Golden Age

[Oddboy]

Probably for the best, stodge.

Like Squaxx Dek Thargo Lemmy once sang:

For Earth to heal then we must die, no one deserves it more...

[Pagangirl]

********The European Union and Commonwealth Countries will be absorbed into a U.S. ruled hegemony, as the following happens.. ********

That at least wont happen.  The US as we know it has about 50 years of life left to it.  It's tearing itself apart as we speak.  That is where I think 2000AD has it right.  Sooner or later (And the way the shrub is going it will be sooner) it will disnintegrate into 2-4 countries.  Perhaps even along the lines of the MEga Cities, but it certainly wont be a single power for much longer.

Wen it does go we could be in trouble as there are a lot of coutries in the world with grudges against the US, the only thing stopping them is that they feel they have no chance of winning.  If they start thinking they have a chance...

[Smiley]

H'mm, seems I forgot to mention that oil tanker colliding with a nuclear sub at the north pole. ;)

[Art]

Nah, pretty unlikely. The way I see it most Gulf state rulers are kind of like Gangsta rappers - into bigging it up and the bling bling but not much for real fighting, unless its having their entourage beat up some hapless dissident. As for Islamic terrorists, I see no reason that they should be economicaly or geographically tied to that region.

[Trout]

This has all been a bit heavy, hasn't it?
Let's go back to arguing about fish and shouting "Moo" a lot.

- Trout

[Art]

It also should be added that if you're a Terrorist owning your own country seems to be a bit of a liability, as the Americans can drop bombs on it. Its much more easy and conveniant to either live in an inaccessable and backward part of the world that has an ineffectual governement that won't do much about you but at the same time won't permit the Americans to bomb you (Tribal Pakistan) or right in the heart of a western city (Finsbury Park).

[JimBob]

 Having previously said you cant predict history here is the hawkins guide to the next fifty years;

10-12 years - the next Depression - the economic straight jacket the EU are tied into leads to mass unemployment when the next major economic downturn happens. Germany pulls out and re-establishes the Mark to regain public confidence. The other nations limp along with the Euro before it's eventual collapse.

 Scotland becomes independent after the election of a Tory government based on almost purely English seats. Both countries gain in the short term.

 China does not become the roaring tiger economy predicted, during the depression it turns insular and a degree of sepratism begins in the regions, based on racial and language barriers.

 The USA remains united and powerful but after a series of disastrous guerrilla wars becomes more and more detatched from international relations, and the religous right gains in power, based on  white and black english speaking churches increasingly hostile to spanish speaking Catholic immigrants.

 Africa spirals into a dark age due toi the refusal of Governments to deal with the massively spread AIDS epidemic (and for something really scary look at the present SA Aids policy),

Russia lurches toward facism.

 Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic become 1st world states, the EUs refusal to allow them into the EU proving a benefit during the Depression, and there present education policies baring fruit.

 The middle East elite shifts to Europe as the oil wells dry up, robbing their increasingly desperate countries of weaklth that bneeds to be invested.

2030 the world is a more dangerous place with the Nation State resurgent .

 Probably completly wrong, but thats my guess.

[Art]

Cool weblinks for the dark future:

http://www.securityarms.com - memorise these weapons now.

http://www.infinitematrix.net/columns/sterling/ - Bruce Sterlings always seemed like a man with his finger on the pulse when it comes to hairy political situations.

[stodge]

good books that cover this kind of subject apart from the obvious tom clancy novels include the fantastic "total war 2006" by Simon Pearson.  i can heartily recommend this as a scary insight into what could happen in the near future.  it was first published in 1999 and it's quite scary how similar to real life it has been so far (in a kind of weak nostradamus kind of stylee).  anyway i love a good political world shattering thriller like that.  Patrick Robinson is also quite good but he tends to concentrate on the submarine warfare side of things with the odd US Navy SEAL thrown in (are there any out there that aren't odd i wonder?)

off to bed now as all this is quite obviously affecting my mind......wibble!!

[Art]

Ah... Navy SEALS.

When i was last in the states i bought a Navy SEALS hat and a big stack of gun-nut magazines. Sometimes I like to wear the hat and flick through the gun-pr0n between bouts of playing Counterstrike...

What? Weird? Me?

[The Amstor Computer]

Art - don't you belong in Spaced?

[Tu-plang]

"When i was last in the states i bought a Navy SEALS hat and a big stack of gun-nut magazines. Sometimes I like to wear the hat and flick through the gun-pr0n between bouts of playing Counterstrike..."

Wearing nothing but your pants and the hat of course, and although it's hard to use the keyboard and turn the pages, a pair of large red boxing gloves.  With a cigar.  Ah, the march of war..