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Kimkatya's Kalamitous Kavern Kontaining Krap Kontent

Though you're kinda asking for it when your system is so punishing on smaller parties.
I should really read Michael Crick's Militant tbh.

The day when I have to read Ted Grant's works for the sake of a possible alt-hist is the day I die inside
 
idea that @Turquoise Blue gave me:

a kind of British futurama setting with the lead characters being a small trotskyite group hawking newspapers on the street, where the "point of divergence" is that Wilson didn't slow down on the "white heat of technology" stuff

featuring:
- the chinese government insisting that the death cult in control of their country is still socialism with chinese characteristics, and a desperate communist character insisting that it's true
- an alexa-style ai powered personal assistant who got really depressed and is now looking for some kind of release with the group of trotskyites
- britain's main religion is worship of the god-monarch who lords over the United Kingdom, but half the country is atheist and doesn't believe in the god-monarch despite the unity of church and state


HACKNEY CENTRAL, LONDON
NEW YEARS’ DAY, THE YEAR 3001

“Hey Curtis, did you know that the new year actually takes place in the year after the round number?”

He took another drink of the orange juice.

“See, The Common Era started at the year 1 instead of the year 0, so 3000 years after the death of the Prophet Christ!”

Curtis grimaced awkwardly.

“You know that stuff’s mostly bugs nowadays, right?”

“Yes, Ada, I know, but it still tastes like a fucking orange. Can you please shut up?”

The room was strewn with cans and glasses. Curtis offered to host the party, of course, because he didn’t drink. The scattering of comrades supposedly had a good time, if you ignored the crying, the uncomfortable wormhole of despair that seemed to take over all thirty members of the Militant Labour League whenever they were all in a room together. Halfway through the party, some fucker vomited on Ada, which naturally didn’t go down well with them.

“I’m sorry, I’m a bit excitable today. You know Joff?”

“Yes, I know Joff. Joff beat me for leadership of the party.” Curtis said, as he got up and put the glass on the small countertop floating idly. He’d wash up later.

“Well, they told me to contact them anytime.” Ada replied. The green ring on Ada’s outer shell quickly changed to a shade of orange. Curtis still didn’t know what that meant, after years of knowing them.

“You know they’re trying to recruit you, right?” Curtis replied, knowingly.

Ada had lived with Curtis for a good three years. They didn’t pay rent, but then again, the upkeep costs were remarkably cheap. Ada just sat there, on the desk, and talked on and on about what they found on the internet this week.

“Listen, Joff just seemed interested.”

“They have done that to every robot, AI, automaton and everything else they could find. Believe me, Ada, they are an untrustworthy kind of person.”

“I like untrustworthy people!,” Ada protested.

“Then you have bad taste. Now, shut up or I’ll change your accent back to the shitty American one.”

Ada made something of a snorting noise. “Would have thought you’d like that, considering the internationalism and all.”

Curtis smiled. “Speaking of which, I need to go. Party’s doing a New Year’s meeting to decide the new agenda for the year, and your new wife Joff needs to be convinced to try and spread our appeal to more than a few stressed robots.

“Have fun, you fucking weirdo. I’m gonna do some work.”

“Christ, on New Year’s Day?”

“Listen, it pays well to spy on these damn nazis. Did you know that they’re still on about Big Ben being the Prityanians' fault?” Ada’s colour flashed blue.

Curtis sighed. “I really need to go, Ada.”

“Then go then.”

Curtis closed the door. Time to catch a port.

So, first thing is, yes, I am considering writing this up as a thing. I know this is an alternate history forum so a Science Fiction story with vague political elements might not be entirely fitting, I would like to at least put it somewhere.

Secondly, I mostly wrote this up to see if I could. The main issue that I have right now is that I have a concept, but no real plot. So take that as you will, really, I'm probably going to rewrite this in the future.

Third, i like robots :)
 
I really want to write some kind of althist thing, but I feel pretty creatively dead and not quite well read enough to do anything. It's unfortunate, because I plan best when bouncing my ideas off someone else.

There's also the fact that I'm shit at policy, specifically understanding any kind of bigger picture. Writing the politics would be all well and good, but when it gets to the actual policy application, I would be absolutely dead in the water.

Take Ken. I would have a lot of fun writing the hypothetical random chance that would lead to his rise to power as he always wanted. But how he would operate and reorganise, say, local government, something very close to his heart? Not a fucking clue.

It's really quite frustrating, because I know so much but I really can't apply it at all.

Anyone else feel this way?
 
There's also the fact that I'm shit at policy, specifically understanding any kind of bigger picture. Writing the politics would be all well and good, but when it gets to the actual policy application, I would be absolutely dead in the water.

Take Ken. I would have a lot of fun writing the hypothetical random chance that would lead to his rise to power as he always wanted. But how he would operate and reorganise, say, local government, something very close to his heart? Not a fucking clue.

This is absolutely not a problem, as most alt-hist writers don't really understand policy and its implications either.

If it helps, I'd advise honing yourself on short pieces, lists, vignettes, and WI threads, before building up to larger projects. Partly as a way to gather feedback, and partly as a way to learn what works and how to do it.

If you feel like you don't understand something, research! Wikipedia is free, and it's fairly easy to go beyond--just look up the subject you're interested in until you can find a decent article or blogpost about it. You'd be surprised at the stuff floating around.
 
A Very International Coup

LEADERS OF THE UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND
1979-1984: Margaret Thatcher (Conservative)

1979 (Majority) def: James Callaghan (Labour), David Steel (Liberal)
1983 (Majority) def: Michael Foot (Labour), David Steel-Roy Jenkins (Liberal-Social Democratic Party Alliance)
1984-1987: Norman Tebbit (Conservative, leading Emergency Government)
1987: Tony Benn (Labour)

1987 (Minority) def: Norman Tebbit (Conservative), David Steel-David Owen (Liberal-Social Democratic Party Alliance)
1987-1988: Terry Fields (Labour)

LEADERS OF THE UNITED BRITISH DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC

1988-1988: Peter Taaffe (Revolutionary Socialist League)
1988-1989: Ken Livingstone (New Socialist, leading Transitional Government)
1989 Monarchy Restoration Referendum: Yes 82%, No 18%

LEADERS OF THE UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN*
*United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from 1990
1989-1990: Ken Livingstone (New Socialist, leading Transitional Government)
1989 (Grand Coalition with Labour, Conservatives, Liberals and Social Democrats)
1990-: Chris Patten (Conservative Revival)
1990 (Majority) def. Ken Livingstone (New Socialist), Jack Straw (Labour), Paddy Ashdown (The Democrats), Robert McLennan (Social Democratic Party)

"I still think I did well." - Norman Tebbit, when asked on his allegedly heavy-handed response to the murder of Margaret Thatcher.

"Some ask why I did it. Everything I had wanted, Taaffe had achieved. The abolition of the monarchy and the Lords, a British Socialist society, unification in Ireland. But the people weren't happy, were they?" - Ken Livingstone

"Patten did well in reunifying the country, but he was shit with the economics of the whole thing, really." - Someone on the Sea Lion Press Labour Party Thread
 
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