Hmm, very good question. For me the POD is 1987. A lot could go wrong there. I'll choose a few thoughts that come to mind but the list of possible factors for chaos is endless.
I guess there's the classic case of Soviet Union collapse being handled worse than it already was and having some of the coups which failed in OTL succeeding, perhaps the military leaders who would come into power, rule with more carelessness than Yeltsin did.
I think the US economic recession which in turn affected the world economy greatly, started when I was born. Failure by reserve banks and government to control the impacts of the recession adequately would lead to worse-off world. In developed nations, more people will feel the financial squeeze which means housing would become less affordable, everyday groceries and utilities become more expensive. Unemployment may raise which means more people on the dole. For people on the lower socio-economic scale, it means a lot tougher times, possible eviction, homelessness, no healthcare, extreme hunger if not total famine. In developing nations, rampant recessions means more people live in abject poverty possibly suffering mass famine, more civil strife, spreading of diseases.
Then you have either the Tianamen protests going out of control with news of it reaching other major urban centres. More protest mean either a stronger crackdown on dissidents by the PLA and the Chinese Government. This could halt the economic and social opening of China, this will not only affect China but in the long run, the global economy. if the protests succeed, their message could reach the countryside which suffer from constant corruption and inequality. Widespread chaos, possible overthrow of the Communists, unstable leadership as possible replacement.
Islamic fundamentalist and terrorist organisations receiving more funding somehow and accelerating the spread of their ideas across not only the Muslim world but the western community.
As I said, a lot more could go wrong, my grasp of the bigger picture and minutiae of history isn't that great, so I can't think of much at the moment.