hey, all. i've been knocking some ideas around my head lately, mostly about some geopolitical changes to the United States. particularly, i was looking at the Western states. as part of the butterfly effect from previous changes to my ASB ATL, i've been thinking about which state should get the Arizona Strip (that bit of land on the opposite side of the Grand Canyon from the rest of Arizona, for those who don't know), partly because, iirc, it's politically different from the rest of the state, as well as the Colorado River making a very convenient geographic border. originally, i'd thought of this area going to Utah, and then to Nevada. now, i'm thinking of giving it to California, with part of the idea pertaining to this being that Nevada west of the Arizona Strip goes along with it
however, this raises another question: what happens to the rest of OTL's Nevada in this case? Las Vegas is in the same area that would be transferred to California, though the capital (Carson City) and Nevada's other biggest/most famous city, Reno, is also still part of Nevada
now, i know what some of you would say: Las Vegas was just another desert town that no one knew about before it became a convenient stopover and turned into the gambling capital of the US. it becoming part of California wouldn't necessarily affect it any differently than OTL, or it would never become notable at all. but this also affects how Nevada will be viewed by the rest of the US: if Vegas doesn't become a major gambling center, would gambling even be legal in the state? would Nevada be just another one of those inner-Western states that are considered fly-over states with few to no attractions to other people?
however, this raises another question: what happens to the rest of OTL's Nevada in this case? Las Vegas is in the same area that would be transferred to California, though the capital (Carson City) and Nevada's other biggest/most famous city, Reno, is also still part of Nevada
now, i know what some of you would say: Las Vegas was just another desert town that no one knew about before it became a convenient stopover and turned into the gambling capital of the US. it becoming part of California wouldn't necessarily affect it any differently than OTL, or it would never become notable at all. but this also affects how Nevada will be viewed by the rest of the US: if Vegas doesn't become a major gambling center, would gambling even be legal in the state? would Nevada be just another one of those inner-Western states that are considered fly-over states with few to no attractions to other people?