For a Gore Prosperous Tomorrow
- Thread starter CountDVB
- Start date
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- 9/11 al gore alternate 2000s
With Li Keqiang taking control of China, I suspect those changes involve the introduction of Chinese-style capitalism to the hermit kingdom.
I imagine those "various others" include anyone else the Li Administration is interested in purging, and also that the anti-corruption campaigns pick up steam a bit earlier.
I imagine those "various others" include anyone else the Li Administration is interested in purging, and also that the anti-corruption campaigns pick up steam a bit earlier.
From what I read, Li Keqiang is pretty all right though he won’t really take the reins until March.
Meanwhile, the chaos in China is gonna make what happened in North Korea even more problematic.
Recall what was going on early 2013...
Okay, 2013, 2013....
It's not Hong Kong Umbrella Movement, that was later. Olympics was 2012. Is that when North Korea cracked that mountain?
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Yup, when North Korea decided to start talking shit and puffing its chest around...
I have a sense that it is about to backfire heavily, maybe even literally.
Well, let's see what will happen. We do have a McCain Administration in need of something to feed to their constinuents as the Recession drags on with little improvement because their polices of tax cuts for rich do jack diddly do.
McCain Administration- Winter 2013
Winter 2013
"The American Taxpayer Relief Act ... seriously?"
"All those people in Brazil..."
"And now we have a new Pope..."
With McCain being sworn in, the time for more action for the Great Recession has come. More and more people are calling loudly for action and the McCain Administration has been working in on try to estasblish in a relief for the people after the last stimualtion package did not work. While support for the McCain Administration for his successes abroad have been helpful for the campaign trail, the worsening economic troubles would not be blunted for long. Furthermore, Senator Sanders has been getting more attention for his rhetoric in regards about bailing out the banks that have caused caused the Recession in the first place along with calling for increased coverage on Medicare for everyone along with higher wages. While the Dems have regain some of their seats, they are experiencing greater turmoil within the party as the progressive wing of the Democrat party has been starting to get reignited and pushing more from the rest, especially with the Blue Dogs having joined the Republican Party (even if it was out of calls to help make sure the GOP remains "moderate." While the ATR Act would be another example of bipartisan compromise, the dissatisfication coming from both parties highlighted the tensions of what laid beneath it. Many sense that the clock is ticking for a lot of groups though others wonder what the McCain Administration will do. One thing that is becoming certain is that the future elections will be mired in more notable elections.
Political cartoon about the fiscal cliff debates
Meanwhile, across the world, other troubles were brewing over. Either from self-contained incidents or the result of years of neglect over time. One of the big cases of this was the fire going on over in Brazil. The Kiss nightclub fire started between 2:00 and 2:30 on 27 January 2013 in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, killing 242 people and injuring at least 630 others. It is the second most-devastating fire disaster in the history of Brazil. The fire called in support from surrounding nations while also bringing up to light some other issues, namely the usage of illegal pyrotechnics and flammable acoustic foam. The incident resulted in the inspection of safety features of thousands of nightclubs all over the country. In São Paulo alone, 60% of the nightclubs inspected were found to be operating against safety regulations. This led to other places begin for calls for stricter enforcement of safety regulations, from club patrons, owners and other folk. This became part of a deeper issue in regrds to safety standards, responsability and reliabiity.
The shuttered nightclub with flowers and messages from mourners
However, while the new year was bringing out to chances and opportunities, there was also plenty of chances in other ways. None other was the resignation of the Pope. The resignation of Pope Benedict XVI occurred on 28 February 2013 at 20:00 CET, after having been announced on the morning of 11 February 2013 directly by himself. Benedict XVI's decision to step down as leader of the Catholic Church made him the first pope to relinquish the office in several centuries. He would later cite his declining health as being part of the reason why he was stepping down. The entire ordeal was quite a surprise to say the least and the Cardinals were not entirely prepared for it. The reactions around the world were largely positive, wishing the old Pope the best of luck as they work to elect a new one. Many were wondering who the new Pope would be, though there were rumors that the new Pope may not even be European.
Benedict XVI in the popemobile at final Wednesday General Audience in St. Peter's Square on 27 February 2013
...
...
...
"Mr. President! Mr. President! It's about North Korea...!"
"The American Taxpayer Relief Act ... seriously?"
"All those people in Brazil..."
"And now we have a new Pope..."
With McCain being sworn in, the time for more action for the Great Recession has come. More and more people are calling loudly for action and the McCain Administration has been working in on try to estasblish in a relief for the people after the last stimualtion package did not work. While support for the McCain Administration for his successes abroad have been helpful for the campaign trail, the worsening economic troubles would not be blunted for long. Furthermore, Senator Sanders has been getting more attention for his rhetoric in regards about bailing out the banks that have caused caused the Recession in the first place along with calling for increased coverage on Medicare for everyone along with higher wages. While the Dems have regain some of their seats, they are experiencing greater turmoil within the party as the progressive wing of the Democrat party has been starting to get reignited and pushing more from the rest, especially with the Blue Dogs having joined the Republican Party (even if it was out of calls to help make sure the GOP remains "moderate." While the ATR Act would be another example of bipartisan compromise, the dissatisfication coming from both parties highlighted the tensions of what laid beneath it. Many sense that the clock is ticking for a lot of groups though others wonder what the McCain Administration will do. One thing that is becoming certain is that the future elections will be mired in more notable elections.
Political cartoon about the fiscal cliff debates
Meanwhile, across the world, other troubles were brewing over. Either from self-contained incidents or the result of years of neglect over time. One of the big cases of this was the fire going on over in Brazil. The Kiss nightclub fire started between 2:00 and 2:30 on 27 January 2013 in Santa Maria, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, killing 242 people and injuring at least 630 others. It is the second most-devastating fire disaster in the history of Brazil. The fire called in support from surrounding nations while also bringing up to light some other issues, namely the usage of illegal pyrotechnics and flammable acoustic foam. The incident resulted in the inspection of safety features of thousands of nightclubs all over the country. In São Paulo alone, 60% of the nightclubs inspected were found to be operating against safety regulations. This led to other places begin for calls for stricter enforcement of safety regulations, from club patrons, owners and other folk. This became part of a deeper issue in regrds to safety standards, responsability and reliabiity.
The shuttered nightclub with flowers and messages from mourners
However, while the new year was bringing out to chances and opportunities, there was also plenty of chances in other ways. None other was the resignation of the Pope. The resignation of Pope Benedict XVI occurred on 28 February 2013 at 20:00 CET, after having been announced on the morning of 11 February 2013 directly by himself. Benedict XVI's decision to step down as leader of the Catholic Church made him the first pope to relinquish the office in several centuries. He would later cite his declining health as being part of the reason why he was stepping down. The entire ordeal was quite a surprise to say the least and the Cardinals were not entirely prepared for it. The reactions around the world were largely positive, wishing the old Pope the best of luck as they work to elect a new one. Many were wondering who the new Pope would be, though there were rumors that the new Pope may not even be European.
Benedict XVI in the popemobile at final Wednesday General Audience in St. Peter's Square on 27 February 2013
...
...
...
"Mr. President! Mr. President! It's about North Korea...!"
Last edited:
2013: The Korean Crisis
Yes this is grossly oversimplistic, but I would be happy to get feedback on helping to iron this out.
2013: The Korean Crisis
China's political situation was not well to say the least. The fact that a high-ranking politician, a presidential candidate even, would be found guilty of not just covering up a murder committed by his wife, but be connected to the murderer of a fellow politician and political rival as a result of said politician attempting to leverage the information found out through blackmail was... shocking. It was not just shocking, but earth shaking for the people of China and for the Communist Party ruling over China. The entire ordeal ripped wide open calls for investigations of corruption and connections of the like. In fact, the fact one of the murder was a well-known and powerful British businessman, this would be damaging to the nation abroad as well. So while China was doing its best to appear powerful and strong, it was undergoing some reforms and dealing with a lot of problems right now. Furthermore, the fact that the closest nation to a superpower is under political jeopardy causes a chain reaction with its allies or protectorates. Other times, it seems that such events were already sent in motion, but newer circumstances end up exacerbating the situation further.
And the prime example of this was North Korea.
Over in the first months of 2013, North Korea has been becoming belligerent in regards to them testing nuclear weapons. Confirmations ended up reaching around Febuary in regards to the weaponry. As a result of this along with the troublesome situation of China going under political turmoil seemed to have put North Korea into a coner of sorts and began lashing out. Or perhaps it was an arrogance in thinking they no longer needed China. As the conflict began escalating from January to Febuary, North Korea threatens the "final destruction" of South Korea during a United Nations conference on disarmament. The United Nations was not taking lightly to that and while every other nation was condemning the North Korean regime, the McCain Administration decided to visit China and discuss how to deal with the matter once and fore all.
North Korea is both a blessing and a curse for China. The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is an independent state that is openly hostile to the United States and other regional powers. Pyongyang’s military is a deterrent to attack without posing a direct threat to China. As a result, nearly a thousand miles of China’s borders are occupied by a regime that finances its own defense and will never fall willingly within the U.S. sphere of influence. Pyongyang’s fiery anti-American rhetoric and nuclear weapons program have provoked the United States, making North Korea a major point of contention between Washington and Beijing. The country’s flagrant violation of international norms have tested Beijing’s patience. But now, North Korea's behavior over the political turmoil in China has become a breaking point, especially with its foreign reputation in jeopardy along with working to maintain societal order over their near-brush with electing a gangster-like figure in Bo.
The McCain Administration would not take such threats to America or her allies lightly. However, they also knew China has plenty of reasons to maintain North Korea around. However, the main two came down to security and economy. North Korea served as a buffer state for China and helped protect Manchuria and the simple fact that the region is such a mess that it beginning to bleed out would lead to plenty of unskilled refugees into a part of China already in economic decline. However, while North Korea would need to remain, that did not mean the Kim dynasty needed to. Changing the leadership would benefit both parties as it would remove an immensely antagonistic force. It would benefit China abroad in foreign relations since they would no longer have North Korea be seen as an antagonistic force. Meanwhile, an official end to the Korean War and working toward Korean unification would be a massive boon toward the McCain Administration. The major concern would be in having to "de-program" the people from their brainwashing to the Kim cult of personality. While difficult, it would not be impossible. The idea of unification of Korea remained a pipe dream if out of China's desire for a buffer state, but it would benefit them both if it was not such a volatile state.
Thus began Operation Shroud. It was a covert operation. While the Americans began reinforcing their barriers and serving as a distraction for the Kim adminsitration, the Chinese would begin sending reinforcements into North Korea along with covert agents until different guises, to protect North Korea. Within the next days, the plot would be excuted and rumors of a coup, traitors or so on would be leaked within the military. Even a staged attempt on Kim's life. Kim Jong-un would be encouraged by the Chinese leaders along with anyone they bribed or coerced on their side to retire for the safety of his health, not just from the attempt, but from the stress of ruling. The news of Kim abdicating from active ruling was an immense shock to the culture, what that would be hoped could help begin the process. In his farewell speech, he notes that he must leave to heal from the traitors and that Jang Song-thaek will do a fine job in purging the traitors and disloyal elements. When questions of the Westerners were asked, the concerns were shrugged off and quietly dismissed that they were no threat. The Chinese and American intelligence networks worked to target and identify much of the diehard loyalists or uncontrolled oppportunists. The Chinese took control of every aspect of the media, including the Internet, and Jang Song-thaek would reassure the North Koreans that all will be well. He does so with de-escalation of tensions between North Korea with their neighbors down south and with the United States.
"De-Kimification", inspried by the "de-Stalinization" of decades prior saw the Chinese-controlled government through tis various arms, including the media, removing the influence of the Kims. Statues and pictures of them would be moved to scarce areas and replaced with that of traditional Korean historical figures predating the Communists, some abstract art or even a couple of the Buddhsit scultures. Much like with "de-Stalinization", it was done in silent with little to no explanation for the masses though the cooperative leaders were told of the danger of cult of personality. The Chinese-dominated North Korean media maintained a tight lock from the outside world, but began talking less and less about the Kims and more on North Korea in general along with some Chinese propaganda and some general propaganda to keep people from noticing the changes. To further assist in the endeavor, certain rules on religion were relaxed, primarily for Buddhism and Chendoism. The hopes was to use the pre-existing zealotry that was aimed at the Kims and redirect it through the accepted religions of Korea. Economywise, plans were being outlined to try and get the people to work and learn some skills to gain some potential employment or at least some projects to get them to move.
The political prisons and reeducation camps were among the only major issue that the Americans assisted in with China. The conditions of them were an abhorrent shock to the United States and the rest of the world. The prisoners of both of the sites would be distributed among the Americans and Chinese, depending on how they were and what woud be best effective. The Americans called upon the South Koreans and Canadians for assistance, especially with the children. Most of the camps would close save for those to be held with "uncooperative individuals." The McCain Administration called upon further UN assistance to deal with the North Korean refugees on resettling them and on "deprogramming" them, enough to where the discussions on cults and "deprogramming" them would become reported many times.
Meanwhile, the Chinese confiscated the nuclear weapons while working with the Americans to safely and properly dispose of and destory the chemical and biological warfare components, some of which unnerved even the Chinese on their danger. North Korea meanwhile would remained primarily miltiarized though the newer commanders and orders put an emphasis on loyalty to the homeland rather than the Kim administration. Through Chinese channels, North Korea would get some additional food and supplies from the outside world, working to endear Jang Song-thaek to the people with his benevolence along with that of the Chinese. At the same time, martial law remained in effect as dissenters who began looking too hard into it would be "disposed" off.
By the end of the year, North Korea would be in a complicated positionFor many, it remained the same as they went about their day as usual albeit with changes such as less statues of Kims or pamphlets suggesting people to look into Buddhism or Chendoism if they seek support and meaning. They were still cut-off mostly from the world and remain uanware of the transgression. Yet it also became different. the Kims were slowly being phased into the background along with some of its defining features, notably downplaying the so-called Threat of the US. While North Korea's presence would linger at China's insistence, a large sense of hostility has been displaced. Furthermore, dealing with the Korean Crisis made Li Keqiang into a rock star of a politician back home and abroad. For the Americans, it meant greater relations with China without the tensions of the previous North Korean regime and some sense of security and prestige for the McCain Administration. At the same time, the glimpse of horrors into North Korea brought forth the terrors of totalitarianism and cults of personality back into the mainstream, especially with the revelations that the nation's wealth was invested into more and more of the military, drawing some parallels with the US by some brash pundits. Many of these refugees would end up being taken in by support groups or especially numerous churches. The new Pope elected in would communicate with the Catholics of South Korea on advice and networking to have these people find God to heal from their wounds from such a nerve-wracking life.
Kim and his family would end up spending the rest of their days in a "golden cage" somewhere within China though Kim Jong-un's poor health and hedonist tendencies, especially now liberated from his role as grand leader, would lead to his health decline accelerating, especially as Chinese officials would do what they can to indulge him to keep from going into the foreground. He would end up dying from complications from his suspected diabetes and hypertension a few years down the line with his widow and children taken into Chinese custody to live quiet lives.
While North Korea remained standing, untouched even, it was changed forever.
2013: The Korean Crisis
China's political situation was not well to say the least. The fact that a high-ranking politician, a presidential candidate even, would be found guilty of not just covering up a murder committed by his wife, but be connected to the murderer of a fellow politician and political rival as a result of said politician attempting to leverage the information found out through blackmail was... shocking. It was not just shocking, but earth shaking for the people of China and for the Communist Party ruling over China. The entire ordeal ripped wide open calls for investigations of corruption and connections of the like. In fact, the fact one of the murder was a well-known and powerful British businessman, this would be damaging to the nation abroad as well. So while China was doing its best to appear powerful and strong, it was undergoing some reforms and dealing with a lot of problems right now. Furthermore, the fact that the closest nation to a superpower is under political jeopardy causes a chain reaction with its allies or protectorates. Other times, it seems that such events were already sent in motion, but newer circumstances end up exacerbating the situation further.
And the prime example of this was North Korea.
Over in the first months of 2013, North Korea has been becoming belligerent in regards to them testing nuclear weapons. Confirmations ended up reaching around Febuary in regards to the weaponry. As a result of this along with the troublesome situation of China going under political turmoil seemed to have put North Korea into a coner of sorts and began lashing out. Or perhaps it was an arrogance in thinking they no longer needed China. As the conflict began escalating from January to Febuary, North Korea threatens the "final destruction" of South Korea during a United Nations conference on disarmament. The United Nations was not taking lightly to that and while every other nation was condemning the North Korean regime, the McCain Administration decided to visit China and discuss how to deal with the matter once and fore all.
North Korea is both a blessing and a curse for China. The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is an independent state that is openly hostile to the United States and other regional powers. Pyongyang’s military is a deterrent to attack without posing a direct threat to China. As a result, nearly a thousand miles of China’s borders are occupied by a regime that finances its own defense and will never fall willingly within the U.S. sphere of influence. Pyongyang’s fiery anti-American rhetoric and nuclear weapons program have provoked the United States, making North Korea a major point of contention between Washington and Beijing. The country’s flagrant violation of international norms have tested Beijing’s patience. But now, North Korea's behavior over the political turmoil in China has become a breaking point, especially with its foreign reputation in jeopardy along with working to maintain societal order over their near-brush with electing a gangster-like figure in Bo.
The McCain Administration would not take such threats to America or her allies lightly. However, they also knew China has plenty of reasons to maintain North Korea around. However, the main two came down to security and economy. North Korea served as a buffer state for China and helped protect Manchuria and the simple fact that the region is such a mess that it beginning to bleed out would lead to plenty of unskilled refugees into a part of China already in economic decline. However, while North Korea would need to remain, that did not mean the Kim dynasty needed to. Changing the leadership would benefit both parties as it would remove an immensely antagonistic force. It would benefit China abroad in foreign relations since they would no longer have North Korea be seen as an antagonistic force. Meanwhile, an official end to the Korean War and working toward Korean unification would be a massive boon toward the McCain Administration. The major concern would be in having to "de-program" the people from their brainwashing to the Kim cult of personality. While difficult, it would not be impossible. The idea of unification of Korea remained a pipe dream if out of China's desire for a buffer state, but it would benefit them both if it was not such a volatile state.
Thus began Operation Shroud. It was a covert operation. While the Americans began reinforcing their barriers and serving as a distraction for the Kim adminsitration, the Chinese would begin sending reinforcements into North Korea along with covert agents until different guises, to protect North Korea. Within the next days, the plot would be excuted and rumors of a coup, traitors or so on would be leaked within the military. Even a staged attempt on Kim's life. Kim Jong-un would be encouraged by the Chinese leaders along with anyone they bribed or coerced on their side to retire for the safety of his health, not just from the attempt, but from the stress of ruling. The news of Kim abdicating from active ruling was an immense shock to the culture, what that would be hoped could help begin the process. In his farewell speech, he notes that he must leave to heal from the traitors and that Jang Song-thaek will do a fine job in purging the traitors and disloyal elements. When questions of the Westerners were asked, the concerns were shrugged off and quietly dismissed that they were no threat. The Chinese and American intelligence networks worked to target and identify much of the diehard loyalists or uncontrolled oppportunists. The Chinese took control of every aspect of the media, including the Internet, and Jang Song-thaek would reassure the North Koreans that all will be well. He does so with de-escalation of tensions between North Korea with their neighbors down south and with the United States.
"De-Kimification", inspried by the "de-Stalinization" of decades prior saw the Chinese-controlled government through tis various arms, including the media, removing the influence of the Kims. Statues and pictures of them would be moved to scarce areas and replaced with that of traditional Korean historical figures predating the Communists, some abstract art or even a couple of the Buddhsit scultures. Much like with "de-Stalinization", it was done in silent with little to no explanation for the masses though the cooperative leaders were told of the danger of cult of personality. The Chinese-dominated North Korean media maintained a tight lock from the outside world, but began talking less and less about the Kims and more on North Korea in general along with some Chinese propaganda and some general propaganda to keep people from noticing the changes. To further assist in the endeavor, certain rules on religion were relaxed, primarily for Buddhism and Chendoism. The hopes was to use the pre-existing zealotry that was aimed at the Kims and redirect it through the accepted religions of Korea. Economywise, plans were being outlined to try and get the people to work and learn some skills to gain some potential employment or at least some projects to get them to move.
The political prisons and reeducation camps were among the only major issue that the Americans assisted in with China. The conditions of them were an abhorrent shock to the United States and the rest of the world. The prisoners of both of the sites would be distributed among the Americans and Chinese, depending on how they were and what woud be best effective. The Americans called upon the South Koreans and Canadians for assistance, especially with the children. Most of the camps would close save for those to be held with "uncooperative individuals." The McCain Administration called upon further UN assistance to deal with the North Korean refugees on resettling them and on "deprogramming" them, enough to where the discussions on cults and "deprogramming" them would become reported many times.
Meanwhile, the Chinese confiscated the nuclear weapons while working with the Americans to safely and properly dispose of and destory the chemical and biological warfare components, some of which unnerved even the Chinese on their danger. North Korea meanwhile would remained primarily miltiarized though the newer commanders and orders put an emphasis on loyalty to the homeland rather than the Kim administration. Through Chinese channels, North Korea would get some additional food and supplies from the outside world, working to endear Jang Song-thaek to the people with his benevolence along with that of the Chinese. At the same time, martial law remained in effect as dissenters who began looking too hard into it would be "disposed" off.
By the end of the year, North Korea would be in a complicated positionFor many, it remained the same as they went about their day as usual albeit with changes such as less statues of Kims or pamphlets suggesting people to look into Buddhism or Chendoism if they seek support and meaning. They were still cut-off mostly from the world and remain uanware of the transgression. Yet it also became different. the Kims were slowly being phased into the background along with some of its defining features, notably downplaying the so-called Threat of the US. While North Korea's presence would linger at China's insistence, a large sense of hostility has been displaced. Furthermore, dealing with the Korean Crisis made Li Keqiang into a rock star of a politician back home and abroad. For the Americans, it meant greater relations with China without the tensions of the previous North Korean regime and some sense of security and prestige for the McCain Administration. At the same time, the glimpse of horrors into North Korea brought forth the terrors of totalitarianism and cults of personality back into the mainstream, especially with the revelations that the nation's wealth was invested into more and more of the military, drawing some parallels with the US by some brash pundits. Many of these refugees would end up being taken in by support groups or especially numerous churches. The new Pope elected in would communicate with the Catholics of South Korea on advice and networking to have these people find God to heal from their wounds from such a nerve-wracking life.
Kim and his family would end up spending the rest of their days in a "golden cage" somewhere within China though Kim Jong-un's poor health and hedonist tendencies, especially now liberated from his role as grand leader, would lead to his health decline accelerating, especially as Chinese officials would do what they can to indulge him to keep from going into the foreground. He would end up dying from complications from his suspected diabetes and hypertension a few years down the line with his widow and children taken into Chinese custody to live quiet lives.
While North Korea remained standing, untouched even, it was changed forever.
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It's best end for North Korea that could be realistically expected.
I suspect that McCain would have a modern version of the "Nixon goes to China" moment with North Korea, meeting President (of the Presidium)/Premier/Something-else Jang.
I suspect that McCain would have a modern version of the "Nixon goes to China" moment with North Korea, meeting President (of the Presidium)/Premier/Something-else Jang.
Yeah! More or less! It’ll be definitely good for him though economy will still be dealing
McCain Administration- Spring 2013
Spring 2013
"Why are some people getting worked up over the Arms Trade Treaty?"
"All those people in Bangladesh..."
"Well, Venezuela changed everything..."
While the Korean Crisis caught the attention of the newsmedia and of the general public of the world in general, matters continued on. Economic recovery was going at a mixed pace and as time go on, people are becoming more aware of the institutions that led to the economic failure and the sluggish recovery. The changing dynamics of foreign policies has been forcing new approaches and solutions given everything that happened the past decade. However, one of the big news of the Spring beyond just the events of North Korea was on the United Nations General Assembly adopting the Arms Trade Treaty to regulate the international trade of conventional weapons. The ATT is an attempt to regulate the international trade of conventional weapons for the purpose of contributing to international and regional peace; reducing human suffering; and promoting co-operation, transparency, and responsible action by and among states. While many people cheer and applaud for it, especially given the past successes with the McCain Administration to deal with foreign affairs, there was some people making a fuss about it in regards to national sovereignty or independent rights though the whole thing was based on international affairs. While organizations like the NRA and Hertiage Foundation were trying to make out the issues in it, it also began revealing cracks within the Republican establishment. School shootings remain a provactive topic after the issue on gun rights was settled years prior within the Supreme Court, but that did not stop certain organizations from trying to get past it. Granted of course came counter-arguments on how the Second Amendment doesn't protect rights for gun purchases and furthermore there was a growing frustration with them. The Hertiage Foundation especially, given the Gore Administration's legislation along with McCain's have led to their decline in relevance as culture began shifting and they were becoming less relevant and thus, becoming more desperate to remain important. While they would sign it, ratification details remained unknown for it in the US. Though one note was in the questioning of how much money goes into the military and lobbying on part of firearms manufacturers.
Matej Marn, Deputy Permanent Representative of Slovenia signing the treaty at the Arms Trade Treaty At United Nations headquarters
However, not everything was right in the world unfortunately. The 2013 Dhaka garment factory collapse (also referred to as the 2013 Savar building collapse or the Rana Plaza collapse) was a structural failure that occurred on 24 April 2013 in the Savar Upazila of Dhaka District, Bangladesh, where an eight-story commercial building called Rana Plaza collapsed. The search for the dead ended on 13 May 2013 with a death toll of 1,134. Approximately 2,500 injured people were rescued from the building alive. The deadliest structural failure accident in modern human history and the deadliest garment-factory disaster in history, it was a colossal wake-up call for people in regards to terrible working conditions, something that perhaps resonated more painfully in the later parts of the Great Recession. Riots happened across the cities over at factories with horrific safety conditons. Leftist politcal parties and nationalist parties of Bangladesh set aside differences to demand arrests, investigations and accountability behind the colossal disaster. This became especially prominent on International Workers' Day as more workers and their supporters came out on May 1st. Across the world, such sentiment spread like wildfire. Over across Europe, leftist political parties notified their supporters and the public on the importance of where they make their purchases and buy their clothing as well as well as pushing new legislation over for higher pay and better working conditions. Even the Pope himself went out to speak against the modern interpretation of slave labor at them along with human rights advocacy groups. The McCain Administration was among the groups demanding for action, but the ordeal also began spreading across them. Many people took the opportunity to remind of the importance of safety rules, of legislation for oversight and safety, the sanctity of human life and perhaps more brazenly, outing groups or individuals who's idealogies threaten these safety standards and groups, such as the laundry list of desires of the Koch candidate during their Libretarian campaign decades prior. Social media became a colossal juggernaut in this event as musicians, bloggers, video makers and content creators began discussing their own thoughts and views, especially as the story unfolded. One of the biggest shocks was the comparison of this to the infamous Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire that happened in Greenwich more than a century prior. The parallels were disturbing and became a brutal indictment of the modern age of how such tragedies count happen in the pursuit of capitalism and many leftist politicians, most notably Senator Sanders, spoke heavily on the comparisons between the two, the improvements that would be done and the blame resting on the greedy. The seeming resentment at the 1% got an immense injection of fresh anger with the comparisons drawn out.
Rescuers carrying out one of the survivors from the collapsed building
While the incident galavanized the leftist elements of the world and the people, other element proceeded to send them and the rest of the world into a tizzy. That of the death of Venezuela's president Hugo Chavez back in March. From an infection, his death left a power void within Venezuela and it could not have come at a worse time for the United Socialist Party of Venezuela. They have been gradually losing influence over the past several years. After the Exxon-Mobil scandal forced a confrontation on the issues of climate change and fossil fuels, the world has been trying to react in different ways to it, especially nations who's primary source of income were fossil fuels. Venezuela in particular would be having to deal with this. Ever since the discovery of the vast petrol supplies in Venezuela, they became the primary export of the South American nation and Chavez used that to fund strong social programs and reforms for the nation. Of course, having such a thing alongside with various potential problems meant Venezuela was easily a balancing act. The Ecological Movement of Venezuela, a green-based party in the nation, began rising in prominence as they advocated for promoting renewable engery and sustainable agriculture, especially as "going green" became more internationally mandated. The failure of the GPP to address this in Venezuela led to serious growing divides and growing exasperation with them. As such, some looked it with some but not alot of surprise in the elections of 2013, which saw Henrique Capriles would beat Nicolás Maduro getting around 5% of the vote more than him. Unsurprisingly, this rocked the nation and Maduro along with the Chavistas did not take this defeat well. Furthermore, the fact that the strict rules around the elections that Chavez prided himself on meant that speaking against it would be insulting him. Maduro's attempts at leading attacks against him through homophobia and antisemitism would end up diminishing him and his group's reputation among leftists. As such, Maduro's popularity plummeted further down, leading to large fractures with the group, with Jorge Arreaza and Diosdado Cabello becoming prominent alternates against Maduro. Capriles along with his key supporters and officials he installed were unable to leave Venezuela though is considered the acting President by most of the nations in the world. Perhaps more surprisingly was the hesitation of nations like Bolivia and Cuba to recognize the legitimacy of the Maduro government. Despite the anti-imperialist sentiment, Maduro did lose and the instability of the party along with a failure to address issues within the nation regarding economic policy have caused them to reconsider support. Russia meanwhile just doubled down on support while China withheld from the decision though rumors speculate they are leaning toward recognizing the Capriles government.
Henrique Capriles Radonski, Acting President of Venezuela.
"Why are some people getting worked up over the Arms Trade Treaty?"
"All those people in Bangladesh..."
"Well, Venezuela changed everything..."
While the Korean Crisis caught the attention of the newsmedia and of the general public of the world in general, matters continued on. Economic recovery was going at a mixed pace and as time go on, people are becoming more aware of the institutions that led to the economic failure and the sluggish recovery. The changing dynamics of foreign policies has been forcing new approaches and solutions given everything that happened the past decade. However, one of the big news of the Spring beyond just the events of North Korea was on the United Nations General Assembly adopting the Arms Trade Treaty to regulate the international trade of conventional weapons. The ATT is an attempt to regulate the international trade of conventional weapons for the purpose of contributing to international and regional peace; reducing human suffering; and promoting co-operation, transparency, and responsible action by and among states. While many people cheer and applaud for it, especially given the past successes with the McCain Administration to deal with foreign affairs, there was some people making a fuss about it in regards to national sovereignty or independent rights though the whole thing was based on international affairs. While organizations like the NRA and Hertiage Foundation were trying to make out the issues in it, it also began revealing cracks within the Republican establishment. School shootings remain a provactive topic after the issue on gun rights was settled years prior within the Supreme Court, but that did not stop certain organizations from trying to get past it. Granted of course came counter-arguments on how the Second Amendment doesn't protect rights for gun purchases and furthermore there was a growing frustration with them. The Hertiage Foundation especially, given the Gore Administration's legislation along with McCain's have led to their decline in relevance as culture began shifting and they were becoming less relevant and thus, becoming more desperate to remain important. While they would sign it, ratification details remained unknown for it in the US. Though one note was in the questioning of how much money goes into the military and lobbying on part of firearms manufacturers.
Matej Marn, Deputy Permanent Representative of Slovenia signing the treaty at the Arms Trade Treaty At United Nations headquarters
However, not everything was right in the world unfortunately. The 2013 Dhaka garment factory collapse (also referred to as the 2013 Savar building collapse or the Rana Plaza collapse) was a structural failure that occurred on 24 April 2013 in the Savar Upazila of Dhaka District, Bangladesh, where an eight-story commercial building called Rana Plaza collapsed. The search for the dead ended on 13 May 2013 with a death toll of 1,134. Approximately 2,500 injured people were rescued from the building alive. The deadliest structural failure accident in modern human history and the deadliest garment-factory disaster in history, it was a colossal wake-up call for people in regards to terrible working conditions, something that perhaps resonated more painfully in the later parts of the Great Recession. Riots happened across the cities over at factories with horrific safety conditons. Leftist politcal parties and nationalist parties of Bangladesh set aside differences to demand arrests, investigations and accountability behind the colossal disaster. This became especially prominent on International Workers' Day as more workers and their supporters came out on May 1st. Across the world, such sentiment spread like wildfire. Over across Europe, leftist political parties notified their supporters and the public on the importance of where they make their purchases and buy their clothing as well as well as pushing new legislation over for higher pay and better working conditions. Even the Pope himself went out to speak against the modern interpretation of slave labor at them along with human rights advocacy groups. The McCain Administration was among the groups demanding for action, but the ordeal also began spreading across them. Many people took the opportunity to remind of the importance of safety rules, of legislation for oversight and safety, the sanctity of human life and perhaps more brazenly, outing groups or individuals who's idealogies threaten these safety standards and groups, such as the laundry list of desires of the Koch candidate during their Libretarian campaign decades prior. Social media became a colossal juggernaut in this event as musicians, bloggers, video makers and content creators began discussing their own thoughts and views, especially as the story unfolded. One of the biggest shocks was the comparison of this to the infamous Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire that happened in Greenwich more than a century prior. The parallels were disturbing and became a brutal indictment of the modern age of how such tragedies count happen in the pursuit of capitalism and many leftist politicians, most notably Senator Sanders, spoke heavily on the comparisons between the two, the improvements that would be done and the blame resting on the greedy. The seeming resentment at the 1% got an immense injection of fresh anger with the comparisons drawn out.
Rescuers carrying out one of the survivors from the collapsed building
While the incident galavanized the leftist elements of the world and the people, other element proceeded to send them and the rest of the world into a tizzy. That of the death of Venezuela's president Hugo Chavez back in March. From an infection, his death left a power void within Venezuela and it could not have come at a worse time for the United Socialist Party of Venezuela. They have been gradually losing influence over the past several years. After the Exxon-Mobil scandal forced a confrontation on the issues of climate change and fossil fuels, the world has been trying to react in different ways to it, especially nations who's primary source of income were fossil fuels. Venezuela in particular would be having to deal with this. Ever since the discovery of the vast petrol supplies in Venezuela, they became the primary export of the South American nation and Chavez used that to fund strong social programs and reforms for the nation. Of course, having such a thing alongside with various potential problems meant Venezuela was easily a balancing act. The Ecological Movement of Venezuela, a green-based party in the nation, began rising in prominence as they advocated for promoting renewable engery and sustainable agriculture, especially as "going green" became more internationally mandated. The failure of the GPP to address this in Venezuela led to serious growing divides and growing exasperation with them. As such, some looked it with some but not alot of surprise in the elections of 2013, which saw Henrique Capriles would beat Nicolás Maduro getting around 5% of the vote more than him. Unsurprisingly, this rocked the nation and Maduro along with the Chavistas did not take this defeat well. Furthermore, the fact that the strict rules around the elections that Chavez prided himself on meant that speaking against it would be insulting him. Maduro's attempts at leading attacks against him through homophobia and antisemitism would end up diminishing him and his group's reputation among leftists. As such, Maduro's popularity plummeted further down, leading to large fractures with the group, with Jorge Arreaza and Diosdado Cabello becoming prominent alternates against Maduro. Capriles along with his key supporters and officials he installed were unable to leave Venezuela though is considered the acting President by most of the nations in the world. Perhaps more surprisingly was the hesitation of nations like Bolivia and Cuba to recognize the legitimacy of the Maduro government. Despite the anti-imperialist sentiment, Maduro did lose and the instability of the party along with a failure to address issues within the nation regarding economic policy have caused them to reconsider support. Russia meanwhile just doubled down on support while China withheld from the decision though rumors speculate they are leaning toward recognizing the Capriles government.
Henrique Capriles Radonski, Acting President of Venezuela.
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McCain Administration- Summer 2013
Summer 2013
"Who the heck is Edward Snowden?..."
"Thanks to the Supreme Court, we're closer to recognizing homosexual marriage in the nation..."
"Looks the reign of President Morsi is over..."
Surveilance was often a complicated question within Washington, especially after 9/11. The Gore Administration certainly upped security measures and gave the NSA a bit more power to help cope with securing information, especially since the Gore Administration also worked to accelerate the adoption and evolution of the Internet. However, it was really the McCain Administration that buffed up security measures after the problems regarding Russia cyber attacks. However, no one was sure on how extensive the potential for surveilance existed within the NSA... until the leaks by Edward Snowden. On May 20, 2013, Snowden flew to Hong Kong after leaving his job at an NSA facility in Hawaii, and in early June he revealed thousands of classified NSA documents to journalists Glenn Greenwald, Laura Poitras, and Ewen MacAskill. Snowden came to international attention after stories based on the material appeared in The Guardian and The Washington Post. Further disclosures were made by other publications including Der Spiegel and The New York Times. Unsurprisingly, the revelations of the massive scope of the NSA was a bombshell for America and the world and Washington was divided on how to approach it. There were some who called him a traitor and accusations of treason flew at him, especially when he would be forced to remain in Russia after he was granted asylum (though it would be pointed out that happened after his passport was restricted around the time he was in Hong Kong.) On the other hand, there were those who called him a patriot for exposing such uncalled measures and that the NSA needs to be roped in. There are some on the fence who acknowledge that while he did commit a crime, he deserves a fair trial, especially considering his exposures. Others noted that his concerns was likely due to the extensively shady history involving the CIA. Various politicians would have their say on the matter in support of Snowden, against him in or somewhere in between. However, one thing is for certain; Snowden's actions served as a reminder to people about the power of the Internet and the responsability that came with that monitoring and analysis.
Edward Snowden picture
Meanwhile, while the questions over individual privacy and national security raged online and in the public, new stuff was happening regarding the evergrowing topic of homosexual marriage. While it was to be expected given the stance of the Supreme Court of the time, it still came as a surprise as a result of people being distracted by the various events going on, such as like with the Edward Snowden cast. However, within July, the Supreme Court would end up making two big rulings. In a 6-3 vote, the Supreme Court strikes down Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act as unconstitutional, allowing legally married gay couples to receive over 1,000 federal benefits and privileges. Additionally, another 6-3 vote led to the Supreme Court ruling that supporters of California Proposition 8 did not have legal standing in federal court, allowing same-sex marriages to resume in California. In fact, just a couple days later, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit lifts its stay on gay marriages in California, making the state the thirteenth to legalize same-sex marriage. Gay marriage in the state of California is legalized after the stay held on the unconstitutional California Proposition 8 is lifted. The two women who successfully challenged Proposition 8 in the Supreme Court of the United States are married in San Francisco. Of course, this was not the only Supreme Court cases to make a wave this summer. Just days prior, the Supreme Court upheld Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Section 4 had required states with a history of discrimination to get permission from the federal government to change their election procedures in any way. It was challenged because of the coverage formula is based on data over 40 years old, making it no longer responsive to current needs and therefore an impermissible burden on the constitutional principles of federalism and equal sovereignty of the states. Despite this though, the Supreme Court uphed it. According to the majority opinion, it held that Congress had sufficient evidence before it to determine that the coverage formula remained responsive to current needs. The dissent acknowledged that discrimination in voting has decreased in the covered jurisdictions since the Voting Rights Act's enactment, but it attributed much of that decrease to the Act itself, noting that "[t]hrowing out preclearance when it has worked and is continuing to work to stop discriminatory changes is like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet." This also ended up speading like wildfire over the news as well and while some try to debate it was no longer needed, the lingering question was... how sure were you on that? If it was removed, how certain were the people in regards to the fact that voting factors wouldn't be affected, especially since prominent lawyers and pundits noted that there were indirect ways that would be done.
Pro and Anti-Proposition 8 protesters rally in front of the San Francisco City Hall on the day of the Supreme Court hearings
The Morsi Presidency was controversial to say the least when it started since the last year. Protests were going on against him and the changes that he and the Muslim Brotherhood were trying to implement were chafing against the secular and or liberal party members. Even the military was starting to get sick of him and as such, a couple was planned to dispose of him and his supporters. And so in the summer of 2013, the protests came out against him due to various aspects that could be attributed to him as well as various other aspects that could not exactly be connected to him, but still brought out the ire of the people, such as the Ethiopian dam. The results were something rough for the people of Egypt. Following the President's arrest, various things followed suit., The Constitution was suspended, and a transitional roadmap declared for transportation sake, Adly Mansour becomes interim president as new elections will be held in 2014. Morsi and various other Muslim Brotherhood leaders and members were arrested and placed in detention. Pro-Morsi sit-ins were met with police brutalities while the Coptic Christian community also saw violence from unidentified groups and led to suspicion from the international community. Egypt would even be temporarily suspended from the African Union. Around the world, there were concerns on whether this was good or not, especially given the issues on both sides, even amongnst those in the Middle East though it was noted that ay disruptions in that area would be met with force. The McCain Administration initially remained quiet though McCain would later comment on the ordeal being a coup and on the military overturning the will of the people though other politicians have noted that it was the result of the failures of the Morsi administration to begin with, especially given the large protests and dissastisifcation, meaning the people weren't exactly happy with him to begin with. Overall, it would bring attention back to the Middle East and hope matters would stabilize there.
Thousands poured into Tahrir Square to celebrate what they are calling Egypt's "Second Revolution", the military's ouster of president Mohamed Morsi, July 7, 2013.
"Who the heck is Edward Snowden?..."
"Thanks to the Supreme Court, we're closer to recognizing homosexual marriage in the nation..."
"Looks the reign of President Morsi is over..."
Surveilance was often a complicated question within Washington, especially after 9/11. The Gore Administration certainly upped security measures and gave the NSA a bit more power to help cope with securing information, especially since the Gore Administration also worked to accelerate the adoption and evolution of the Internet. However, it was really the McCain Administration that buffed up security measures after the problems regarding Russia cyber attacks. However, no one was sure on how extensive the potential for surveilance existed within the NSA... until the leaks by Edward Snowden. On May 20, 2013, Snowden flew to Hong Kong after leaving his job at an NSA facility in Hawaii, and in early June he revealed thousands of classified NSA documents to journalists Glenn Greenwald, Laura Poitras, and Ewen MacAskill. Snowden came to international attention after stories based on the material appeared in The Guardian and The Washington Post. Further disclosures were made by other publications including Der Spiegel and The New York Times. Unsurprisingly, the revelations of the massive scope of the NSA was a bombshell for America and the world and Washington was divided on how to approach it. There were some who called him a traitor and accusations of treason flew at him, especially when he would be forced to remain in Russia after he was granted asylum (though it would be pointed out that happened after his passport was restricted around the time he was in Hong Kong.) On the other hand, there were those who called him a patriot for exposing such uncalled measures and that the NSA needs to be roped in. There are some on the fence who acknowledge that while he did commit a crime, he deserves a fair trial, especially considering his exposures. Others noted that his concerns was likely due to the extensively shady history involving the CIA. Various politicians would have their say on the matter in support of Snowden, against him in or somewhere in between. However, one thing is for certain; Snowden's actions served as a reminder to people about the power of the Internet and the responsability that came with that monitoring and analysis.
Edward Snowden picture
Meanwhile, while the questions over individual privacy and national security raged online and in the public, new stuff was happening regarding the evergrowing topic of homosexual marriage. While it was to be expected given the stance of the Supreme Court of the time, it still came as a surprise as a result of people being distracted by the various events going on, such as like with the Edward Snowden cast. However, within July, the Supreme Court would end up making two big rulings. In a 6-3 vote, the Supreme Court strikes down Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act as unconstitutional, allowing legally married gay couples to receive over 1,000 federal benefits and privileges. Additionally, another 6-3 vote led to the Supreme Court ruling that supporters of California Proposition 8 did not have legal standing in federal court, allowing same-sex marriages to resume in California. In fact, just a couple days later, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit lifts its stay on gay marriages in California, making the state the thirteenth to legalize same-sex marriage. Gay marriage in the state of California is legalized after the stay held on the unconstitutional California Proposition 8 is lifted. The two women who successfully challenged Proposition 8 in the Supreme Court of the United States are married in San Francisco. Of course, this was not the only Supreme Court cases to make a wave this summer. Just days prior, the Supreme Court upheld Section 4 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Section 4 had required states with a history of discrimination to get permission from the federal government to change their election procedures in any way. It was challenged because of the coverage formula is based on data over 40 years old, making it no longer responsive to current needs and therefore an impermissible burden on the constitutional principles of federalism and equal sovereignty of the states. Despite this though, the Supreme Court uphed it. According to the majority opinion, it held that Congress had sufficient evidence before it to determine that the coverage formula remained responsive to current needs. The dissent acknowledged that discrimination in voting has decreased in the covered jurisdictions since the Voting Rights Act's enactment, but it attributed much of that decrease to the Act itself, noting that "[t]hrowing out preclearance when it has worked and is continuing to work to stop discriminatory changes is like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet." This also ended up speading like wildfire over the news as well and while some try to debate it was no longer needed, the lingering question was... how sure were you on that? If it was removed, how certain were the people in regards to the fact that voting factors wouldn't be affected, especially since prominent lawyers and pundits noted that there were indirect ways that would be done.
Pro and Anti-Proposition 8 protesters rally in front of the San Francisco City Hall on the day of the Supreme Court hearings
The Morsi Presidency was controversial to say the least when it started since the last year. Protests were going on against him and the changes that he and the Muslim Brotherhood were trying to implement were chafing against the secular and or liberal party members. Even the military was starting to get sick of him and as such, a couple was planned to dispose of him and his supporters. And so in the summer of 2013, the protests came out against him due to various aspects that could be attributed to him as well as various other aspects that could not exactly be connected to him, but still brought out the ire of the people, such as the Ethiopian dam. The results were something rough for the people of Egypt. Following the President's arrest, various things followed suit., The Constitution was suspended, and a transitional roadmap declared for transportation sake, Adly Mansour becomes interim president as new elections will be held in 2014. Morsi and various other Muslim Brotherhood leaders and members were arrested and placed in detention. Pro-Morsi sit-ins were met with police brutalities while the Coptic Christian community also saw violence from unidentified groups and led to suspicion from the international community. Egypt would even be temporarily suspended from the African Union. Around the world, there were concerns on whether this was good or not, especially given the issues on both sides, even amongnst those in the Middle East though it was noted that ay disruptions in that area would be met with force. The McCain Administration initially remained quiet though McCain would later comment on the ordeal being a coup and on the military overturning the will of the people though other politicians have noted that it was the result of the failures of the Morsi administration to begin with, especially given the large protests and dissastisifcation, meaning the people weren't exactly happy with him to begin with. Overall, it would bring attention back to the Middle East and hope matters would stabilize there.
Thousands poured into Tahrir Square to celebrate what they are calling Egypt's "Second Revolution", the military's ouster of president Mohamed Morsi, July 7, 2013.
I'm still enjoying it.
With some of the modern events of the past decade I've really been unsure how much has changed in this timeline, though that speaks more about my knowledge of recent world events.
With some of the modern events of the past decade I've really been unsure how much has changed in this timeline, though that speaks more about my knowledge of recent world events.