George Bush’S Great America [EN]: Chapter 256

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It was a massive wall of water.

I had seen tall buildings before. Skyscrapers were so common in the city center that you could trip over them. But I had never seen a wall so high. And I had never experienced such mass, nor felt it so intensely.

Fortunately, we were already aware that tsunamis could strike again at any time, and three earthquakes had provided ample practical training. People moved to higher ground without hesitation.

To some extent, we had disposed of or moved belongings, preparing as much as possible, though not completely.

The earthquake originated in the seabed between Siberut Island and Padang. It was caused by a vertical fault movement and registered a magnitude of 8.2.

“Earthquakes, tsunamis… God!”

Observed from higher ground, it no longer appeared as a wall. The sense of pressure and illusion were due to the low vantage point. However, the mass remained the same. Weak buildings were literally swept away, and all sorts of debris, materials, and uprooted trees floated on the surface.

“Please! Save me!”

The sight of those who couldn’t escape in time, reaching for each other’s hands only to be swept away by the current, was truly a vision of hell on earth. The citizens of Padang could now understand why floods and tsunamis were described as the wrath of God in ancient times.

When the earthquakes struck three times, they thought it was no longer just their problem. But they never dreamed it would come to them so directly.

The government and scientists had anticipated another event based on the circumstances, but they couldn’t predict where or how it would occur, so they only offered basic countermeasures and repeated evacuation drills. It wasn’t that the drills were ineffective.

But does a soldier become invincible after completing training? Does every athlete who tries hard win a gold medal?

Evacuation was the same. Not everyone could evacuate perfectly in the face of an unexpected disaster, especially when elderly people were involved.

However.

“As you know, Southeast Asia’s economy will temporarily collapse. But that’s all.”

They would surely find a way to recover. Even without American aid, support would come from Europe or East Asia.

There were also international organizations. However, Indonesia overlooked the fact that everyone was busy with their own domestic affairs.

Europe was out of the question. They were projecting all their power to stabilize the Middle East. Even if it wasn’t actually the case, the budget spent was ultimately the same.

East Asia’s three countries? China had given up on overseas expansion, and Korea was focusing all its resources on assimilating North Korea. Japan was in the best situation and was expected to provide a lot of support.

So, what were the remaining South Asian countries, the ASEAN [Association of Southeast Asian Nations] friends, doing? It was very simple. Their situation was not much different from Indonesia’s. Indonesia suffered the most from the series of earthquakes, but other countries also suffered some damage. Most ASEAN member states, whether Malaysia or Myanmar, were focused on recovering from earthquake and tsunami damage.

The only ones relatively unscathed were Laos, Vietnam, and the Philippines, which were far away or landlocked. The first and second events were manageable, but the third one, which struck in the Gulf of Thailand, also affected Cambodia.

“China will be disappointed. It’s an opportunity to sell favors. But the economy will quickly recover.”

-Of course. With the US President’s support, it will recover quickly.

The person on the phone with Bush was Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, the President of the Philippines. She was a female president who had actively cooperated on unifying the weapons system behind the scenes. More precisely, she was generally cooperative with the United States.

Unless it was a special case like Indonesia, there was no reason to refuse American aid. And even if they wanted to be negative, they would accept it first and then pretend not to know.

Anyway, as Bush was organizing his thoughts, he ultimately chose the Philippines as America’s friend in South Asia. The US military had been stationed there before, and they would probably be the most cooperative in an emergency.

After a lot of diplomatic rhetoric and trivial chatter, the call ended.

However, the Chief of Staff was making an uncomfortable expression. At first, I thought it was because his vacation was over, but that didn’t seem to be the case.

“What you said earlier about China, Mr. President, their recent silence bothers me.”

“I didn’t expect you to say that.”

It was truly unexpected. He had answered or refuted Bush’s questions, but he had rarely expressed his own opinion so actively.

Even if it was just a groundless concern. Bush opened his mouth to dispel the Chief of Staff’s anxiety.

“It’s a country that’s just starting to recover. They won’t be able to do anything during my term.”

And that was indeed the case. China couldn’t do anything for the time being. The Imoogi [a mythical Korean serpent], who rashly came out into the sun, was surprised by the sun’s brilliance, twisted and turned in every way, and returned to the muddy pond.

However, that’s right. Maybe, just maybe. There’s a saying, isn’t there?

‘Kneeling now may be to gain momentum.’

It may not be that they collapsed from exhaustion, but that they are diligently sharpening the blade of revenge. Perhaps that is the case.

Remembering Li Keqiang’s venomous eyes whenever they met at official events, I couldn’t help but know.

“You can put your worries about China aside for now. We are living in a good era. Pax Americana [American Peace, referring to a period of relative peace dominated by the US]. Unless my successors make strange blunders, the United States will remain the world’s ruler for at least this century.”

“Ruler. That’s a bit much for a word you chose, Mr. President. Should I say it’s radical, or arrogant?”

“You want to say it’s not like me. But what can I do when that’s the reality? Is there any country that can resist if the current United States decides to beat them up?”

No. There really isn’t anymore. China is asleep, and Russia is holding its breath. India is still lacking in many ways compared to the United States, both militarily and economically.

Europe will eventually run away from the Middle East to escape the contradiction of having to pour all of Europe’s wealth into stabilizing the Middle East, which will shake Europe. Africa? They’re lucky if they can take care of themselves.

Besides, the other relatively successful countries are either allies or friends of the United States. Alliances and friendships are not eternal, but unless the United States collapses on its own and splits into dozens of pieces, that will never happen.

The US military has improved day by day, and new weapons are being deployed to the front lines. I couldn’t say that Bush had never made mistakes. However, it wasn’t that those mistakes affected America’s hegemony.

Compared to his achievements, they were cute mistakes made in the process of taking power.

Anyway, the important thing is that no country can beat the United States in an all-out war, even if they try to occupy it.

Even so, Bush didn’t over-trust that fact. He clearly remembered what the United States, which tried to change regimes by force, looked like in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“Come to think of it, I think Indonesia will be passive in its diplomacy with our country in the future, but I don’t know if they have properly prepared countermeasures.”

Of course, it wasn’t a concern, but a sarcasm. There is a theme that runs through the early 21st century. Countries that are truly at odds with the United States are always poor. Even Russia and China were not completely at odds.

The only country that deviated from this rule was Vietnam, but even Vietnam did its best to build a friendly relationship with the United States in the 21st century. Even the Vietnamese were mostly favorable to the United States.

Knowing that, Bush deliberately answered like this.

“Indonesia? I don’t even have to look. They’re probably saying this.”

* * *

“Don’t worry. No matter how great the US President George W. Bush is, he won’t harm Indonesia in any way for refusing demands that amount to interference in internal affairs. He is more flexible than other leaders.”

“That’s right. That’s true, but.”

Indonesia’s President Megawati Sukarnoputri trailed off at her aide’s assurance. ASEAN had to be entirely Southeast Asian. To be exact, it should have been ‘Indonesian,’ but other member states would never agree to that.

‘If only the earthquake hadn’t happened…….’

No, even the earthquake is fine. If only there hadn’t been a tsunami, it could have gradually happened. Moreover, if it hadn’t happened four times!

To be honest, I couldn’t help but love the Stars and Stripes at first. Up to two times, I just laughed and accepted it, saying it couldn’t be helped. But three times is not okay. If we rely on it up to three times, it means that Indonesia will never be able to lead Southeast Asia in the future.

So, four earthquakes occurred, and two tsunamis plagued Indonesia. Now, Indonesia had to focus all its national power on restoring this. That’s about three years. Even that was related to the budget, and the complete restoration itself would take at least 10 years.

I thought about just closing my eyes and accepting American aid, but at least in the history I know, none of the countries that tried to sell the present to buy the future have remained intact to this day.

Even if she died, she had no intention of following in the footsteps of those countries that died in history. And she wouldn’t hold this position of president forever, would she? I didn’t know when, but someday I had to pass it on to the next generation.

To be honest, looking at the situation Indonesia will face in the future, it seems like this term will be the end, but who knows? Who knows if the heavens will help me preserve this position? And even if I step down, it doesn’t matter. If I can just dedicate myself to making Indonesia the true leader of South Asia, what can’t I do?

It wasn’t that she didn’t care about her personal success, but she still deserved to be president. She didn’t just rise to this position through political maneuvering.

So, what should she do? It’s so difficult to put into practice. The answer was very simple.

“We have to revive the economy.”