The Future?

[DominusNovus]

What do you guys see happening in the next 10, 20, whatever years in the future?

In North America?
In South America?
In Europe?
Africa?
Middle East?
India?
Rest of Asia?
Oceania?

If you're wondering why I'm asking, I'm working on a future TL.

[Hendryk]

I don't have time to go into details at the moment, but you may find elements in my thread "A giant rises" that could be of interest to you.
A very short answer:
South America: Brasil becomes regional power; MERCOSUR evolves towards EU-style integration (with many bumps and snags); growing independence from US influence, although outmigration to North America continues until birthrates stabilize in the 2040s or so.
Europe: EU has 32 member states, including Turkey. Negociations underway with Ukraine and Belarus. Still not functioning to everyone's satisfaction, but creaking along regardless. Large Arab, African and Asian minorities slowly find their place, changing host societies in the process. Russian population decreases rapidly, most of the country East of the Urals is virtually depopulated and quietly resettled by Asian (esp. Chinese) immigrants.
Africa: still chaotic, underdeveloped and wracked by disease. Whole territories de facto controlled by transnational firms, much of the rest uncontrollable. Some places do better than others, including South Africa. Nigeria a wannabe regional power, but at constant risk of civil war between the Muslim North and the Christian South.
Middle East: the way things are going, I'm not even sure Israel will be around 30 years from now. Iran and Syria have democratized, Iraq is a failed state, Saudi Arabia is in a civil war, Pakistan is disintegrating in slow motion.
India: richer, more developed, more powerful, asserting its regional influence. Lots of people remain in poverty, and the scarcity of land and resources put huge pressure on the environment.
Rest of Asia: China a superpower in its own right, slowly catching up with the US and reconstituting its traditional sphere of influence. Korea reunified after fall of North Korean regime. Japan still prosperous, but aging and in growing need of foreign manpower, creating social strains.
Oceania: Indonesia democratic and becoming more developed, but endemic Islamist activism a constant problem. Australia and NZ: no big changes.

[Hendryk]

My previous post seems not to have been taken into account by the system. A bug? I hope it does appear anyway.

[Torqumada]

I thought we were already living in the future.

Torqumada

[Adam Parsons]

I thought we were already living in the future.

If we are, then where's my goddamn flying car? AND my own personal android?

[Alayta]

This question should be asked on a regular basis, so wee could look what a bullshit we wrote some month ago :)

North Aamerica
nothing much will change, USA will have problems to understand their decline of jpower in the world. some minor wars could be the outcome. like posing in some rigional african war or something.

south america
Decline of whites. indians and creols will gain more and more power (see bolivia, columbia). I could see a border-crossing grassroot-union between this indigenic people.

Europe
nothing much will change. europe has gotten used to play a declining role in the world. economy will come back. EU will enlarge further.

Africa
very intresting and butterfllies, oh my god!!! Is densly conected to questions of relligion. All over the world, the old borders deriving from colonialism will be rearragen (Iraq will be first!!! it will fall apaart!) Africa is the first region where this development takes place in large scale. Wars for sure.

Middle East
??????????????????????????????????????????????

need a break

[Faeelin]

This question should be asked on a regular basis, so wee could look what a bullshit we wrote some month ago :)

North Aamerica
nothing much will change, USA will have problems to understand their decline of jpower in the world. some minor wars could be the outcome. like posing in some rigional african war or something.


Umm, not to be a jingoistic patriotic American, but declining to whom?

[Dave Howery]

hmm... I predict....

there will be trouble in the middle east.

Pakistan and India will have a troubled border.

Democrats and Republicans will argue about lots of stuff in the US.

and Europe will be taken over by a fanatic cult of people who believe that extraterrestrials have visited them and told them all about a better way of life that involves such things as ritual flagellation and worshipping caterpillars, and the cult will be taken over by a demagogic madman who will use his power to build huge armies and navies and become a threat to the entire world that will be ended only by a coalition of the US, China, Australia, Canada, and Ecuador.

OK, not sure about the first 3, but the last one is a sure thing....

[Abdul Hadi Pasha]

What do you guys see happening in the next 10, 20, whatever years in the future?

In North America?
In South America?
In Europe?
Africa?
Middle East?
India?
Rest of Asia?
Oceania?

If you're wondering why I'm asking, I'm working on a future TL.

It depends on who wins the election. If it's Kerry, all of the above are going to Hell.

[DominusNovus]

Well, play around with this while I'm gone. China might not be as well off as Hendryk suggests. I could see a civil war going on there in awhile.

Also, what do you guys think about progress (social, political, religious, technological, etc.)?

[Leo Caesius]

China has been pretty good at exporting its dissidents and unassimilated minorities. Boston is full of Tibetans and former supporters of the ROC (Chinatown is full of ROC flags right now, and not all of the people in Chinatown are from Taiwan). I used to walk past Wang Dan, formerly the most visible of the student protestors at Tiananmin, every day on my way to work. He works in the building next to mine.

Could China be dissolved in a civil war? It's possible though unlikely. The Chinese haven't had it this good in nearly half a millennium. Things are getting better every day. As long as that continues to be the case, nobody is going to try and throw that away for a multi-party system or to have their own piddling little separatist nation.

At any rate, political boundaries are going to blur, and stateless groups like Microsoft, the United Nations, and al-Qaeda will start commanding an even greater allegiance than nationalism did in the 20th century. I'm not saying that internationalism will be the norm; far from it. I believe that people will start to identify more and more with the companies or organizations for which they work, and in the 21st century these organizations/companies are going to be fewer in number and more multi-national than they ever were before. The nation state is going to start relinquishing more and more power to these entities.

As far as religious progress, I see non-standard counter-cultural religions making headway in the next century. The 20th century put the lie to the belief that religion was becoming obsolete, but the 21st century will probably reveal the Catholic Church and various mainstream Protestant denominations becoming steadily more calcified and more obsolete. I expect big things from the Mormons, Falun Dafa, Sufi sects like the Jilani, people like Sai Baba, and so on. There will probably also be more ecumenical councils, although I very much suspect that they will result to nothing. With any luck, Islam will gradually come to be viewed as commonplace and reactionary as Catholicism is today.

As for social developments, expect a radical redefinition of interpersonal relationships. Structures like the family and traditional marriage will continue to exist, but they will probably change drastically before anyone starts to notice that they aren't what they used to be. I'm not suggesting that anything like Same-Sex Marriage will ever be commonplace (in fact, I think the current phenomenon is largely a fad) but that traditional marriage will be happening less and less often.

[Leo Caesius]

Oh, and things are going to slide - slide in all directions. There won't be nothing you can measure any more.

[atreides]

It depends on who wins the election. If it's Kerry, all of the above are going to Hell.

And that's because...?

[Straha]

Kerry reminds me too much of henry wallace

[Imajin]

What I think may happen in the future...

In North America?
Nothing really, US, Canada, and Mexico are all likely to remain stable, democratic, yay.. Maybe Cuba's communist regime falls apart when (or if) Fidel dies...
In South America?
Expect Brazil to become a dominating power in the region, and for it to remain stable...
In Europe?
European Union grows, Belarus becomes democratic, European Union slowly becomes a "One-Europe" state...
Africa?
Not really sure.. maybe some boundaries are adjusted from old colonial days, maybe some dictator massacres a minority.. I don't know enough about the region to be sure...
Middle East?
I'm optimistic enough to say that Afghanistan, at least, becomes a stable democracy.. The Islamic Republic of Iran becomes simply the Republic of Iran, a democratic state, Little change in Syria, Israel either a. Resorts to ethnic cleansing in the West Bank or b. Establishes a weak Palestine. Lebanon is forced to cede much of it's Muslim territory to Syria, and becomes a majority-Christian state, and finally stabilizes. Pakistan and India finally have a "Kashmir War", which ends after India uses a nuclear bomb on Pakistan's capital before Pakistan drops the bomb, weak Pakistani government calls for a truce, Pakistan degenerates into civil war.
India?
War with Pakistan over Kashmir, which India will win..
Rest of Asia?
The People's Republic of China eventually becomes Democratic, though very slowly, and remianing Communist officialy. Many of the communist states in the region die out, Korea reunified. Republic of China unable to decide to link up with democratic PRC, or stay ROC..
Oceania?
Indonesia stabilizes, but eventually independence movements break it apart. Australia and New Zealand remain stable..

[NapoleonXIV]

It depends on who wins the election. If it's Kerry, all of the above are going to Hell.

And if its Bush, they'll all be okay.

However, the US will become a theocratic garrison state where a Christian based Taliban will ban sex entirely as it might lead to abortions and blow up Mt Rushmore.

[Stalin]

North America
The United States I see increasingly becoming a corporate right-wing one party state. Mexico could return to PRI or some sort of neo-Populism. Canada will remain as socialistic as ever, and the cultural divide between it and the US will continue to increase. Illegal Immigration will become more of an issue as Terrorism, concern over criminal activity (i.e. drug trafficking, gangs, etc.), and more concern over (exploitive) migrant labor all continue to increase. In general I see the US continuing to shift right, much to the distaste of the rest of the world.

Latin America
A bit tough to call, but I see Latin America basically keeping up at least a pretense of democracy. Maybe socialistic populism or third way politics will continue to dominate, or else will fade away and be replaced by something altogether. Venezuela is probably going to be a dictatorship, but then anyone who’s picked up a newspaper knows that Chavez is a bit too close to Fidel. Colombia will probably continue going right, given Uribe’s success and popularity. As for the rest… Who really knows?

Europe
I can see things getting considerably more tense than right now. The EU is definitely a major force in politics, but Eastern Europe and Turkey are hopelessly behind their western counterparts. And most of Western Europe’s welfare entitlements will probably implode due to the aging population. Of course, this is completely ignoring the growth of various extremist movements (neo-Nazs, the left in some areas, etc.).

Africa
I see the complete collapse of most of its already highly unstable, kleptocratic governments. I can see population crashes due to AIDS continuing to grow, along with famines and the usual problems the third world has. Nigeria, South Africa, and a few other states might get their acts together, but otherwise this continent will be even more depressing than it is now.

Middle East

This will continue to be an Islamist breeding ground. Parts of Africa will prove a nice breeding ground for Islamist extremism, and certain regimes (Saudi Arabia, Iran, etc.) have a high chance of being replaced by radical or more radical theocratic regimes. Probably more wars and misery, caused by many not-so-young angry males.

Asia
I can see China slowing down somewhat, or else have an economic meltdown. Japan may go downhill fast, given the aging population, still lukewarm economy and lack of land (and of course they're right near North Korea). North Korea I see as imploding soon, whether or not that’s from internal collapse or (nuclear) war obviously remains to be seen. Vietnam, Laos, etc. all will continue to be more capitalistic nations. Singapore and other states will probably remain the same. I have no idea what India and Pakistan are going to be like.

Summary: Expect more chaos, significantly less democratic nations (US, various Latin American nations, possibly Japan), and more extremism in general.

[Alayta]

Umm, not to be a jingoistic patriotic American, but declining to whom?

Oh, to noone special, just relativly. Could be wrong anyway :)


For sure it is going to be an exiting world in the next 20 years and I am extremly curious about it.
Espacially i´d like to think about what tecnologies will be at hand then?
10 years ago the cellphone was a strange thing, and now....

I bet some on-body-internet-device will be the thing to have by 2020.

[Steffen]

North America: remaines most powerful economical and political body of the world.

India and China raise to more power. China tries for a leading regional power of south east asia, looks with hungry eyes north to siberia and with worried eyes to north Korea.

Africa still blames everything on the former colonist powers, so nothing changes.

The EU will have its own seat on the Security Council of the UN, which will become a major embarrassment in a embarrassment-rich environment as the EU will often have to abstain from the vote as it internally does not come to a coherent policy.

EU will dissolve back to a economical free-trade area as the admission of turkey together with the negotionations with the maghreb states makes the poltical and social union untenable.

[Faeelin]

I'm not suggesting that anything like Same-Sex Marriage will ever be commonplace (in fact, I think the current phenomenon is largely a fad) but that traditional marriage will be happening less and less often.

Intersting- why so?

[Leo Caesius]

People are more mobile and more independent than ever. Plus, at least in the US, failed marriages are commonplace. Over the last century, we've seen a radical redefinition of marriage from a largely economic contract between two individuals (occasionally complete strangers, made without either's consent) to a sort of "committment ceremony" that signals the willingness of two individuals to enter into a monogamous sexual relationship and occasionally (but not always) pool their economic resources.

One of the original functions for marriage was to provide economic security for women. Women are completely capable of providing their own security today. Many, in fact, have no interest in jeopardizing it by sharing their lives with another person. That's why we have prenups.

Also, traditional marriage can be quite expensive. Not only does it close windows of opportunity for individuals (by forcing them to settle down in one particular area and raise children, as opposed to taking that job in Tucson), but it can be economically devastating when, as is often the case, two individuals decide to dissolve their marriage.

For these reasons, people are getting married later and later, if at all. It has little (if anything) to do with Gay Rights. George Bush's stubborn insistence that gays are trying to radically redefine marriage makes about as much sense as his contention that lawyers are the greatest threat to American health care. It's a nod to one or the other of his bases, which doesn't stand up to the facts.

That's why I don't think Gay Marriage is more than a fad. Over the next hundred years, I suspect that marriages will become a kind of ritual that traditionally-minded individuals will take part in - like religious confirmations or debutante balls. The more wealthy will continue to have flashy, show-off wedding ceremonies, but I suspect that more and more people will be willing to forego such luxuries as they struggle to make ends meet.

[Leej]

India should become a developed nation within the next 50 years at least and will become a major power.
China will become a democratic nation one way or the other, hopefully its population will sort out somehow
The EU will become even more of a big united country

[Justin Green]

Africa: Sadly I think that many, many Africans are going to die, and the collapse of half of Sub-sahara afraca. Eventually, the divide between the infected and uninfected will grow so much that people with HIV-AIDS are forced to wear a mark and possibly forced into detention camps.

I guess the only good thing is that when most people with AIDS are dead, Africa might be able to make a fresh start. With less people (probably the more educated as well) Africa can recover.

[Robert Sullivan]

This question is trivial. After all, the way the world's going, we're probably not going to have a future.

[DominusNovus]

Anyone interested in collaborating on a Future History? Please? :cool:

[Stalin]

Anyone interested in collaborating on a Future History? Please? :cool:

I'd consider it. What do you have in mind?

[Straha]

I could offer suggestions

[DominusNovus]

I'd consider it. What do you have in mind?
Basicly, we divide it up by months, and discuss what we want to happen for each month, agree to something, then post it for that month (I'm thinking of beginning the TL in Jan '05, so it starts with the term of whoever we decide to win the US election). The only thing I'm going to insist on including is we discover some wormholes, to jumpstart interstellar exploration. Other than that, we can just kind do whatever we want. Of course, I have my own ideas of what I'd like.

-Democratic Party collapses. Republican shifts left (populist), Libertarian fills void.
-Something interesting and violent involving Russia and China. I'm thinking a sort of "warring states" period in China, some of which expand into Siberia, taking advantage of likely russian weakness.
-On similar lines, some sort of WWIII. Possibly connected to the Chinese situation.

[Hendryk]

Basicly, we divide it up by months, and discuss what we want to happen for each month, agree to something, then post it for that month (I'm thinking of beginning the TL in Jan '05, so it starts with the term of whoever we decide to win the US election). The only thing I'm going to insist on including is we discover some wormholes, to jumpstart interstellar exploration. Other than that, we can just kind do whatever we want. Of course, I have my own ideas of what I'd like.

-Democratic Party collapses. Republican shifts left (populist), Libertarian fills void.
-Something interesting and violent involving Russia and China. I'm thinking a sort of "warring states" period in China, some of which expand into Siberia, taking advantage of likely russian weakness.
-On similar lines, some sort of WWIII. Possibly connected to the Chinese situation.
I`m back (online I mean), and ready to provide input where China is concerned. Go easy on it though, as the one sinophile on this forum I have to stand up for 1,300 million people...

[Leo Caesius]

I`m back (online I mean), and ready to provide input where China is concerned. Go easy on it though, as the one sinophile on this forum I have to stand up for 1,300 million people...
Typical Orientalist. :D I'm quite sure that Melvin Loh's Chinese, and kitjed23 mentioned having an ancestor from SEAsia. I'm sure there are probably Chinese lurkers as well. Certainly these people can stand up for themselves?

(Mind the smiley please. I should be the last person to be accuse another of Orientalism, given that I've been a member in good standing of the American Oriental Society since 1998.).

[Kit]

and kitjed23 mentioned having an ancestor from SEAsia.

Yes, but not ethnically Malysian, I think. Probably. Maybe.

[Kit]

It was a long time ago and the familty history of the 19th century is a little vague.

[Stalin]

Basicly, we divide it up by months, and discuss what we want to happen for each month, agree to something, then post it for that month (I'm thinking of beginning the TL in Jan '05, so it starts with the term of whoever we decide to win the US election). The only thing I'm going to insist on including is we discover some wormholes, to jumpstart interstellar exploration. Other than that, we can just kind do whatever we want. Of course, I have my own ideas of what I'd like.

-Democratic Party collapses. Republican shifts left (populist), Libertarian fills void.
-Something interesting and violent involving Russia and China. I'm thinking a sort of "warring states" period in China, some of which expand into Siberia, taking advantage of likely russian weakness.
-On similar lines, some sort of WWIII. Possibly connected to the Chinese situation.

That sounds good, however the bit about Libertarians even coming close to replacing the Dems sounds completely ludicrous. The system in the US is already rigged against third parties enough as it is, if the Dems ever took power at best we'd see the GOP splitting up into two parties (a "moderate" party and a more "right wing" one). Or else we'd see the GOP adopting a mutant-strain of right-wing ideology ("compassionate conservatism," "neo-conservatism," etc.), while continuing to pay lip service to keeping some social services around (to not completely alienate people, favoring corporations even more so than currently).

[Abdul Hadi Pasha]

North America
The United States I see increasingly becoming a corporate right-wing one party state.

I assume you see that as a good thing. This makes me sad, but you are still young.

The EU is definitely a major force in politics, but Eastern Europe and Turkey are hopelessly behind their western counterparts.

Eastern Europe and Turkey are not hopelessly behind their Western counterparts, and are far, far ahead of the West in economic development rates.

[Stalin]

Eastern Europe and Turkey are not hopelessly behind their Western counterparts, and are far, far ahead of the West in economic development rates.


True. But look at Russia (still struggling economically, more centralized and autocratic than it has been in years, obviously they have problems in Chechnya), Ukraine (corrupt and resistant to privatization), Latvia (poor communications infrastructure according to the CIA, budget deficits) and Moldova (recovering, but heavily dependent on agriculture). Those all seem like major problems to me.

As for Turkey: Their reputation for torture, problems with the Kurds, and the Islamist sympathies in a lot of Turks make me pessimistic. Its true that they’ve made efforts at reforming all of that and the economy is on an upswing, but that could change. In general, I do think there are a lot of backward elements in the country.

[DominusNovus]

That sounds good, however the bit about Libertarians even coming close to replacing the Dems sounds completely ludicrous. The system in the US is already rigged against third parties enough as it is, if the Dems ever took power at best we'd see the GOP splitting up into two parties (a "moderate" party and a more "right wing" one). Or else we'd see the GOP adopting a mutant-strain of right-wing ideology ("compassionate conservatism," "neo-conservatism," etc.), while continuing to pay lip service to keeping some social services around (to not completely alienate people, favoring corporations even more so than currently).
You misunderstood me. The Libertarians aren't going to replace the Dems, really. Basicly, it goes like this:
1) Dems keep losing
2) Dems fade away
3) Reps become dominant party, shifts to left
4) Reps split up
5) One faction of the Reps joins with the Libertarians.

In essence, the Republicans become the Democrats, and the Libertarians become the Republicans.

[czarist]

what about a WAR b/w INDIA and CHINA

hey hey!

[Stalin]

You misunderstood me. The Libertarians aren't going to replace the Dems, really. Basicly, it goes like this:
1) Dems keep losing
2) Dems fade away
3) Reps become dominant party, shifts to left
4) Reps split up
5) One faction of the Reps joins with the Libertarians.

In essence, the Republicans become the Democrats, and the Libertarians become the Republicans.

I still don't see it happening. The GOP is under the control of the oil/lumber industry, corporations, “free market” think tanks, etc. Plus Bill Clinton ending “welfare as we know it” while talking about the “end of the big government era” seems like a pretty good indication that "economic liberalism" has been crippled even with "Liberal Democrats" still around. What's more likely is that corporate welfare, some form of protectionism, and/or Corporatism masquerades as "economic populism."

[Leo Caesius]

It's likely that the federal government will continue to devolve more and more of its responsibilities to corporations - and pass more and more taxpayer dollars to these corporations in the process - while marketing this ongoing corporate give-away as a kind of "restoration" of "economic freedom" to the people. Instead of having the federal government running things, they'll have corporate robber barons running things. Taxes will never go down - they may, in fact, go up as we find ourselves paying off all of our various debts - but services will become more expensive as the corporations divy up the world and trusts are formed.

[Kit]

It's likely that the federal government will continue to devolve more and more of its responsibilities to corporations - and pass more and more taxpayer dollars to these corporations in the process - while marketing this ongoing corporate give-away as a kind of "restoration" of "economic freedom" to the people. Instead of having the federal government running things, they'll have corporate robber barons running things. Taxes will never go down - they may, in fact, go up as we find ourselves paying off all of our various debts - but services will become more expensive as the corporations divy up the world and trusts are formed.

Sounds like a Kim Stanley Robinson dystopia.

[czarist]

It's likely that the federal government will continue to devolve more and more of its responsibilities to corporations - and pass more and more taxpayer dollars to these corporations in the process - while marketing this ongoing corporate give-away as a kind of "restoration" of "economic freedom" to the people. Instead of having the federal government running things, they'll have corporate robber barons running things. Taxes will never go down - they may, in fact, go up as we find ourselves paying off all of our various debts - but services will become more expensive as the corporations divy up the world and trusts are formed.
i can't tell if youre serious or not but
a) how can you NOT be a fullfledged leftist if you are
b)wouldn't "commie" europe either stop this from happening or splinter off, so we'd have extremely strained opposing sides (another cold war of sorts, maybe not nearly so harsh i dunno) b/w economically "liberated" 'west' (east??? i dunno) of say us-china-india-russia vs. economically "oppressed" europe, altho most likely one of china-india-russia would join the euro side cuz otherwise they'd be overwhelmed

[Leo Caesius]

I'm very serious, and I think that this is happening all over the world. Look at Russia if you want to see a good example of it in action.

I honestly don't see how the European government(s) could stand up to increasing corporate power. They themselves often act in with the best interests of European businesses in mind. As corporations grow more powerful (thanks, in part, to the help they're getting from us) they'll demand a bigger piece of the pie. Unless Europe goes completely Communist (fat chance) they'll be powerless to prevent this.

[czarist]

you're probably right, i'm really not clear if the euros actually are (lets say) "fairer" than the us or if they're just as self-interested as everybody else (and youre also probably right about them having to give in even if they are)

[czarist]

but like i said supposing they really did believe in "democratic socialism" and us keeps sliding right and corporate power & "mcdonaldization" just grows and grows and they view this as a threat to their system or way of life its not impossible that they would be able to woo a more developed new-superpower to their side as they polarize us as "fascistic" and we polarize them as "communistic"

but who knows

[DominusNovus]

1) We need a cool name for the TL.

2) I had this cool idea for a technological advance. I call it the Phalanx System. Basicly, you take a bunch of soldiers, and turn them into semi-Borgs (as in the bad guys from Star Trek). So, you give them some implants, mainly to their nervous system. Then, network them. So, all their actions are coordinated. They'd all be fed all the information that every other soldier on the network is receiving (so, in the back of their head, they'd get a fairly comprehensive view of the battlefield). Equally cool (from a writer's perspective) is that they'd probably have a really hard time adjusting after their tour of duty is up.

3) While musing on this, it occured to me that we'll probably see an increase in individual potential over the coming decades. I can see a "Gattaca" type scenario, where we are able to customize the genes of our children. Just as in the movie, its likely that not everyone will decide to do this. However, rather than forming a new underclass, these "naturals" might decide to incorporate some technological upgrades and become cyborgs or cyborged (using Orion's Arm terminology, someone who's cyborged is basicly just improved with the technology but can survive if its removed, while a true cyborg can't). I'm sure there will be those who choose neither course. But they'll likely be the minority, resulting in an interesting factionalization between the others.


Any ides from you guys?

[Straha]

I see the GOP ruling without serious opposition for over a decade. The dems would probably vanish and be replaced with a hard right splinter party. Lets call this party "Homeland".

[Grey Wolf]

I see the GOP ruling without serious opposition for over a decade. The dems would probably vanish and be replaced with a hard right splinter party. Lets call this party "Homeland".

Straha that doesn't make sense. Left-of-centre people just don't disappear and they certainly aren't about to go and join the fucking GOP

Grey Wolf

[Landshark]

Left-of-centre people just don't disappear

Give Tom and his guys at DHS time to get into their stride.

[DominusNovus]

So any ideas on a cool name? Any interest in it?

[euio]

China will grow larger.

[Cockroach]

China will grow larger.
Okay you bloody nOOb... could you stop this thread necromancy this instant? Or at the very least could the make a more interesting contribution than a one line statement of the obvious.

[BlackMage]

Okay you bloody nOOb... could you stop this thread necromancy this instant? Or at the very least could the make a more interesting contribution than a one line statement of the obvious.

A most Sinowankery statement of the obvious, at that. But then again, such behaviour has never been observed on our board before, especially not by late lamented members...

[JP_Morgan]

United States:will remain the same, but will probably withdraw from it's dominance in international affairs. As long as the Latinos are happy, I don't see any threat from Aztlan seperatists, Rest of NA: I expect Cuba to remain under Comm. control, since the opposition to the regime is in exile, and is unlikely to gain anymore support as they die of

South America:Definitely will democratize and integrate further

Europe:the Eu will become more integrated, and Ukraine may end up joining. But Belerus is likely to rejoin Russia.

Middle East:Who knows? We don't even know if Iraq will stay together if we leave.

Africa:somewhat more stable than in the past century, but poverty and lack of edcation may keep it from being more prosperous

east Asia:can't say of the likelihood of the Two koreas reuniting, if the current nuclear crisis abates, probably not. China will stay together as long as they don't default on bad bank loans

[Communist Wizard]

NA- The U.S. will generally fade, but not completely. Cba will stay more or less Communist, especially since the whole embargo thing ends... Mexico may become more populist.
SA- Brazil becomes a power in the region, much to the anger of pundits in the rest of SA at being ruled over by Portugese speakers. Argentina might benefit from this.
EU- EU will most likely go up in momentum, get more members, finally reach a peak, then crash back to being a economic organisation. Russia will go back into power in East Europe, and unite with some of the more Russophile republics (Belarus, Kazachstan, etc.) and weild some power over the rest (Ukraine, baltics, Caucasus). Russia will most likely go in with China.
AF- Just generally more warfare, epidemics, etc. and more depressing. South Africa will start being a regional power, as will Egypt and Nigeria. China's interests, however, will probably make some allies for China. India will be making forays into this place too...
AS- General growth of Russia, China, and India. China will become a bit more democratic, but still socialist. Probably will turn Soc-Dem. India might grow a bit to the right instead... Japan will die down. Korea will unify, but it will be extremely painfull... Chinese help will be needed.
OC- More or less peace. Australia is still dominant. Perhaps union with Australia, because of moderate global warming...