NomadicSky
August 3rd, 2005, 04:56 AM
Standing at the front of a sparse classroom, the bearded professor looked out over the mixed group of students before him.
"Good morning, Students...", he croaked out in a voice too badly worn by too many hours of lecturing to too many young people with too few teachers to assist.
"Close your books. We are going to discuss yesterday's assignment...If you read what I assigned, you know we have a classic tale of self-indulgence...sad but not uncommon in world history.
Untill World War II, the United States had been little more than Victoria's lap dog, wandering aimlessly about the royal complex ever since her mistress had passed on. She had potential to be sure but she had neither the ability nor the desire to take a prominent position in the world. Her people lacked a strong self-image, too many Americans were still licking their wounds from the last great overseas debacle and from the years of deprivation and social chaos that had followed shortly thereafter.
It all changed that day in 1938 when Europe fell into another one of it's regular spasms of self hatred. As a result of the industrial and psychological adjustments required by American participation in that conflict, the United States not only showed herself to be a major player on the world stage, but even pre-empted her foster mother, England as the premier world power.
What followed was 60 years of unparalleled prosperity and cultural prominence.
That all came an abrupt end in September of 2009 when the Chinese finally allowed the Yuan to float on the world money markets.
Americans were a consumption mad people. They had arrived at the idea that the recycling of basic raw materials was of far greater economic value than the recycling of owners for their durable goods; cars, microwave ovens, TVs and the like. By the year 2000, almost everthing in America was made disposable; from telephones to clothes to cameras even major medical devices. they also created a nanreusable packaging materials in one year than the rest of the world had in recorded history. American soda cans and plastic shopping bags, those not mistaken for edibles by the denizens of the deep, came to litter the floors of all of Earth's oceans.
Americans also mistook their continusly growing domestic market to be the result of a kind of naive pride they called, "good old American know-how", and managed to completely overlook the expansion of sales and services resulting naturally from 250 years of unabated immigration.
During the late 20th century, inflation, high taxes and social instability in the United States, caused many of their most successful corporations to look for operational centers outside of the country. Asia and Latin America were the main beneficiaries of that exodus. Those giants of the business world who did remain within their parent nation adopted a policy of farming out their staples manufacturing to factories in those other parts of the world where production was high and wages were not. It made for a much better bottom line in their Profit and Loss statements and the stockholders all seemed to approve so long as the dividend checks were mailed on time.
By the year, 2007, it had become apparent that China, more than any other nation, had managed to make itself what the United States had been in the 1950s; the worlds primary supplier of diverse, inexpensive, and excellent quality consumer goods.
China was also a totalitarian state. Unlike the Western democracies and especially the United States, China had the ability to wield its economy as an effective sword of state. Consequently, from the mid 1990s untill 2007, China managed to grad the lion's share of the worlds consumer markets. It's biggest customer was the United States.
Several of the highly industrialized states, including the United States, began to chafe under the load of inexpensive goods they found themselves carrying in order to keep their economies rolling. It was clear that the reason Chinese goods had defield global pricing pressures for so long had a direct link to their control of the value of the Yuan. Unlike the other major world currencies, the Yuan was not allowed to find its parity with other world currencies.
By 2007, 2 out of every 5 consumer products sold in the United States, bearing American brand names, came from China.
Finally, in September of 2009, amid screams of, "unfair", "boycott", and "tariffs", from all over the world, China relented and gave its currency over to the caprice of the world money market.
Overnight the price of everything bearing the "made in China" stamp on it doubled in price. Everyday items like their popular tool sets went from $12.95 to $24.95. Automotive parts used by American manufacturers around the world raised the price of autos by an immediate 10%. Household appliances, radios, televisions and computers tripled in price as a result of the cheaper dollar and the drop in demand forced by the inevitable price jumps. A kitchen stove that had cost $350.00 was 1,100.00 in November. The American economy took a hit like it had not experienced in it's entire history.
Tens of thousands of borderline businesses those who had failed to hold onto their profits, closed their doors within six months. Massive unemployment followed. The economy declined further and even those businesses that had fully understood the meaning of profit were losing some from among themselves. Even major corporations proved not to be immune.
For the first time in 80 years, soup kitchens sprang up all over America. The poor and the destitute flooded the benevolence of those cities that had the means to help to the point that they no longer could offer so much as compassion. the homeless and starving vagrants, just bereft of their worldly goods, mostly by banks desperately trying to remain afloat, rioted in the streets when welfare services were finally withdrawn.
The great American fliration with what it had called Multi-culturalism floundered and finally fell in hail of gunfire that erupted at virtually every ethnic seam in the country.The bloodbath that followed on the heels of the disintegration of social order in the country continued for almost 20 years. It is estimated by conservative sources that 60% of the American endemic population died of starvation or violence during that time period.
As a result of the American insanity that reigned in the streets for that period of 20 years that we now call the Expulsion, and the absence of local control that resulted, the states of Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, and California are now part of the Mexican Republic. Our very own Free State of Colorado is now unaligned and 21 northern and northwestern states petitioned Canada for incorporation. Finally in 2021 the New England states formed the Union of New England, followed by the Federation of American States formed in 2022.
While stability has now returned to North America and law and order once more prevail, things are no longer as they were at the end of the 20th century. China, thinking it could survive an American collapse, had made no provision for the dramatic loss of demand for its products. What occurred there and in Europe pretty much mirrored what took place on this continent.
OK, And comments or questions?"
One young man raised his hand for recognition.
"Mr. Fulton, isn't it?"
"Yes, sir...I was wondering if we could all have a break now," "I need to feed my horse and then my dad me I have to come home to help with the shocking. We're cutting wheat today."
"Sure," the dismayed professor responded. How was he expected to teach these children anything when they didn't even attend school regularly, he mused. "It's late,...it's almost noon... let's call it a day for today and I will see those of you tomorrow, who can make it in. You're excused."
"Good morning, Students...", he croaked out in a voice too badly worn by too many hours of lecturing to too many young people with too few teachers to assist.
"Close your books. We are going to discuss yesterday's assignment...If you read what I assigned, you know we have a classic tale of self-indulgence...sad but not uncommon in world history.
Untill World War II, the United States had been little more than Victoria's lap dog, wandering aimlessly about the royal complex ever since her mistress had passed on. She had potential to be sure but she had neither the ability nor the desire to take a prominent position in the world. Her people lacked a strong self-image, too many Americans were still licking their wounds from the last great overseas debacle and from the years of deprivation and social chaos that had followed shortly thereafter.
It all changed that day in 1938 when Europe fell into another one of it's regular spasms of self hatred. As a result of the industrial and psychological adjustments required by American participation in that conflict, the United States not only showed herself to be a major player on the world stage, but even pre-empted her foster mother, England as the premier world power.
What followed was 60 years of unparalleled prosperity and cultural prominence.
That all came an abrupt end in September of 2009 when the Chinese finally allowed the Yuan to float on the world money markets.
Americans were a consumption mad people. They had arrived at the idea that the recycling of basic raw materials was of far greater economic value than the recycling of owners for their durable goods; cars, microwave ovens, TVs and the like. By the year 2000, almost everthing in America was made disposable; from telephones to clothes to cameras even major medical devices. they also created a nanreusable packaging materials in one year than the rest of the world had in recorded history. American soda cans and plastic shopping bags, those not mistaken for edibles by the denizens of the deep, came to litter the floors of all of Earth's oceans.
Americans also mistook their continusly growing domestic market to be the result of a kind of naive pride they called, "good old American know-how", and managed to completely overlook the expansion of sales and services resulting naturally from 250 years of unabated immigration.
During the late 20th century, inflation, high taxes and social instability in the United States, caused many of their most successful corporations to look for operational centers outside of the country. Asia and Latin America were the main beneficiaries of that exodus. Those giants of the business world who did remain within their parent nation adopted a policy of farming out their staples manufacturing to factories in those other parts of the world where production was high and wages were not. It made for a much better bottom line in their Profit and Loss statements and the stockholders all seemed to approve so long as the dividend checks were mailed on time.
By the year, 2007, it had become apparent that China, more than any other nation, had managed to make itself what the United States had been in the 1950s; the worlds primary supplier of diverse, inexpensive, and excellent quality consumer goods.
China was also a totalitarian state. Unlike the Western democracies and especially the United States, China had the ability to wield its economy as an effective sword of state. Consequently, from the mid 1990s untill 2007, China managed to grad the lion's share of the worlds consumer markets. It's biggest customer was the United States.
Several of the highly industrialized states, including the United States, began to chafe under the load of inexpensive goods they found themselves carrying in order to keep their economies rolling. It was clear that the reason Chinese goods had defield global pricing pressures for so long had a direct link to their control of the value of the Yuan. Unlike the other major world currencies, the Yuan was not allowed to find its parity with other world currencies.
By 2007, 2 out of every 5 consumer products sold in the United States, bearing American brand names, came from China.
Finally, in September of 2009, amid screams of, "unfair", "boycott", and "tariffs", from all over the world, China relented and gave its currency over to the caprice of the world money market.
Overnight the price of everything bearing the "made in China" stamp on it doubled in price. Everyday items like their popular tool sets went from $12.95 to $24.95. Automotive parts used by American manufacturers around the world raised the price of autos by an immediate 10%. Household appliances, radios, televisions and computers tripled in price as a result of the cheaper dollar and the drop in demand forced by the inevitable price jumps. A kitchen stove that had cost $350.00 was 1,100.00 in November. The American economy took a hit like it had not experienced in it's entire history.
Tens of thousands of borderline businesses those who had failed to hold onto their profits, closed their doors within six months. Massive unemployment followed. The economy declined further and even those businesses that had fully understood the meaning of profit were losing some from among themselves. Even major corporations proved not to be immune.
For the first time in 80 years, soup kitchens sprang up all over America. The poor and the destitute flooded the benevolence of those cities that had the means to help to the point that they no longer could offer so much as compassion. the homeless and starving vagrants, just bereft of their worldly goods, mostly by banks desperately trying to remain afloat, rioted in the streets when welfare services were finally withdrawn.
The great American fliration with what it had called Multi-culturalism floundered and finally fell in hail of gunfire that erupted at virtually every ethnic seam in the country.The bloodbath that followed on the heels of the disintegration of social order in the country continued for almost 20 years. It is estimated by conservative sources that 60% of the American endemic population died of starvation or violence during that time period.
As a result of the American insanity that reigned in the streets for that period of 20 years that we now call the Expulsion, and the absence of local control that resulted, the states of Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, and California are now part of the Mexican Republic. Our very own Free State of Colorado is now unaligned and 21 northern and northwestern states petitioned Canada for incorporation. Finally in 2021 the New England states formed the Union of New England, followed by the Federation of American States formed in 2022.
While stability has now returned to North America and law and order once more prevail, things are no longer as they were at the end of the 20th century. China, thinking it could survive an American collapse, had made no provision for the dramatic loss of demand for its products. What occurred there and in Europe pretty much mirrored what took place on this continent.
OK, And comments or questions?"
One young man raised his hand for recognition.
"Mr. Fulton, isn't it?"
"Yes, sir...I was wondering if we could all have a break now," "I need to feed my horse and then my dad me I have to come home to help with the shocking. We're cutting wheat today."
"Sure," the dismayed professor responded. How was he expected to teach these children anything when they didn't even attend school regularly, he mused. "It's late,...it's almost noon... let's call it a day for today and I will see those of you tomorrow, who can make it in. You're excused."