Has AMPU Led To Interest In Reading More About More Obscure Politicians?

[vcczar]

I'm curious if by playing AMPU, if the game has compelled you to read more about politicians you knew a lot less about. If so, who have you researched? I guess overall, I'm wondering how AMPU has changed your view on US history, events, party, ideology, politicians, etc. 

[Murrman104]

Depends how obscure. First and foremost the brief lasting 1916 playtest had me controlling the LW Democrats and with William Jennings Bryan as my faction leader i naturally did some reading on him. I did a few modules in college on populism and with serious fatigue talking about Trump i ended up talking about him a bunch. It even lead me to read Laurence Goodwyn's The Populist moment about the populist movement as a whole in that period which has really reshaped how I look at populism nowadays. 

Another one is Daniel Patrick Moynihan, i came across him in college as well but only for his (in)famous memo. Looking more into him as one of my faction pols lead me to look more into his views on welfare as a whole only to find I agreed with him more then I thought (which still isnt all that much but still).

In a more silly one AMPU was how i found about the wild story of Adam Laxalt's father

[OrangeP47]

I can't name any specifics right now, but I most definitely look up people I've never heard of regularly, probably most commonly our 1840 faction leaders or Congressional Leaders, at least once a week.

[Euri]

I haven’t even played in any of the playtests and I’m already traversing the depths of Wikipedia for obscure politicians, so I think that’s a good sign

I don’t think I’ve been looking for anything in particular but every now and then I see a name here that really draws my attention

[OrangeP47]

Just now, OrangeP47 said:

I can't name any specifics right now, but I most definitely look up people I've never heard of regularly, probably most commonly our 1840 faction leaders or Congressional Leaders, at least once a week.

Like holy shit @vcczar did you know James Semple invented the automobile in the 1840s but industry wasn't advanced enough to mass produce it.

[vcczar]

20 minutes ago, OrangeP47 said:

Like holy shit @vcczar did you know James Semple invented the automobile in the 1840s but industry wasn't advanced enough to mass produce it.

I did know, but I totally forgot. Arguably a French guy invented it in the 1780 or 1790s. Lots of “inventors” of the automobile. 

[Rezi]

I mean, I did a lot of research about the Hiesters lmao. Did you know that the last Hiester in the game (Hiester clymer) is notorious for running one of the most racist campaigns of the era? Lmao 

[OrangeP47]

1 minute ago, Rezi said:

I mean, I did a lot of research about the Hiesters lmao. Did you know that the last Hiester in the game (Hiester clymer) is notorious for running one of the most racist campaigns of the era? Lmao 

I'm gonna have to stop having the AI put him in the PA gov race every single cycle now.

[10centjimmy]

I watched the Tallulah Bankhead movie, Lifeboat.   Pretty solid Alfred Hitchcock film.

 

Also really dove into Gerhard Mennen "Soapy" Williams' background. Pretty incredible civil rights record in his 12 years as governor of Michigan.  His "controversial" trait in AMPU seems to be from a single comment as JFK's Assistant Sec of State where he said that "what we want for the Africans is what they want for themselves," - a comment which the press took as a dig at the white South Africans and Rhodesians (modern Zimbabwe).  

Edited May 23 by 10centjimmy

[Arkansas Progressive]

I don't do deep readings but I do browse the World Book Encyclopedia (read: wikipedia) for people I dont know of by name alone.

[Umbrella]

Absolutely!  I ended up going down a James Michael Curley rabbit hole after having him as one of my only kingmakers, and it was insane.  

I wouldn't say it's changed my views on parties or history or anything like that, but I do enjoy learning about these politicians that I've never heard of.

[ShortKing]

I was interested to learn a good bit more about the faction leader I ended up stuck with, Chester Nimitz, and ended up being really impressed with him and wanted to see if I could get him to the White House ( @Murrman104 did not let that happen unfortunately) and I also on a lark ended up googling LeRoy Collins and learning a good bit about this rare Southern Democrat promoting an end to segregation and am hopeful I can get him up the ladder in AMPU. 

If I go with current in-game Vice President Lewis Douglas as my faction leader, I plan to do some reading on his career as well. 

[vcczar]

On 5/22/2023 at 9:47 PM, Rezi said:

I mean, I did a lot of research about the Hiesters lmao. Did you know that the last Hiester in the game (Hiester clymer) is notorious for running one of the most racist campaigns of the era? Lmao 

Yeah. So sad. 

[ConservativeElector2]

Yeah, I love how playing the game leads to connections with people you did not know very well. For me my most favorite case is so far William Paterson.

[Arkansas Progressive]

Heh its kinda funny seeing Obscure reps gain leadership posts. Like some random ass one term getting majority whip. 

[0ccultist]

On 5/22/2023 at 7:21 PM, vcczar said:

I'm curious if by playing AMPU, if the game has compelled you to read more about politicians you knew a lot less about. If so, who have you researched? I guess overall, I'm wondering how AMPU has changed your view on US history, events, party, ideology, politicians, etc. 

I’m late but absolutely. I have read so much about some people and ended up getting a book on one. I’m forgetting his name but i learned a lot of the only congressmen to be a Russian spy and put him on the Supreme Court because I thought it be funny.