Interesting. But by Long Term I meant longer than that. Like, after the ashes settle, what are the likely foreign policy imperitives of Ohio? What are it's interests regarding... the mississippi river system, for example?
The premise of this thread is that in 1983 Able Archer goes hot. However, due to luck and happenstance, all of the devices aimed at Columbus, Ohio's capital, are either shot down or fail to do any damage because of mechanical failure.
How is this likely to impact the post-Exchange world...
The Assassination of Lincoln was also supposed to assasinate Vice-President Johnson and Secretary of State Seward. What if those other assassinations had succeed?
How would Reconstruction have unfolded with a Republican at the helm?
Say that the weather was clear on Kyoto that day and Nintendo fell victim to Fat Man. Or maybe it sticks to just making cards. For whatever reason, Nintendo doesn't get into video games.
How does the Video Game industry develop?
Well, looking at the Wiki, it seems that the Southern Democrats wanted to pass a Slave Code for the territories, which would force territorial legislatures to support slavery even if they didn't want to.
And that Douglas wasn't in favor of such a slave code, preferring the Freeport Doctrine...
So there's the POD. Simply find a way to butterfly the three way split the Democrats suffered, keeping Lincoln out of the White House and putting a pro-Slavery President in. Let boil for a few years while resentment builds as the vile institution spreads across the North, with the Fugitive...