It's a Fact! - Wake Up American to the Existence of the Axioms in the Post Truth Age

 Whenever someone says, "It's a fact.", two things happen in my head. The first is the Vandals song It's a Fact begins playing in my head. Secondly I mentally begin to pull on my hip waders cause I know that the bullshit is going to get deep. It's instinctive for me to question said facts especially if it comes from a source that I don't trust. Over the years do largely to my involvement in the underground music scene and basically being a bit of a nut collector, I have heard endless "facts" that were nothing more than theories. Often they were very screwball theories that involved such wild imaginative plots that it almost seemed real. 

 

The internet at it's best is a wondrous collection of the shared knowledge of the world. To think that can all be carried in your pocket is an awesome empowerment that should launch a golden age. Instead, as we have all experienced in the last 12 months it has created a sounding board for every crackpot and misinformed person on the planet to express and share misinformation at the speed of light. 

 

Tribalism on the internet has increasingly allowed those of a set political, moral and effectual belief to hide within wall gardens without challenges to those beliefs. I've watched as countless people have unfriended those that believe differently and group into small group filled with very limited opposing viewpoints. This has also allowed "News" sites to gain influence by catering to these groups to the point where it is their only source for news. People asked how fake news happened. it happened because there was a ready-made market for it. Those seeking not the truth or the facts but news that fit into their beliefs wrong or right.

 

Regardless of how crazy an idea may seem, you can easily find a number of sources on the internet that believes them to be true. In some cases, these crackpot ideas have even worked their way into popular culture. The Kennedy assassination is a prime example. How many amateur "Detectives", "investigators" and complete salted nut Rolls have come up with some conspiracies about an event that they were not a witness to or in some case alive when it happened. How much of this is really about a shared belief that a single person in an office window could kill a president and not so much about the Mafia, Cuba, Aliens, etc...? We as humans seek vindication of our beliefs regardless of what the truth is and embrace anything regardless of verification that fits our belief. It's the old, "See it's in print, I knew it was true."

 

I'm often asked what Axiom means and to be honest unless you are a math geek, you probably have never came across the term before. An Axiom is basically proven commonly known fact that needs no proof.  So, I thought I would list a few facts or Axioms. All of these are verified facts, some may couse you to smack yourself of the forehead because you can't believe anyone would not think they are facts but do a google search and you will notice there seems to be a lot of people out there that don't think it's a fact.

 

1.Man Went to the Moon - in fact 12 men walked on the moon during 6 different missions. Apollo 11: Neil Armstrong (NASA Civilian) and Buzz Aldrin (USAF), Apollo 12: Pete Conrad (US Navy) and Alan Bean (US Navy), Apollo 14: Alan Shepard (US Navy) and Edgar Mitchell (US Navy), Apollo 15: David Scott (USAF) and James Irwin (USAF), Apollo 16: John Young (US Navy) and Charles Duke (USAF) and Apollo 17: Gene Cernan (US Navy) and Harrison Schmitt (NASA Civilian). When you consider the number of people involved in these six missions, it's impossible that all of them were in on some massive conspiracy that involved filming fake moon landings. We have countless hours of filmed documentation of the missions. It really happened. However, if you do a Google search "Moon Landing Faked", it pulls up 250,000 results.

 

2. The World is Not Flat - Now this one may have surprised a number of you but even people that have traveled around the world think the world is flat. Now we could just pass this off as a lack of education but I have in fact had a discussion with an individual a number of years ago that stated it was part of a much larger conspiracy by the government to control citizen's perspective of the world. They went on to state that is the bases of how they brainwashed the citizens of the world which lead to mind control. Now, this wasn't a person that I would have excepted this form and for the most part was pretty down to Earth. Though they thought it was a flat one. Most of us would have thought that this was settled in the 15th century but thanks to faith-based science and the five quotes in the bible that state corner, ends or borders of the Earth, the Flat Earth movement was started. Now like everything is the bible it might simply come down to mistranslation or the fact that no one at the time knew the earth was round when it was written. The thing is that it clearly proves that when you try to mix science with faith the results are often wrong.

 

3. The Holocaust Happened - This has always been a favorite for racists, Neo Nazi, and other right-wing groups. Which always confused me. If you truly believe that you are the master race and want to kill all other races, then why deny that a country almost did just that. The reality is that the Nazi government was if anything a record keeper. They documented everything including the internment and killing of six million Jews. At the Nuremberg trials, the Allies presented over 3000 tons of records that the Nazis had created to document their war crimes. The best thing is that all of them are public record. Combine that with the countless first-hand accounts from survivors, soldiers on both sides and citizens of Germany, anyone should not even consider that it didn't happen.

 

4.The U.S. Doesn't have the best Healthcare in the World - No it is not the World Health Organization In fact ranked the USA at number 37 behind some notable smaller poorer countries like Italy, San Marino, Malta, Singapore, Portugal, Monaco, Greece, Iceland, Colombia, Cyprus, Chile, Dominica and Costa Rica. There are a number of facts involved but the biggest is the shortage of doctors and the limited access to affordable care. We are the only country in the top ten richest that doesn't have a life expectancy that exceeds 80.

 

5. Coal Mining will Be Cheaper Energy and Create Jobs - First off let's not even began to get into the environmental issues that are involved if we suddenly switched back to coal as a major fuel source. The reality is that even if we started using more coal it would still employ a small amount of the population. This is mainly because a majority of mining is now surface mining. Surface mining is a great deal cheaper in part because it doesn't require the skills needed to mine underground or a number of employees. 

 

6. Trickle Down Economics Doesn't Work - Also called Supply Side Economics. The idea is that if you allow the wealthier citizens to keep more of their income in the form of tax cuts, they will spend more money and re-invest. The effect is that it will jump-start the economy and thus raise the standard of living of the middle class and the working class. The problem is that when presented with extra income, the wealthy use it to increase their own wealth instead of buying consumer goods and other items that might produce income in the lower classes thus increasing the gap between the super-rich and the middle class. Think about it if you suddenly had an extra 10% of your income, you are going to reduce your debt(increase your wealth), put some in savings or invest(increasing your wealth) and maybe treat yourself to a vacation with the little that is left. You are not going to blow all your money on products. The worst effect of Trickle Down Economics is that with less Tax revenue, the national debt increases, there is funding cuts to social and public programs like education, arts, food, health, roads, bridges, law enforcement, etc.... Which in fact increase the standard of living of the lower income citizens, increase study employment and stimulate the economy. Another side effect is it creates false inflation where the price of goods is not based on rarity but on what people are willing to pay.

 

7. The Golden Age of Industrial America Isn't Coming Back - From 1945 to 1973 the United States ruled the industrial world. We produced goods that were shipped all over the world. The result was that anyone with high school or less education could get a job in a factory and make an income where they could not only afford a large house, two cars, a two-week vacation with the family but put 20 to 25% of their income into savings. It was what made the American Middle Class. See the problem is that this massive demand for American goods came from the fact that at the end of World War II, almost all of the major industrial nations in the world had been bombed into the stone ages.

 

So regardless of the myths, it was not about the quality of American goods, it was more about being the last man standing. Add to that the increase in automation over that last 35 years and the fact that supply lines are closer in other parts world, you get the decline of manufacturing the US.The reality is that the rest of the world caught up. Regardless of what promises are made the fact is if we attempted to increase manufacturing in the US, it would be only a minor increase in employment and a higher cost of manufacture not because of labor cost but the cost of shipping part and materials to the US.

 

8. JFK was Killed by One Person - Lee Harvey Oswald was an unstable person that killed the leader of the free world. This was all on his own and without the help of anyone else. The main reason that there have been some many conspiracy theories surrounding the assassination is that the investigation that followed was so poorly done. It didn't help that Oswald was murdered while in police custody. A great deal of this has to do with people coming to terms that this one person could take a life that was so important. It seems more comforting that is was a large conspiracy than just a nobody. However, with all that said, the papers on the Warren Commission are going to be released in October of 2017.

 

9. You Can't Force Democracy - When you invade a country you can't simply change the culture to the way you want it and hope for the best. The reality is that often especially in the case of dictators there is a real reason that they were in power in the first place. They are the only ones that could unify the population and keep them in line. Since most third world countries were in fact colonies, it was often a number of different cultures that were roped within borders that had more to do with resources than a shared culture or history. Tyranny, oppression, and fear are the only thing that will unite and control the population. You can't just create a vacuum of power and expect these people that have been fighting amongst themselves for thousands of years to agree on anything, much less work together. 

 

10. You Can't Multitask - We all think we can do it and let's face it we are all stimulation junkies. Often we are being pulled in a number of different directions and believe that we can somehow balance and excel on a number of tasks at once but we can't.  The reality is that we can physically do a number of things at once but not one of them well. The mind is needed to focus on one task at a time, when we try to divide up that focus they begin to blend together and whatever is taking most of our focus usually rules out. This can especially affect how we retain important information. 

 

This all comes down to how the brain processes information and you cannot train this away. Let's say you consider yourself an expert on widgets. You feel that you are well versed on widgets but you like to keep up to date with the latest information. One axiom about widgets is that they are best in the color blue. You search the internet for widgets and scan for new stories on widgets. Out of the first 5 articles, they all agree with your belief that widgets are best in blue but then you come across a few that claim red is best. This will make you increasingly uncomfortable and drive you to search for more articles that state that Blue is best. This is your mind when you try to multitask. 

 

I know you are asking, what the hell does that have to do with multitasking? Let's move that into a common situation that I encounter on a daily base. You have come into to get a body piercing. Let's say a nostril. Part of that is me giving you a consultation, you have already posted that you are going to get it done on social media and now all your friends and relatives are messaging you with their input. You listen to a few things I have to say and the notification pops up, you turn your focus to see the message. It's a message from your mother and she is threatening to disown you. She's flooding you with lot negative messages about piercings. Then there is another one from your friend who is very positive Meanwhile, I'm telling you important facts that you should consider before getting the piercing. If the consultation is blue, the messages from mom are red and the ones from your friend are pink, your mind is trying to figure out which is the focus. It keeps seeking out that validation and it will keep doing it regardless. Searching the meaning of what I'm saying, what your mother is saying and what your friend is for the consensus and validation that it craves.

 

The result is that you will only process parts of each conversation. Not focusing on one task even for a moment will reduce our ability to do a task correctly and fully. Even reading an e-mail on average will distract us from a task for 15 minutes. We have all had the experience where we were on our way to do a task and the phone rang. By the end of the conversation, we can't remember what we were going to do in the first place. I learned this early on. My mother liked to place important information surrounded by minor information in a phone conversation. Lots of small talk and then out of the blue, something I needed to know. I realized after getting read the riot act a few times, that when she called I had to turn the TV off. Even now, if you call me before even answering I will turn it off. 

 

11. Generations Do Not Exist - It was all made up to market a set demographic based on age. At least in modern times. The idea that only someone born between 1990 and 2010 had a completely different cultural experience than some born between 1960 and 1980 is plain silly. The reality is that in this day and age, regardless of age a majority of the population is experiencing the same mainstream culture. Yes, there are historical events that younger people have not experienced first hand but now more than ever, they have more than likely experienced it in some way. It has been increasing as a way to divide people politically and socially. However, this idea that someone older does not understand or comprehend something because they are not part of the youth culture is a fabrication made up during the 1950s and 1960s.

 

12. Tougher Immigration Leeds to More Illegal Immigrants - This seems like one of those issues that should have gone away a long time ago but it just keeps coming back. The reality is that migrating workers have been coming from Mexico into the Southwest for seasonal work long before the US, ah, well, kind of bought, stole or won Texas, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, and California. They would work and then return to their homes in Mexico.

 

In fact, the US Border Patrol didn't even exist until 1924. Those coming from Mexico weren't even included in the quota at that point. No one from North America was. They would usually come to the US for seasonal work and then return home. However, as it became increasingly harder for a migrant to travel to the US and then return home during the depression, making it much easier for them to simply stay in the US than go home and try to come back. This included increasing restrictions on work visas for those coming from Mexico. So, the "tougher" laws only increased the number of illegal immigrants in the US.

 

13. The Unemployment Rate Means Nothing - The Unemployment Rate is often used as a way for the government to claim that the economy is doing well. It makes sense when you think about, the more people employed the better things must be. However, the thing about that rate is what the government considers employed and unemployed is not what you would think and either includes or excludes many employable adults and doesn't reflex whether they are earning a living wage.

 

14. The Dow Jones Index Tells You Nothing - The Dow Jones Index is a select number of company stocks that are chosen as an indicator of the health of the US Economy. However, if stock or company starts to perform badly it is removed from the index. While other companies that are performing well, are added. So, it's like we gauged a school's performance based on only the top 1% of students and disallowed the other 99% students. So, it is an overly positive indicator of the health of the economy.

 

15. Your Vote's Power Depends on Where You Live - The US voting system is a confusing and end source of misconceptions. We try to portray that one vote equals one vote but the reality, especially in National elections, your vote counts a great deal more where you live. The idea is to balance out the power and make sure that the largely populated areas share have a voice, However, often the situation is that low populated areas outbalance the will of the general population. It is why in a presidential election often the winner loses the popular vote but wins the election. Often even though well populated urban areas will vote one candidate into office if the rural less populated areas go mostly to the other candidate, the one that targeted the rural areas will win. Iowa is a prime example, where time and time again the vote in even governor election went to Democratic candidates since the rural area voted Republican, the election was in favor of the more conservative candidate.

 

In addition to that political parties was used Gerrymandering to centralize and increase their power. Often when one party because in power in the area, they will move, adjust and adapt districts to limit the other parties political power. It creates a situation where opposing voters are divided based often on the political and ethnic backgrounds. In a post-civil rights world, the new segregation shifting from race to economic and location. This will increasingly create a situation where the balance of power may shift from the majority to the wealthy. As those in power increase power by splitting up low-income areas to reduce their voting power.

 

16. 9/11 Did Happen and Wasn't an Inside Job - I almost didn't even bother to mention this one. It is insulting that anyone would consider the tragedy that has not only took nearly 3000 lives but continued to claim lives in two active wars. The fact is that 1993 Terrorist attempted to bomb the World Trade Center. Even though they exploded a 1,336 pounds urea nitrate–hydrogen gas enhanced device and greatly damaged the parking area in the basement of tower 2, they failed to bring it down. If anything it was an example of just how disorganized and unprepared the FBI, CIA and NSA were in combating terrorism. The reality is that the security agencies where still adapting from The Cold War to Terrorism. In fact, the need for the National Security was in question, to begin with. 

 

In part, the reason that the US wasn't prepared or equipped to read the signs that an attack was coming is due to the complacency brought on by the United States' isolation. The fortress of America being separated from the rest of the world by two Oceans is one of the reasons that there had not be a foreign attack on the continental US since Mexican American War. Terrorism throughout Europe, Africa and Asian have been increasing since the beginning of the 20th century.  The only shock is it didn't happen before that. Most American Terrorism up to that point was 100% homegrown and dated back to forming of the US. The reality is that radicalism in many forms has been active and a part of the American experience from the start. This idea that it was somehow an inside job has more to do with the shock of the event than anything based in reality. The idea that a guy in a cave on the other side of the world could organize an attack on the most powerful nation in the world, is just unthinkable. The reality is that there has been speculation as to whether or not the terrorist were in shock over the attack being successful. 

 

17. The Freemasons, Illuminati and the Skulls and Bones Are Not Running the World - Next, you're going to tell me that The Reptilian Elite isn't running the world. Though many organizations like the Freemasons were important in the forming of the US and there are a number of leaders that have belonged to these groups in the past, there is no proof that they are affecting global events in any way. Secret Societies are in fact in decline in the Western world and have been since the middle of the 20th century. This could be the more transient nature of modern society. where you average professional will not spend all of their adult life in one location. Also, the importance of secret societies in the advancement of culture, science, and political ideas, has faded. For example, during the 17th and 18th century the Masons were important as a safe place to discuss radical and nonsecular ideas. Many of the rights that are enjoyed by American citizens have their roots in discussions in these organization. Most of these groups, in fact, are nothing more than social clubs but the Masons especially have been heavily involved in a great deal of charity work. 

 

18. The Pledge of Allegiance Doesn't Mean What You Think - First off though it was written in 1892, it wasn't adopted by Congress until 1942 and was written to help sell American Flags to Schools. The Author Francis Bellamy strongly believed in the separation of Chruch and State and the original pledge didn't include any mention of God at all. The phrase "Under God" was added during the Communist scare of the 1950s by Congress with President Eisenhower encouragement.Bellamy was a Christian Socialist that was very supportive of the Labor Movement and believed that Christ teachings included the distribution of Wealth.  1891 he was driven from his pulpit for preaching against Capitalism. Also, the original salute was the same as the Nazi Salute and was changed to the hand over the heart during World War II. 

 

Not only was Bellamy a Socialist, he also belonged to the Nationalist Movement. Now, this isn't the Nationalist Movement you are thinking of. He believed in socializing education and other public services on a national level and that the government should take over the economy and equally distribute wealth. He's radicalism would eventually cause him to lose is position as a Baptist minister and him to leave the church. In the pledge, What he felt the nation in which the flag stood for would provide for all it's citizens economically and educate and care for them. However, it might at its heart had more to do with trying to heal the wounds of the Civil War. Over time the pledge has taken on a sign of traditional and patriotism which was the intention but not blind patriotism that it has come to represent.

 

19. The United States Was Not Founded or Completely Colonized by Religious Zealots  - Most consider the Pilgrims the first "English" settlement in the Continental US with the founding of Plymouth in 1620. However, the reality is not only was there a number of Native settlements in the area but there were a number of settlements English and Dutch that predate Plymouth. The Pilgrims had fled England when they split with the Church of England to Holland to avoid the unstable political environment to the more tolerant and calm Holland. In fact, the sect had been there since the 16th century. Part of the myth of the Pilgrims was that they fled Europe because they had nowhere else to go but in fact, they lived a peaceful existence and practicing their religion openly under Dutch rule at the time of their departure. The reasoning behind the colony at Plymouth was about their fear of losing their English culture and being absorbed into Dutch culture. The other motivation was the lack of opportunities in Holland. Like most of those that came to the Americas, they were searching not so much for religious freedom as a better life economically speaking. 

 

The fact is that the Pilgrims were involved in a land grab between Dutch and English companies.We often forget that colonization was not so much about conquest as much as it was about commerce. Both Dutch and English land companies were fighting over control of the Hudson River area. Since both the Dutch and the English had laid claim to the area, it was important to establish a settlement and actually control the land itself. To obtain the English Land Grant and pay for the settle travel and set up investors to back the project. Invested for their money got half the colony's land and property after 7 years. This was kept secret from a majority of the group.

 

However, Plymouth was only one of a number of settlements that were founded along the East Coast of the now United States. A majority of those migrating to North America were escaping financial hardships brought on by the Industrial Revolution. Especially with the Textile Industry that drove the demand for wool to the point where landlords had driven many generational tenant farmers off their lands. With little or no options but the limited and poor paying factory, traveling to North America offered a chance to return to farming. Others were escaping the political turmoil of early 17th century England and Europe. There was a great deal of dishevel over King Charles the First trying to regain absolute power over Parliment. Though often the reason for the uprisings, English Civil War, etc... is given as religion, at the heart of it it was political control. So, England along with most of Europe was happy to see all it's radicals, crackpots, criminals and poor begin to flood across the Atlantic. In hindsight, they should have seen that American Revolution coming but remember most of these groups didn't see eye to eye in the first place.

 

The thing is that the whole motivation of Europe settling North American was commerce. It's one thing to step on to a strange beach, plant a flag and shoot for all to hear, I claim this in the name of but it's another thing to make any real money at it. Sending the Pilgrims to the Hudson River was about securing a trade route and fishing rights. To do that you need a settlement. Large areas of the North American unbeknownst to the people living there had been granted to companies and people. The land was just sitting there not producing. It was the wealthy and established that longed for a new start but those with nothing to lose. So, they not only got rid of the unwanted but the unwanted made the land productive, set up trade and stabilized the area. 

 

The Native people are often left out of the story of the colonizing and even the forming of the United States itself. Other than Thanksgiving, they are all but erased from US history. When in reality without the help, guidance and support of the native populations must if all of the early settlements would have failed. Iroquois Confederacy that had existed since 1142 is thought to have been a major influence on the US Consitution. Settlers relied heavily on them as the first line of defense against those further inland and for trade, especially fur. Their downfall and that of many other native people came with the forming of the US. They honored their treaty with the British Crown but when the English lost the Revolutionary War, the crown deeded much of their land to the US without the consent of the Iroquois people. As punishment for siding with the British, they were either forced off their land and/or required to live in reservations. When you take into consideration that many of those involved in the writing of the US constitution had lived with, traded with and fought alongside those of the Confederacy it is easy to draw the conclusion that their governmental style and the idea of several governments allying under one centralized or the United States, it's easy to find the connection. 

 

However, even Thanksgiving being practiced by European settlers can be traced back further than the Plymouth. In fact there are accounts of the fest being held in many Spanish settlements during the 16th century and even in Jamestown that all pre-date the Pilgrim's first Thanksgiving. In reality, by the time of the Pilgrim's first Thanksgiving, it had become a tradition in most of the colonies to have a fest to celebrate the harvest each year. It was George Washington that created the national holiday in 1789. Now just how this all got connected to Christian Protestant and the Pilgrims is a bit of PR on the part of those that wanted the US to be thought of as a Christian Country. Though the idea of this holiday to celebrate peace, cooperation and helping your fellow man using the Pilgrims first Thanksgiving as an example is a little insulting to the Native People of North America. If anything it marks the beginning of a genocidal land grab that the Native people are still being affected by today.

 

20.Turman was Not a Great President - Turman the Senator from Pendergast was the product of stoogism and the corrupt political  machine of Thomas Joseph Pendergast and one of his "Goat" politicians. A man that controlled Kansas City through election fraud, giving government jobs to family and friends, bribes, stoogism and ties to the  Kansas City Mafia. He even controlled a newspaper. Without hold a public office he control the police, judges and a majority of the vice operations in KC. At the height of his power his control of the Democratic Party extended to as far as Omaha and Wichita. Basically if you were from Missouri and Western Kansas and wanted to hold any public office or Government job, you needed his blessing. Think Boardwalk Empire but set in Kansas City.Truman's political career started when he was appointed to Judgeship without ever stepping a foot inside  a Law School.

 

The Election of 1934 when Truman was launched onto the national political scene was marked with Mafia enforcement including drive by shootings and 4 murders. Truman association with Pendergast made him a largely ignored junior senator, somewhat ineffective and know to vote the party line. Far from a mover or a shaker in Washington and completely outside of the loop of the White House. During the re-election of 1940, with Pendergast having gone to jail, he gained the support of Robert E. Hannegan.

 

It would be Hannegan that would be the one that got him push forward to as a FDR's running mate in 1944. In late 1940 after touring military bases, he formed a committee to investigate waste in the Military. This would launch him into the national spotlight.  Henry Wallace was the Vice President since 1941 and was extremely popular with voters and delegates. and was thought to be a shoe-in for the 1944 ticket. However, he was radical, liberal, independent and close to Labor. One of the drafters of the New Deal, many of his ideas and solutions to poverty and other social issues butted clear against the heads of  the Democratic Party and many of FDR's advisers including Outgoing  Democratic National Committee chairman Frank C. Walker, incoming chairman Hannegan, party treasurer Edwin W. Pauley, strategist Ed Flynn, Chicago Mayor Edward Joseph Kelly, FDR Adviser James F. Byrnes, and lobbyist George E. Allen. In fact, FDR had to fight hard to get him on the ticket in 1940. Due to FDR's failing health and the fact that he was losing some of his political strength he chooses not to fight this time around.

 

In 1944 the Chicago Democratic Convention and the history of the United States was high jacked by The Conspiracy of the Pure in Heart which included  Walker, Hannegan, Pauley, Flynn, Kelly. Byrnes  and Allen. All representing the conservative side of the party that was pro-business, pro-segregationist and anti-communist. They created a conspiracy to ensure that Wallace didn't get the nomination regardless of the fact that Wallace had strong support within the rank and file delegates. FDR was advised that if he wanted the party's support that he should support Truman and dump Wallace. With his failing health, FDR political power was not at the level it once was. Also, there were questions surrounding whether or not he should be elected to a fourth term. Keep in mind he was the first 3 term president and the last one. 

 

Truman himself took three days to be sold on the idea. He was worried about his history with Pendergast and maybe learning a little for the Pendergast machine had put both his wife Bess and his sister Mary Jane on the Senate payroll. He also feared that a family suicide would make the news. The idea that all of his dirty laundries would be aired in public. 

 

On Thursday, July 20th, there was a large rush from the rank and file to put Wallace forward. There is a lot of theories that Wallace supported had packed the house one is that all the tickets for the different days were the same color or that they had counterfeited the tickets but there is no proof.  As it looked like Wallace was going to get the nomination, the party bosses quickly moved into action. The organist had been playing the "Iowa" song, they quickly got him to change to a different tune, replace  Samuel D. Jackson, a Wallace support with Pittsburg Mayor David L. Lawrence who quickly moved for adjournment till the next morning. Thus halting the voting and stalling the nomination. If that wouldn't have happened we may have had a much different course as a country.

 

Throughout the night the Party Bosses went to work. Many backroom deals, handing out government jobs and appointments were made along with a lot of strong arm pressure to ensure the vote went to Truman. The next day the Chicago Police that would become world famous at another convention in 1968, kept the Wallace supporter outside of the convention.  The end result is that it wasn't the American people that choose Truman but the political boss. This was with the knowledge that with FDR's health as it was, they were picking the next President.

 

You may ask why Truman? Well, there is a number of reasons. He wasPro-Capitalismm, Anti-Labor, Anti-Communist, Pro-Status Quo and easily persuaded by his hand picked advisers. Most don't know how extremely progressive the FDR Presidency was. The fact for the first time in US History outsider groups like labor, minorities and left-wing intellectuals found common ground. Especially with the shared belief that government's involvement in it's citizens' lives lead to better quality of life, Health, Economic and Well Being. In fact both Wallace and FDR had plans to expand the New Deal in a 4th phase as is expressed in the 2nd Bill of Rights - https://youtu.be/3EZ5bx9AyI4. These ideas scared the powers at be.

 

Wallace was extremely liberal and would have pressed to expand the New Deal Polices further. He was also not anti-communist, Pro-Labor, Pro-Civil Rights and an independent thinker. Which brings up the debate that could have greatly changed the course of US History. 

• Arms Race - Truman was unaware of the existence of the Atom Bomb until he became President. Up to that point the program's focus had been to beat Germany and build it first. Truman was advised that it would save American lives. However, the Fire Bombing that was already taking place was far more destructive. Which maybe why Japan didn't agree to surrender after the first attack. These attacks introduced the world to Nuclear Weapons and triggered the arm race.
• The Cold War - Now this is a debatable subject but Churchill and FDR both agreed to allow Stalin and the USSR to have influence over most of Eastern Europe at the Yalta conference in February of 1945. FDR would die only 2 months later and whether he planned to uphold the agreements or not is in question. It was not what he told congress or the American public. The safe bet is that he kept Truman completely out of the loop. So when Truman told Soviet foreign minister Molotov, that he expected that a new government be established in Poland, he was stunned. As far as the USSR were concerned this was already settled. Overnight the US government went from friendly Allie to enemy. Truman began to set out a foreign policy that was more about anti-communism and in the interest of the Global domination than the security of the Nation. 
• The Truman Doctrine sent military funding to Turkey and Greece and Deployed US Ships to the area. In Turkey's case they were failing to uphold a treaty to allow USSR shipping through Turkish Straights. With Greece, they were in the midst of an internal conflict and civil war. Though the Greek Communists were being funded by Yugoslavia, it set a president that the US would involve itself with countries internal conflicts that would continue for the next 40 years. It would lead to US involvement in Korea, Vietnam, Lebanon, the Middle East and Latin America. For the first time in American History we committed to changing the course of foreign governments to contain the threat of "International Communism". Thus ending the US Foreign Policy of Isolationism that had existed for the first 170 years of the countries existence.
• The Korean Conflict - It is unsure what would have happened if the UN and the US hadn't gotten involved in the war. However, the involvement of US and NATO resulted in an exultation of the war and the involvement of both China and the USSR. It's hard to say if the people of Korea were left to fight it out what would have happened. Korea hadn't been self governed for close to 35 years and had been a protectorate of Japan since 1910. At the end of WWII, the USSR liberated the country North of the 38th Parallel and the US liberated the country to the South. Thanks to Truman's policies and the Cold War, the country was divided into two regions with two different governments. Both claimed to be the legitimate government of the whole country. When the North invaded, US and Nato troops already stationed in Korea were committed to drive the forces North. The puzzling thing is that they pushed them easily pass the 38th Parallel yet continued further North toward China's border. Also keep in mind what the UN forces were supporting. South Korea had already began to round up communists and other radicals long before the invasion and "dealing with them". October of 1950, South Korean Authorities rounded up and massacred 153 civilians in the Goyang Geumjeong Cave massacre and more than 460 victims including children were summarily executed in the Namyangju massacre on suspicion of sympathizing with North Korea. 
• The Fair Deal - Though Truman did introduce the idea of an expanding the New Deal that did include civil rights, welfare, universal health care, full time employment guarantees and others, he didn't proposed legislation himself but suggested congress do so. Understand this was conservative congress and though a few bills were introduce, not on the level of reform that had been ongoing since the 1930s. This was in part because the country was seeing the largest period of economic growth in it's history. Many American did not see the need to continue or expand on the New Deal Programs. Add with that the Truman Doctrine was setting the corner stones of the Military Industrial Complex and a War Based Economy. So the focus wasn't on social programs.
• C.I.A. - This is a mixed bag but there is far too much negative out weighing the positive. Even Truman saw the agency as a mistake stating, "For some time I have been disturbed by the way the CIA has been diverted from its original assignment. It has become an operational and at times a policy-making arm of the government. This has led to trouble and may have compounded our difficulties in several explosive areas." Like our current war in Iquar. 
• The Military Industrial Complex - Unlike most of Western Europe where there was an increase in civil and social programs, the Truman Doctrine lead the US into a War Based Economy where more is spent on the Military than all other government programs combined. 
• NATO - Established to defend Western Europe from the threat of Communism(are you seeing a trend here?). It in fact seen as a direct threat to the USSR. NATO was used to place US Nuclear Weapons within striking distance of the USSR and increased the US Military's presence in Europe. Think about this for a second and understand how this would effect relations between the US and Russia. 

 

Well, I could give you, even more, facts and maybe some of these are affected by my own view of history. I hope that at the very least at has distilled some falsehoods or got you thinking and googling topics. This took a while to put together. Every time I started on a new topic, I stopped to verify if my memories were correct. Like many rabbit holes I venture down, I learned a little bit. Like all quests of worth, most of this knowledge was gained with one simple word, Why? Questions always lead to knowledge and as you are bombarded by increasingly more information, often you don't have the time to ask that question or verify it. I'm right there with you and in the end, all I'm asking is that you question anything that seems off. This is only going to get worse as the internet and the world's vast knowledge and crackpot ideas expands.