[Prince Charon]

Originally Posted by tshiggins

I'll probably post another vignette, pretty soon. A guy at work who's very much into Japanese History had some ideas about how Imperial Japan on Dp-Earth might react to the rather... strident advice received from private Japanese citizens about how to conduct its foreign and military policy.

Very badly, I suspect. OTOH, they're also getting much more diplomatically worded advice from the Inp-Japanese government, but it's of a less-than-palatable, 'let sleeping giants lie' variety (the fact that they're also getting scary warnings from some of their seers and priests is probably a bigger concern).

Of course, once they see what an atomic bomb can do, they may develop a different opinion, but that's for later.

Originally Posted by tshiggins

Also, what happens on Inp-Earth, when American citizens start to see speeches by unapologetic Dp-Earth Dixiecrats in response to the upsurge in Civil Rights activism, triggered by the knowledge of Barack Obama's presidency. Does southern conservatism suffer a brutal backlash? How do southerners react to some of the speeches by a young Strom Thurmond?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EgH7WgtIU2k
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbU0lXeJbi4

Not happily. Probably rather loudly, in a lot of cases.

Originally Posted by tshiggins

Additionally, as Prince Charon continues his timeline, what happens when the packages dispatched by the Negro Commander-in-Chief of Inp-Earth's United States military arrive in Germany, and the Dixiecrats (and everybody else) start to grasp exactly why the United States is called the Inp-Earth's only remaining superpower.

One of the issues that worries Inp-Earth political thinkers is the possibility that the people of Dp-Earth may decide that we're a bigger threat to their way of life than the Nazis.

Originally Posted by tshiggins

Moreover, how does the Obama administration respond to requests by ambassadors from the other worlds for access to the history section of the Library of Congress?

Decidedly mixed.

Originally Posted by tshiggins

Finally, the U.S. government on Inp-Earth knows something the rest of the Earth's do not. The Inp-Earth's mastery of information technology means the war on Dp-Earth will very likely end ahead of schedule, because the ability of the Inp-supporters means the Allies could very well turn the Axis powers into road-kill.

Oh, yes, certainly.

Originally Posted by tshiggins

The United States National Security Agency on Inp-Earth will crack every code, every cypher, thought up by the Axis powers, within a day. The incredible resolution of Inp-Earth's optical technology means that, not only will the Allies have a steady feed of decrypted Axis radio traffic, they'll have constant reports of Axis troop movements that are only a few minutes behind real time.

Unless the troops only move when that part of the world is facing away from Inp-Earth (though hiding when the world turns would be a bitch).

Originally Posted by tshiggins

The assistance of its Inp-Earth supporters will allow the Allied commanders to get inside the Axis decision-loop, and stay there until they render the Axis command-and-control structure utterly useless -- harmful, in fact, because the NSA, from across the solar system, will be able to tell the Allies how to hijack Axis radio communications at a time when it will do maximum possible damage.

True. OTOH, there are Axis sympathizers on Inp-Earth, they're just more limited in what they can do.

Originally Posted by tshiggins

Nobody on any of the other earths can possibly grasp the advantages offered by an information infrastructure of the magnitude enjoyed by Inp-Earth. The SIS and the guys at Bletchley Park may get enough of an inkling to become truly terrified of the capacity for masterful warfare at the command of NATO and Israel. I'd imagine Hitler and Tojo will struggle even more to understand the implications.

Oh yes. Mind you, there's no assurance that either will live to see the end of the war.

Originally Posted by tshiggins

(But, does the Thule Society survive, and become a Fascistic terrorist organization capable surreal techno-magical violence?

Almost certainly, though the size of the post-war organization is undetermined (probably quite small, at least at first).

Originally Posted by tshiggins

Does the rapid destruction of NAZI Germany trigger deep-seated resentment that results in covert assistance that makes HYDRA stronger than it otherwise would have been?

Possibly.

Originally Posted by tshiggins

And, if Japan doesn't get wiped out, do they maintain an East Asian empire based on the sort of unapologetic tyranny and oppression they've already displayed in Nanking?)

No, for reasons that will be seen later. On a potentially-related note, do you know what the phrase 'You may use the garden' means, in the context of a meeting with an Emperor or Shogun?

Originally Posted by tshiggins

There are also some more prosaic concerns. Polio is still an active disease in much of Dp-Earth, while Stp-Earth and especially Cp-Earth (and probably Fa-Earth) continue to suffer epidemics of smallpox! I'd imagine the CDC on Inp-Earth will subject the ambassadors from those worlds to some pretty intensive medical examinations, before they let them anywhere near a civilian population.

Oh, yes. Also vaccinations for illnesses that aren't so bad for us, but could be fatal for those on other Earths. It's a good thing that the ambassadors from Fa-Earth are all immaterial, no?