No holiday recess for congress in 2098?

[Jeffrey W.]

Did you ever wonder what was going on Monday, December 22nd, 2098 in Washington D.C. that would lead to the instant demise of half of Congress and the Senate?

No, I'm not referring to the Great Cataclysm, but of the holiday recess period for the Congress of the United States.

Congress should have went into holiday recess on Friday, December 19th so that they could catch flights out of D.C. on that evening to join with their families for the Christmas holiday... but they did not.

They remained working on something in D.C. that Monday for whatever reason.

Meanwhile, the President of the United States (midway through a presidential term of office), was in Colorado to give a speech?

(If you give thought to questions like this, then congratulations, you are probably a roleplayer of Chaos Earth).

(If you do not give thought to the material in the RPG book, then I would guess that video games are more your style).

If Kevin or Jason are reading this, then I can only hope that these questions might eventually be answered in future gaming supplements.

Jeffrey W.
(talented gamemaster)

[NMI]

1st - Everyone is an excellent gamemaster.
2nd - One does not have to think about the small details like what you pointed out to be a "role player". most of us are in it just to have fun.
3rd. - you do bring up an interesting point

[Misfit KotLD]

He's humble too.

[Library Ogre]

They were in a state verging on war... tensions were extreme, and the majority of Congress was present because important votes may need to be taken. Are we going to war? How much authority do we grant the President to prosecute a war against... who?

Many Congresscritters probably had their families flown in to have Christmas in the Capital.

[csbioborg]

realizing America was in its darkest hour they were convening to meet with sceientist. They were being briefed on the last stages of a plan. The DNA harnested from Americas greatest president Reagan, had been used to create a new leader. The clone had uploaded into his mind the collected works of Reagan and it was hoped Reagans personality would shine through They were thier to vote on declaring a state of emergency and temporaily handing all power over to him. Obviously the President was not needed for a meeting of the legislative branch and was off tending to other affaris. Sadly the Great Cataclysm occured before they could reach a final vote and all was for not. However, the clone which was still being finished in Cheyene Mountains and protected from the Chaos which came with the Rifts. Affected strangley by the influx of mystical energies this "blank" clone was actually possed by the spirit of Reagan which had never passed knowing man would need to be saved from extinction once more. He along side Air Force personel from Cheyne Mountain and journeyed to NEMA's forces gathering along the way a band of followers. The so called "Gipper Brigade" began driving back the Chaos Demons and made the first meaningful dent in the Demonic forces. In the end they joined forces with NEMA and spearheaded the route of the enemy forces. Seemingly victourious, NEMA breathed its first calm breath in years. Diseaster struck some time later when it was discovered the Chaos Demons had regrouped and had summoned thier master a being so powerful that it had NEMA troops ready to desert. Remebered as the Fourth Demon Plague again things looked as though lost. Reagan stood up and shouted out to them Remeber NEMA "Above all, we must realize that no arsenal, or no weapon in the arsenals of the world, is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women. It is a weapon our adversaries in today's world do not have." These simple words ingorated the morale of the men and they dug thier boots in ready to fight to the last. In this epic battle Reagan faced the AI hid on using the mystic strenght he had gained while dead. In the end he died with his boots on. Sadly this history is was forgotten by most due to the events that would come. Ironically its is those very Chaso Demons that remember Reagan most. Remebering him as thier greatest foe a statue still stands in thier Capitol in his honor. The caption at the bottom says "He looked us in the eye and we were the first to blink".

[Jeffrey W.]

whipped4073 makes an excellent point. And the Guada Marta incident only caused tensions to an existing Cold War environment. There is no reason to suspect that NEMA was at war during the moment of the Great Cataclysm.

I think we can all agree that NEMA was surprised by the event that December in 2098 C.E. (No, not Christian Era but rather Chaos Earth instead.)

I think Congress should have recessed, but didn't, and I wonder why. We know that Americans were celebrating Christmas, or planning on it at least, because that's stated in a couple of the books already.

Neat things to think about.

[Carl Gleba]

Did you ever wonder what was going on Monday, December 22nd, 2098 in Washington D.C. that would lead to the instant demise of half of Congress and the Senate?

No, I'm not referring to the Great Cataclysm, but of the holiday recess period for the Congress of the United States.

Congress should have went into holiday recess on Friday, December 19th so that they could catch flights out of D.C. on that evening to join with their families for the Christmas holiday... but they did not.

They remained working on something in D.C. that Monday for whatever reason.

Meanwhile, the President of the United States (midway through a presidential term of office), was in Colorado to give a speech?

(If you give thought to questions like this, then congratulations, you are probably a roleplayer of Chaos Earth).

(If you do not give thought to the material in the RPG book, then I would guess that video games are more your style).

If Kevin or Jason are reading this, then I can only hope that these questions might eventually be answered in future gaming supplements.

Jeffrey W.
(talented gamemaster)

Why try answering it gaming supplement? I see this as golden ROLE-PLAYING opportunity.

1. Your unit has to get to DC to try and get some of the survivors to safety because you know that congress was in an emergency session.

2. Maybe at initial glance it looks like DC is gone, but maybe members of congress made it to a secret bunker and there is a distress call that the players pick up. Now you have to trudge through the thick of chaos to save these VIP's.

3. As for why they're in DC during the holidays. I think Mark's answer is perfectly valid.

4. Same for the president. Maybe his home state is Colorado? Maybe he has family there and is attending a fund raiser. What ever the case it’s more of a role playing opportunity. Demons or monsters are closing in on the president and only you can help!


Game on.

Carl

[Dustin Fireblade]

Why try answering it gaming supplement? I see this as golden ROLE-PLAYING opportunity.

1. Your unit has to get to DC to try and get some of the survivors to safety because you know that congress was in an emergency session.

2. Maybe at initial glance it looks like DC is gone, but maybe members of congress made it to a secret bunker and there is a distress call that the players pick up. Now you have to trudge through the thick of chaos to save these VIP's.

3. As for why they're in DC during the holidays. I think Mark's answer is perfectly valid.

4. Same for the president. Maybe his home state is Colorado? Maybe he has family there and is attending a fund raiser. What ever the case it’s more of a role playing opportunity. Demons or monsters are closing in on the president and only you can help!


Game on.

Carl

Awesome....

Now if we can just get that Jason guy to get us First Responder's...

(I kid, I know he's working on it night and day...)

[Jason Richards]

Why try answering it gaming supplement? I see this as golden ROLE-PLAYING opportunity.

1. Your unit has to get to DC to try and get some of the survivors to safety because you know that congress was in an emergency session.

2. Maybe at initial glance it looks like DC is gone, but maybe members of congress made it to a secret bunker and there is a distress call that the players pick up. Now you have to trudge through the thick of chaos to save these VIP's.

3. As for why they're in DC during the holidays. I think Mark's answer is perfectly valid.

4. Same for the president. Maybe his home state is Colorado? Maybe he has family there and is attending a fund raiser. What ever the case it’s more of a role playing opportunity. Demons or monsters are closing in on the president and only you can help!


Game on.

Carl

Awesome....

Now if we can just get that Jason guy to get us First Responder's...

(I kid, I know he's working on it night and day...)

I'm actually interrupting work to answer you.

[glitterboy2098]

i'd say the president was in flight on airforce 1 when the news of the south american nuclear strike was received, and immediately routed to NORAD for protection.
he was in flight because tensions were high between America and the other super powers at the time.

Congress was in emergency session for the same reason, and when the news of the SA nukefest was received, it was immediately postponed and the members moved to the governmental survival shelters.

only the cataclysm hit before congress could get out of the city, and the president got trapped in NORAD when yellowstone blew....

[Slag]

i'd say the president was in flight on airforce 1 when the news of the south american nuclear strike was received, and immediately routed to NORAD for protection.
he was in flight because tensions were high between America and the other super powers at the time.

Congress was in emergency session for the same reason, and when the news of the SA nukefest was received, it was immediately postponed and the members moved to the governmental survival shelters.

only the cataclysm hit before congress could get out of the city, and the president got trapped in NORAD when yellowstone blew....

Ruinin' a lad's nitpick whine session with logic and creativity ag'in, eh GB?

[csbioborg]

where are you from exactly I thought everybody took a holiday at the end of the year?

[Colt47]

Honestly I don't see how having more of congress alive would have helped the United States any during the beginning of Chaos Earth. Just too many natural and unnatural disasters happening at once. Also, it should be noted that not everywhere would have had ash falling down. Most of the eastern portion of the united states would be unaffected by the Yellowstone park super volcano, and relatively untouched from the Tidal wave caused by the sudden reappearance of Atlantus. Thus there was a safe zone. Just not a very big one. Still got to take a look at the leyline activity in these areas though. I'll try pointing them out and listing some general areas that would be relatively safe.

Edit: The area around Charleston and Pittsburg roughly up to the Ohio River would be relatively untouched by the natural disasters. Now as far as Magic Activity, I got no clue. But otherwise those two locations would be great for holding out.

Second Edit: Oh and california is completely unscathed. The Rocky Mountains and the prevailing winds actually block most of the ash cloud, and there isn't much magic activity around there. Of course there is some flooding from rising water levels, but there still is a lot of land left.

[keir451]

realizing America was in its darkest hour they were convening to meet with sceientist. They were being briefed on the last stages of a plan. The DNA harnested from Americas greatest president Reagan, had been used to create a new leader. The clone had uploaded into his mind the collected works of Reagan and it was hoped Reagans personality would shine through They were thier to vote on declaring a state of emergency and temporaily handing all power over to him. Obviously the President was not needed for a meeting of the legislative branch and was off tending to other affaris. Sadly the Great Cataclysm occured before they could reach a final vote and all was for not. However, the clone which was still being finished in Cheyene Mountains and protected from the Chaos which came with the Rifts. Affected strangley by the influx of mystical energies this "blank" clone was actually possessed by the spirit of Reagan which had never passed knowing man would need to be saved from extinction once more. He along side Air Force personnel from Cheyne Mountain and journeyed to NEMA's forces gathering along the way a band of followers. The so called "Gipper Brigade" began driving back the Chaos Demons and made the first meaningful dent in the Demonic forces. In the end they joined forces with NEMA and spearheaded the route of the enemy forces. Seemingly victourious, NEMA breathed its first calm breath in years. Diseaster struck some time later when it was discovered the Chaos Demons had regrouped and had summoned thier master a being so powerful that it had NEMA troops ready to desert. Remembered as the Fourth Demon Plague again things looked as though lost. Reagan stood up and shouted out to them "Remember NEMA "Above all, we must realize that no arsenal, or no weapon in the arsenals of the world, is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women. It is a weapon our adversaries in today's world do not have." These simple words ingorated the morale of the men and they dug thier boots in ready to fight to the last. In this epic battle Reagan faced the AI hid on using the mystic strenght he had gained while dead. In the end he died with his boots on. Sadly this history is was forgotten by most due to the events that would come. Ironically its is those very Chaso Demons that remember Reagan most. Remebering him as thier greatest foe a statue still stands in thier Capitol in his honor. The caption at the bottom says "He looked us in the eye and we were the first to blink".

Reagan as our "Greatesty Pres.? Scaaarrryyy man,truly scary. Neat idea tho'

[Jeffrey W.]

Perhaps Shazam was more accurate than any of us when suggesting that "...perhaps the economy was going down the toilet?..." and Colorado could be a new area for technology investment, with the president of the United States there to speak on the matter.

One year ago when I started this post, I could never have guessed that the United States economy could have sunk to the levels that it is at today, and that generations to come would be burdoned with debt by those living in the first decade of the new millenium.

By 2098 will all hovercars and cycles be from government owned corporations? What will labor unions be like for the "Golden age of mankind"? Will english be the primary or secondary language spoken by N.E.M.A.?

Some have commented on this thread that the special session of congress may be related to a national security threat. Odd that there is no mention of Canada or Mexico meeting in special session, considering the nature of the alliance in 2098 A.D.

No, logic would point in the direction of a domestic agenda for the president and congress.

This is all good roleplaying storyline speculation stuff, and I started this thread based off of notes in my campaign intro material. It seems that NMI and Mark Hall were the first to recognize the role-playing value of little details such as these. Maybe Carl Gleba almost did also, but I'm not so certain.

Little details such as these can be built upon in future sourcebooks or supplements for Rifts: Chaos Earth to make the books of the gameline more synoptic.

Jeffrey W.
(looking forward to more Chaos Earth titles)

[Xar]

Indulging in a bit of thread necromancy...I thought of this thread this morning as I listened to the news.

Congress is still in session now, on Dec 21st...with another vote scheduled tomorrow at 7:20 am 12/22/09.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_health_care_overhaul

[Carl Gleba]

I was hoping some one would bring that up That and a vote at 1AM to boot.

Carl

[Jeffrey W.]

That's funny. I've been thinking that too.

Can't blame the Senate for staying at work Sunday night... they were snowed in, and their flights were cancelled or delayed.

Jeffrey W.

[Jeffrey W.]

The US Congress (note the term "Congress" in the US refers to both the House of Representatives and the Senate) could easily have been in an emergency session or extended session as of December 22nd. It's not uncommon at all.

Thanks for helping us with the term, "Congress", Sam. We were referring to what the Senate was doing there last Sunday night in the real world. The House has already voted their version of the bill. The agenda is still to have something for the President to sign for Christmas Eve, a goal stated long ago in press conferences.

I believe this special session which is happening right now is historic, and that Xar and Carl Gleba and alot of other readers are remembering how we discussed this over a year ago.

The news today is mentioning that the Health Care Reform Bill may go to vote at 8:00 a.m. on Thursday, December 24th. Since a special session like this hasn't happened since 1917, I believe that the word "uncommon" is applicable here.

Sorry if we lost you Sam by veering off the Chaos Earth topic for a moment. It's just that interesting and impacting events are happening in the real world right now.

Nobody denies that Congress could have been in D.C. for a special session as implied by the Chaos Earth books. It's just fun to imagine what those causes might have been, in the not so far fictious future.

Jeffrey W.

[Carl Gleba]

Nobody denies that Congress could have been in D.C. for a special session as implied by the Chaos Earth books. It's just fun to imagine what those causes might have been, in the not so far fictious future.

Jeffrey W.

Probably still trying to sort out health care

Carl

[Xar]

Nobody denies that Congress could have been in D.C. for a special session as implied by the Chaos Earth books. It's just fun to imagine what those causes might have been, in the not so far fictious future.

Jeffrey W.

Probably still trying to sort out health care

Carl

Indeed...maybe they just figured out a fiscally responsibile way to handle it that all sides of the issue agreed upon.

The true cause of the Coming of the Rifts!!!