Just as an update for everyone -- whom, by the way, I thank greatly for their contributions be they fact-checking or fiction-making -- I've finished outlining the text section for the 1990s, which will be entitled "The Crazy Years" in the book (and which are varying very slightly from the website timeline). I have to do everything before 1990 and after 1999 in equal detail yet, although the earlier period is just a matter of summarizing existing stuff from the original IST.
Now, what I'm going to do next is flesh out the earlier period, so that gives us some time to finalize the broad geopolitical strokes of the recent era, which for the book will be 2000-2015. (To be called "Over The Wall".)
Here are a few things I've decided, based on working on the 1990s and musing over various postings here and in other threads, particularly Mark's timeline entries. (Which I need to assemble into a single file and read as a whole for a better overview because it's hard to keep all those separate bits in mind together; once I do so I may change my mind -- again -- on some of the below.)
First, I'm backpedalling on the Tech Level. TL as of 2015 will be 9, not 10 as I'd suggested somewhere.
I definitely want a World War III (mostly non-nuclear, although has been pointed out there is more than enough precedent for battlefield nukes). China's the bad guy. It starts effectively in 2000, with the Seige of Hong Kong (as described in one of the last items in 1999 on the web timeline) turning into The Millennium Attack. Mark's TL has it ending in 2007, but I think I'd rather see it end around 2005, which gives a decade for recovery before the new "now".
I'd like to see the Middle East start to rise again, perhaps as an analogue to the "Arab Spring", probably more messily. What flavor of rise -- new democracies or theocratic dictatorships -- I haven't decided. Whatever happens, it will be directly influenced by Iran and Iraq having glassed themselves into permanent disaster areas in the middle 1990s.
I still haven't decided on the political course for the US. During the 90s it goes whole hog right-wing isolationist conspiracy-theory whackjob -- do I send it further down the rabbit hole, or does the pendulum swing back during the 2000s? I'll entertain arguments either way.
More thoughts later, after I assemble and digest whole Mark's offerings.
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.
Now, what I'm going to do next is flesh out the earlier period, so that gives us some time to finalize the broad geopolitical strokes of the recent era, which for the book will be 2000-2015. (To be called "Over The Wall".)
Here are a few things I've decided, based on working on the 1990s and musing over various postings here and in other threads, particularly Mark's timeline entries. (Which I need to assemble into a single file and read as a whole for a better overview because it's hard to keep all those separate bits in mind together; once I do so I may change my mind -- again -- on some of the below.)
First, I'm backpedalling on the Tech Level. TL as of 2015 will be 9, not 10 as I'd suggested somewhere.
I definitely want a World War III (mostly non-nuclear, although has been pointed out there is more than enough precedent for battlefield nukes). China's the bad guy. It starts effectively in 2000, with the Seige of Hong Kong (as described in one of the last items in 1999 on the web timeline) turning into The Millennium Attack. Mark's TL has it ending in 2007, but I think I'd rather see it end around 2005, which gives a decade for recovery before the new "now".
I'd like to see the Middle East start to rise again, perhaps as an analogue to the "Arab Spring", probably more messily. What flavor of rise -- new democracies or theocratic dictatorships -- I haven't decided. Whatever happens, it will be directly influenced by Iran and Iraq having glassed themselves into permanent disaster areas in the middle 1990s.
I still haven't decided on the political course for the US. During the 90s it goes whole hog right-wing isolationist conspiracy-theory whackjob -- do I send it further down the rabbit hole, or does the pendulum swing back during the 2000s? I'll entertain arguments either way.
More thoughts later, after I assemble and digest whole Mark's offerings.
-- Bob
---------
Then the horns kicked in...
...and my shoes began to squeak.