some hightlight to note interest with, such as Bill Bradley who many have considered promising. As for the Unizens, well, the news was surprising on who was becoming the frontline candidate though it was also indictive of the eroding power of the two-party structure and that his victory could cause something of a ripple effect in general American politics. And such, people were also focusing more and more on the Unizens, with the United Central Party drawing voters from the two major parties, relying on their pragmatism and being the new main party as a way to appeal to novelty or rather a sense of modernity compared to the two older parties. Beyond the federal elections, people were gradually putting more focus on local and state elections. Part of this was thanks to a growing sense of communication along with a firm set of standardizations to create an even playing field so people could run regardless of their economic conditions and the like along with knowing the rules.
Over in the US, the news would be reached that the AOL-Time Warner merger attempt would be stopped over by the government. Given how the corporate merger would be approximately $160 billion or so, many were concerned over the potential concerns of overreach in influence. [1] One reason behind the merger attempt was due to the growth of broadband and an attempt to deal with that. However, AOL's failure in the merger with Time Warner would not deter the company though many wondered if it would force the company to change tactics as broadband was beating dial-up in internet usage, something that various other online service providers were wrestling with. However, given the growing prominence of the internet usage in the nation and the world along with the age and reputation of the governments, some were wondering if companies like AOL and Prodigy would approach the government for assistance. After all, some of the companies looking into broadband already had their fingers in other pieces and while their acquisitions fit well with one another, it brought the concern of unfair influence. The main example was Comcast; after all, the cable company bought Cellular Network Corporation in 1988 for approximately $230 million.[2] With them gaining mobile phone influence along with their cable television coverage, they had a distinct advantage over other companies and presented not just an unfairness, but a concern over the influence that such companies could be having without strong competition if they would expand to the internet. These talks were becoming more prominent as it not only gave the politicians something to discuss egarding the future of technologies' role in politics and politics' roles in nurturing its growth while keeping it stable, but also it came in the background of United States v. Microsoft. Many were wondering what the outcome would be, especially if Microsoft would be found guilty. Some were even claiming this may be the beginnings of a "dotcom bubble burst", but others were taking this as just mere spectulation, especially with how panics can often lead to problems creating themselves out of nothing, a self-fulfilling prophecy. This coincided with additional news of President Specter finalizing an outlined plan for the creation of a public ISP, something that the other candidates have commented on though were all on the same page of needing.
Over across the world, as nations continued on their buisnesses or were planning new affairs, there would still be a reminder for a need to come together to fix problems and deal with disasters. Such would be the case targeting over in Mozambique. Thanks to torrential rains in Africa, it would lead to the worst flooding seen in the nation in the past 50 years, lasting until Spring and resulting in the deaths of hundreds of people. [1] Tragedy was a part of everyday life and each life lost was one over regarding the end of opportunities or possbilities. Other times however, it would be the end of the life span of the person, and a time to look back on all their accomplishments. Such would be the case with the passing away of legendary cartoonist Charles Schulz. [3] Creator of the Peanuts comic strip and subsequent associated franchise, he would announce his retire after almost 50 years over on the strip. So devoted he was to the craft and defined by his ambition that the day after he retired, he would pass away from colorectal cancer, with the final strip he made being published post-mortem. Unsurprisingly, many artists and creators would go and pay tribute to the man who helped lay the foundation for the modern comic strip along with the vast global influence his work has done on the world. As people mourned and continued on, some saw it as a melancholic reminder of what going forward meant. That not everything can come with you, but the memories and the lessons that have been learned.
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[1]- Information and phrasing from here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000
[2]- Informaton and phrasing from here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comcast#Comcast
[3]- Information and phrasing from here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000_in_the_United_States
Yup. Alot of the earlier power stations have been coming online. By 2000, about at leat 75% of the coal plants have been shut down with the others to follow as other plants come on along with the focus of other renewables. Meanwhile, the electrified railways are mostly done in the major metropolitan areas and moving inland, which is leading to potential other projects. Amtrak is mightier than OTL and seeing alot more use in it.
Spring 2000- Software and Seadogs
Spring 2000- Software and Seadogs
Boomerang logo (2000 - present)
Boomerang logo (2000 - present)
As spring came into the United States, the buzz was surrounding on many things. The presidential election. The court case of Microsoft. And many more things outside of the nation itself, such as the 2000 Beijing Olympics. It was quite an exciting shift into pace over in the first year of the new millenium. The first focus would be over on Microsoft. After all, with how well the NASDAQ was doing, the Court's decision would have an impact on how matters would be conducted. And thus over in April, the courts would decide that in the case of, United States v. Microsoft. that Microsoft is ruled to have violated United States antitrust laws by keeping "an oppressive thumb" on its competitors. [1] In fact, weeks later the court will rule that in response to this monopoly, Microsoft was to be broken up into two seperate units. One company to make the operating system and the other company to create other software components and programs, such as Microsoft Office and Internet Explorer. Unsurprisingly, Microsoft would push to appeal the decision in other courts, but it's unsure how well this would go. After all, the past couple decades have seen the shift toward over a stricter management over large companies and while there was some arguments to go and give these new tech companies the benefit of the doubt or some leeway because of their large size, not everyone was convinced. After all, was not a competitive market or economy a healthy one? One to prevent stagnation and to promote creativity? There was also the fact on how Microsoft was going and approaching the case. While they tried to frame it as being attacked for being successful, the courtroom antics would sour that motion. From Microsoft having falsified tape evidence regarding the supposed ease of installing other programs like Netscape in, which the government disproved with their own tape, to Microsoft's response to a judge 's request of a version of Windows without Internet Explorer. [2] These cost them a fair bit of support since it was painting them as rather unprofessional and petty, lending more credence to the plaintiffs. This would cause the tech industry to begin questioning themselves though others that most of them were not even half as big as Microsoft was so they would not have to worry about such concerns. That said, others were now more hesitant in some of the potential larger acquisitions that may have them grow too big.
Politically, it would seem the various political candidates were mostly in agreement. The chosen Democrat candidate, Bill Bradley, would show his support there and would be seen a pretty warm candidate, with his chosen running mate being Richard Andrew Gephardt, a Missouri House Rep who switched to becomng a Senator after a brief period out of politics. However, for the United Central Party, their candidate was a bit friendlier to Microsoft, opening the possibility to something a bit laxer, though still not making any firm notes on it, especially given the behavior displayed. This was the stance held by none other than UCP presidential candidate, Bill Clinton and supported by his running mate, Al Gore. A former Democrat, the governor of Arkansas made the shift to UCP around 1998, noting he was feeling the Democrats were outdated with what the people were wanting and wanted to make a change. The most economically liberal of the three, Clinton ran on modest tax cuts and on being a fresh face over. However, he also leaned in to Al Gore, a former member of the Atari Democrats, many of whom switched to be called the Tech Centralists over in the UCP. Gore promoted growth for the internet, including expanding on the plans for a public ISP along with assisting some of these tech companies to ensure the US would maintain a strong advantage in the field. Their relative youth compared to the other candidates along with being of the UCP would be helping out. At the same time, they promised on following up on the groundwork established over by their predecessors in maintaining the growth of public infrastructure and welfare. Many were wondering if whether the governor of Arkansas could lead to an upset against incumbent President Arlen Specter.
However, the other big news coming over would be from the small state of Vermont and how it would link up to Disney's most ambitious film. Over in late April, the State of Vermont would go and legalize civil unions for same-sex couples. The first in the United States, it would set off the conversion over the discussion of civil unions or even marriage of same-sex couples within the United States. While having started over in the Netherlands regarding the nation, it would seem to be quite a surprising jump and while civil right activists praised it, it would be the first in a serious of long cultural fights regarding this, especially as some of the remnants of the old conservative guard were gearing for a fight on this. However, the activists would get a big boon from none other Disney themselves and the release of their 39th animated feature films, Story of Seadogs. Adopted from a long-lost fairy tale known as "The Dog and the Sea" [3], it would be set over in the Netherlands because of how the copy the writers would discover the story would be over in Frisian. However, there was quite another reason for this... this would have the first queer Disney film. As the story goes, "the Dog and the Sea" was tossed around since the late 1990s as part of a bet to try and discover a fairy tale with a same-sex couple... and after much looking, one would be found that survived the purge, thanks to a chance encounter. The film would be made with the announcement of the Netherlands' own of same-sex unions. Fueled by the ideals of Henson and spurred on by the ambition of Eisner, who saw this as further way to flaunt himself and Disney, the film would be made.
The story would star a man desiring to be a brave sailor, Jan, alongside of his scholarly brother Albert, who serves as his comedic foil (with many noting his design as a taller and more polished version of Le Fou). The two brothers watch out for the other, an insistence from their worrywart of a mother. The protagonist would get his chance to become a sailor when saving a dog, bearing a treasure map. He uses the map as leverage to go and join the navy, with his brother following as a navigator. At the same time, a rebellious noble, Hendrik, would sneak onto the ship, wanting to prove his worth beyond his title. While coded from the start, the film was never advertised as queer, which worked to its advantage, especially with the climax. The antagonist is a beautiful witch named Maaike searching for the powerful magical relic to achieve her goals of "controlling fate". Maaike would be surprisingly sympathetic and is indeed viewed as a tragic villain, with her flaw being unable to admit help from people and need for control. She joins on the ship in disguise and she has her eyes on the noble, specifcially because of the magic necklace he has as an heirloom, serving as they key. Meanwhile, it's revealed the dog (named Pieter) was her familiar who escaped with the map she found. The reveal of the protagonist's orientation was near the climax when she uses her enchantment to placate them all under her spell right to try and get the relic, only for him to be unaffected, noting that women do not have that effect. And if that wasn't proof enough, then it was either the heart to heart talk between the two brothers, showing the scholar knows what his brother's heart wants and has always accepted him, the two brothers hugging. The prince meanwhile also explores on what it means to bond such as this and has a good chemistry with the main character along with managing a hilarious third party to the brothers' antics, all with the dog acting as the 'only sane man' of the group (in an interview, they considered having the dog talk, but they didn't want to do another talking character and split his role to creating a brother, which they saw also as a way to help viewers how to support their queer loved ones. That and having the dog be silently expressing his feelings made for alot of funny moments.) While the film would not be able to go with a kiss, they managed to get "I love yous" across.
The film would become quite a smash hit for being so different and for its shocking reveal. Those who found it offensive would unintentionally contribute to its growth in popularity through word of mouth. That and not being advertised allowed it to get slipped past alot of potential restrictions. Beyond the intense action at the end (when Maaike loses control because of the relic being damaged) and the various interactions, there was plenty of humor, especially from the ad-libbing of the scholar leading to zingers and snark, one moment at the end where he remarks on his brother being with the noble and any certain comments would be led to "getting zapped" (referring to how the scholar got Maaike's staff as a memento, when he tried to save her from the whirlpool and nearly getting sucked in before rescued by the noble and can use it). Story of Seadogs would become quite a landmark film for its portrayal of SATMIN characters, the intense actions, references to Dutch culture, complex characters (from the subtle aspects of the protagonist, the parallels of the Orange family in the noble, the witch being a tragic villain in that she is sympathetic with the classic fatal flaw of over-ambition and wanting more) along with smooth animation and delivery. Discussed still in circles over on its impact, the film would be quite the shot in the arm for these activists along with their allies and supporters. Disney's gamble paid off quite well to say the least. Internationally, it slipped under alot of restrictions and by the time the shock came out, it was hard to put the genie back into the bottle, especially since well... it's Disney. Accusations regarding its content being 'too much' wouldn't be taken seriously by most and of course, trying to deter people from seeing it did not do too well either. Disney changed the game here and helped lead to the end of the Queersploitation era in film.
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[1]- Information and phrasing from here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000_in_the_United_States
[2]- Information and phrasing from here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_v._Microsoft_Corp.
[3]- Information and phrasing from here: https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamiew...for-200-years-stith-thompson/?sh=4138df346163
To anyone who was thinking wouldn't be getting any more divergent... Ha!
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Good guess, but nope!
Hey @peeter, this was the reason for all of my answers I gave you earlier
And yeah, I reckon Story of Seadogs will be quite a hit. Probably some CGI for the magic scenes! And yeah, I think I reckoned I outdid @Geekhis Khan in something
(so that's 1-99 for those tracking ). But yeah, I figure with a bunch of ambition and talent behind it, would also be pivotal moment over in showing SATMIN+ folk in film, like "this is how it's done" sort of thing. Raise the standards for film and television on portrayal and also an unofficial green light for mainstream media. And yup, the Unizen candidate is Bill Clinton!
And yeah, OTL's New Democrats have been finding a new home given how neoliberal didn't find much success in the Dems due to the looming shadow of Udall and Askew.Huh, I never would've guessed Clinton for the Unizens. Doesn't seem to me like the type of guy to switch parties on a whim like that when the Democrats are in a much more better position that IOTL without him as POTUS.Good guess, but nope!
Hey @peeter, this was the reason for all of my answers I gave you earlier
And yeah, I reckon Story of Seadogs will be quite a hit. Probably some CGI for the magic scenes! And yeah, I think I reckoned I outdid @Geekhis Khan in something
And yup, the Unizen candidate is Bill Clinton!
It wasn’t a whim though. United Central Party is becoming a more prominent party and Clinton was pretty much at a dead end with the Dems as he was because they’re more left than OTL. So the neoliberal New Dems fled to a hipper and younger party where they could get some success and further their careers.
Parties aren’t exactly hegemonic blocs and individuals often have their own agendas.
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I mean we are talking about Bill Clinton, the man famous for "triangulation" to find the electable centre ground of US politics. Stands to reason that he could do that in a more left-wing US as well. However, his womanising tendencies would probably damage him more than OTL him in TTLs US.
Certainly more likely to jump ship than Gore though, he had the Democratic party in his blood and only moved leftwards as he got older. Definitely wouldn't fit in a party founded by Perot, Gore was a free trader after all while Perot was a tariff man. Gore would also probably be too hawkish for the UCP as well.
Most importantly staying in the incredibly successful TTL Democrats is going to be much better for their careers than any other options. Its more likely you'd see the UCP full of ex-Republicans given the struggles of that party, and nominating two former Democrats is an odd choice for the "centre party".
I will say I am curious what the UCP's primary looked like? I'd guess its a bit of a catch-all for disaffected/unrepresented groups, similar to but obviously far less-so than the reform party of OTL 2000. How are any other minor parties doing?
a Clinton/Ventura ticket for the UCP would be interesting to see
Yeah, his tendencies did that to him. But also, the fact is that the UCP has become the new cente round for US politics. The UCP by this would have a pretty noticeable influence in the House or Senate, so already they're bigger than Libetarian or Reform Party could ever be, especially with the new voting system in place.
As for Gore, honestly, I think it would be his free trading tendencies that would lead him to join the UCP as it was becoming the haven for those. While Perot may have founded the party and maintains some influence, Perot has retired from politics and it's a challenge now to see who's gonna go and claim the mantle to influence the party. There's a reason why the party's renaming had more significance than expected. Meanwhile, while Gore did move more left in OTL, so did the center would have ITTL, meaning that he would end up in the same spot. These men would've been changed by how different the 1980s were, but also the state of politics after the new amendments and status quo. As for hawkishness, that's more complicated by the different international global political stage and the precedent established prior.
Something I will go more into the future for with a full explanation here is that while the Democrats were alot more successful, they in a way, have become victims of their own success.
Most don't really know where to go from here and after 16 years of dominance, it's likely they won't be getting much into the White House for a while. Combine that with the waves of retirement and the fluctuating nature of getting used to the new system, and it very much feels like it is a foreign battle ground. Then there's how the neoliberal wing has become increasingly dissatisfied The UCP is full of former Republicans, yes, but more and more they are growing their own batch. After all, with the limits of 6 Rep terms and 2 Senate terms, Congressfolk can at most be in power for 24 years, and that's if they are both. More likely it'll be the 12 at least or a bit more.
Both parties lost more in comparison to the UCP with the new ules, where many of the politicians closer to center took the chance to join advisory roles and help push a new crop. UCP has plenty of popularity for being the new party. While yes, the UCP has been biting from the GOP's voter base as a result of the past issues and the changing of the times, they also shifted to taking advantage of the Dems' own problems and presenting as a fresh new viable alternative to the New Dealer old guard.
A large shift is coming because of all of these factors coming together in at once alongside with the generational cap and momentum. I always appreciate your feedback and scope though. And yeah, it is surprising, but well, look how much has changed since the earlier Reagan years and those of Udall and Askew.
UCP saw Clinton run and maintain strong advantage though he had few competitors. Likely Dean Barkley and Douglas Wilder were his competition in the UCP. Though win or lose, Clinton has set the benchmark for how future UCP politicians will function just from the major attention he is getting.
As for the other parties, well the Green Party is starting to rise up in influence while th Libretarian Party is undergoing its own political shift from in-fighting caused by generational gaps, uncertainty of viability of ideas and so on. They took the new reforms of the 1980s and their popularity alot harder as they had to wrestle painfully with that.
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Summer 2000- Expo and Elections
Summer 2000- Expo and Elections
EXPO 2000 logo
EXPO 2000 logo
Arlen Specter & Colin Powell. Bill Bradley & Dick Gephardt. Bill Clinton & Al Gore. These were the three presidential candidates and their running mates for the American presidency over for 2000 and perhaps surprisingly, it was unsure who would actually win. President Specter enjoys a solid if modest lead over the other two thanks to being the incumbent along with a successful administration so far. On the other hand, many have been noting Specter's age and how he has been slowing down a bit, approaching nearly 70 in terms of his age, nearly the same age Ronald Reagan before his loss over in 1980. Bill Bradley had been enjoying a fair bit of support from the Democrats, but many noted he didn't seem to really stand out from compared to the other two. Indeed, most of his campaigning was focused on maintaining the successes that have been done so far, but not actually anything new. Bill Clinton meanwhile would get the most focus for being the rising star in the United Central Party along with his focus on some modest economic reforms for the sake of free trade along with an emphasis on focusing on investment in tech. Indeed, he was able to win more and more support from both party voters and it really seemed that the UCP was as strong a third party as the other two, though whether this momentum can hold or not remains to be seen. Indeed, many have noted that most of the candidates bore plenty of similarities, albeit with a sense of relief of whoever would be voted in would do well as US president. As for the other, well the UCP have been focusing more and more on Congressional elections and people are being encouraged to vote more in their local elections. Minor parties and state parties were becoming emboldened over and were looking to possibly connect with one another for their own coalitions and support. All the while, many wondered how much has really changed. There were few old faces left in politics and with the field in a state of change, do the same rules apply anymore? Should they? Those questions were being raised by a growing number of pundits on the various newschannels.
Of course, these were not the only advancements going on. 405 The Movie is released and becoming famous for being the first short film widely distributed on the Internet. [1] 405 became notable as ann early example of the revolution in digital filmmaking and the use of broadband Internet as a channel to distribute media. In fact, it was successful to where the results rival that of many major film and television production studios at the time. This was especially notable given little promotional effort and the infancy of video-sharing websites of the time, the notable one being iFilm.com. [2] With this success and becoming an instant media sensation, it was showing alot of promise for the future of the internet for media, even with the concerns in the background such as the growing accusations over to Napster and the questions lingering regarding Microsoft's fate as the court would finalize the order for Microsoft to be divided, though the details remained rgearding the Department of Justice along with Microsoft's appeal over to try and get a different deal. At the same time, this wouldn't stop as many investors as expected. After all, the name of the game was long-term and the data was showing that personal computers and internet usage among the common man was only gonna go up, especially as the new batch of programmers and thinkers would be coming up with new ways to use it. As such, many of them hunkered for the potential recession to come, but will keep on going. After all, there was plenty of other scientific developments that were gathering attention and brought hope. For example, with the Human Genome Project, they have manage to finish a preliminary draft of the genomes, being announced over by President Specter and gathering excitement at the efforts being made. On Bastille Day, a mighty solar flare would causs a geomagnetic storm over back on Earth and creating quite the spectacle. [1]
Meanwhile, projects were being completed at the same time. One would be the Øresund Bridge, a bridge created to connect Denmark and Sweden, which was now officially open for traffic. [1] Beyond that and the Human Genome Project progress, there was more to be celeberated over at the World's Fair over at Expo 2000 in Hanover. Having been delayed from the start of June to the start of August, Expo 2000 would be quite the event. [3] Beyond focusing on the accomplishment of the present and recent past, the new millenium theme meant there was an equal focus on development and presentation of solutions for the future. [4] Presentations and speculations on computer growth, the rise of the Internet, the gowing interesting in biotechnology, especally focusing on fungi & algae and of course, the search for renewable fuel. While examining the various problems to tackle in supply chains along with the accumlation of waste in the steps, problems were being put out and solutions proposed. Of all these, perhaps one of the big takeaways was the growing focus of hydrogen becoming the potential fuel of the future. With renewables becoming more common, "green hydrogen" would become more viable and as fuel, it could replace petrol over in vehicles. While it would be far and away before it could be implemented, as questions over hydrogen creation, storage and the certain practicalities of fuel cells loomed over, it certainly has a large advantage over the alternate in electric batteries, especially with their own problems and the matter of infrastructure adoption would become a political issue given of petrol in government-affiliated branches like the military. On a more solemn note with international affairs, Tsar Nicholas II and his family are canonized by the synod of the Russian Orthodox Church over in late summer. [1]
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[1]- Information and phrasing from here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000
[2]- Information and phrasing from here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/405_(film)
[3]- Information and phrasing from here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2000_in_the_United_States
[4]- Information and phrasing from here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Expo_2000
Specter definitely. Hopefully Powell wins a term of his own in '04 followed by a bunch of Democratic Presidents.
Specter certainly has the best shot, but we’ll see how things go given issues with his age and the parties.
Maybe he'll resign after an alternate 9/11 attacks in order for the more experienced in foreign policy Vice President Powell to take office during the beginning of the War on Terror.Specter certainly has the best shot, but we’ll see how things go given issues with his age and the parties.
9/11 won't happen in this TL. America got the hell out of the middle east here mostly.