H.W Bush/Dole 1980 (Collaborative Thread)

July 31st, 1983: President Bush plows on with the ART, despite the widespread rioting in Las Vegas. He believes that: "There will be a new Las Vegas..a much more glorious one. We just need to determine where it will be."
 
No, just the ones hit by the water. Las Vegas probably had some flooding though. It's the long term water shortages that will lead to the decline of the first three over the next several decades. LA is fine unless someone does the earthquake mentioned in those threads.

Perhaps this could be the Hurricane Katrina of H.W Bush's Presidency.
 
August 4th, 1983: John Lennon gives a disgruntled interview with Rolling Stones magazine, charging President Bush as: "An incompetent warlord who can't even pay attention to the problems in his own god damn country, the one he claims he has a fetish for!" The interview becomes wildly controversial and while many conservatives are angered by Lennon's seemingly anti-American remarks, moderates and liberals hail him as a hero of the common man. His next album, The Big Blue Meanies and the Little Red Weenie is released. Using the blue meanie character's from the Beatles' movie Yellow Submarine, the album is an allegory to the polarizing Bush presidency. The album receives rave reviews, with particular praise towards the lack of blatant political soap-boxing and the colorful, imaginative lyrics.

August 5th, 1983: Dennis Wilson's second solo-album; Bamboo, is released to widespread critical acclaim. Reviewers hail Wilson's knack for sensory, visually based story-telling, along with his use of various materials to simulate the rough, raw sound of the jungly ocean that the album is trying to emphasize. Despite this, it sells relatively poorly, as The Big Blue Meanies and the Little Red Weenie outperforms it exponentially. Wilson addresses the album's poor sales on The Tonight Show, stating: "I don't give a damn what the masses think. I made this album for only a few people and their names all end in Wilson! As me and them to a lesser extent are happy with it, I don't care if every copy gets burned in a forrest fire!"
 
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Perhaps this could be the Hurricane Katrina of H.W Bush's Presidency.
Katrina is a day at the races compared to this. People who live near other dams are going to be asking: when is it going to happen to us? The entire infrastructure system of dams will have to be investigated and inspected. It'll also raise the question: is it worth it? (Watch the documentary, Damnation) Katrina only exposed the conditions in New Orleans, this will be a national issue, a national crisis.
 
Well, could you perhaps elaborate on this in the next post? I'm really interested to see which direction this will take America in.
I will tomorrow. I'm thinking a Congressional investigation and a national inspection of nearly all large dams will be in order. At-risk areas will be evacuated. I'll go in to it much deeper.
 
August 8th, 1983: Several Las Vegas businessmen and Casino moguls, led by MGM owner Kirk Kerkorian, file a lawsuit against the US government for negligence, following the improper response to the power outage in Las Vegas, and the resulting damage to their property and revenue.
 
August 10th, 1983: Bush's approval ratings drop to 40%. Much of the country is enraged at the President for neglecting such a vital part of infrastructure, all in favor of excessive world building and ridiculous transportation projects.
 
Guys, while I'm okay with the damn scenario, I prefer that the damage is less significant. The level of damage in this TL is too depressing for my tastes and falls into the dystopia category. Can it be downplayed?
 
September 28th, 1983: Augustus Claude, an African American teenage who volunteered with the so-called African Brigades, is captured by the South African government, and held prisoner along with several MK members he was serving with.
 
January 25, 1982: The death of Mikhail Suslov. Yuri Andropov became Secretary General of the CPSU

February 9, 1984: The death of Yuri Andropov. Mikhail Gorbachev became General Secretary of the CPSU. Leonid Abalkin became Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union
 
August 1st, 1983: Mass exoduses begin from Nevada and Arizona, most leave for the West Coast and end up working alongside Mexican migrants. Interstates 15 and 40 report massive back ups. Reports of violence are widespread at overcrowded welcome centers. It's a scene straight from the Dust Bowl, and the travelers soon gain the names "New Okies" and "Flooders".

August 18th, 1983:
The U.S. Congress comes out of recess to pass relief bills, and to authorize a Senate Select Commitee on Dam Safety. The vote for the latter is 89 to 9.
 
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