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Craig Curtis
rcc@bradley.bradley.edu
Department of Political Science
Bradley University
The government -- America is still nominally a democracy, but the protections that limited the efficacy of the law enforcement apparatus throughout much of our history have been eroded. Thus, very few circumstances exist where the Fourth Amendment prevents the gathering or use of evidence. Interactive telecommunication service has allowed the courts to create the fiction that virtually no place is private anymore. The huge increase in "business" for the courts has resulted in the adoption of streamlined procedures -- the public defenders are overtly interested only in processing cases and the judges engage in little individualized justice. While there is still a First Amendment, a revival of seditious libel type laws has made any political party or group that criticizes the government subject to incarceration. Of course, wealth still allows one to buy better legal representation. For the wealthy and privileged, there is still due process available for a steep price. The police themselves have become stratified, with an upper echelon made up of technocrats and lawyers able to manipulate the surveillance systems that have developed. The officers who provide the muscle are generally ex-cons who have demonstrated a willingness to use violence with little compunction, but who are loyal to their political masters.
The economy -- America manufactures very little except for information technology, military goods, and a few airplanes. It does build a lot of jails and prisons. What America depends on is control of information and communication technology markets. The country's position in the world economy is somewhat weaker than in 1997, but sheer size and momentum have kept it in a very important position. The crucial problem is lack of well trained workers. The best and brightest are often in prison, or have been in prison and are therefore not trustworthy. This is especially true of minority groups, who have suffered most from the increasing imposition of the criminal sanction.
International situation -- A multipolar situation has grown up with the US, China, Japan, the EC and Russia all generally cooperating on the major issues. Substantial local unrest is prevalent, with religion at the root of many of the brutal civil wars that are common. Of course, the US and, to a lesser extent, the EC are generally in support of regimes in which the primary influence is Judeo-Christian. The Chinese still oppose most religion. The Russians are an incredible diverse people who have influence primarily by virtue of their control of natural resources, but with an essentially late 20th century industrial plant. Japan is the lone industrial power that still has the type of influence it had in the late 20th century, but its dependence on imports of raw materials makes it politically vulnerable. It tries to remain neutral in all situations. No key crisis is pending.
Religion -- Most of the population belongs to the descendants of Protestant fundamentalist sects that grew in power in the late 20th century. They believe in the holy trinity and also in a rigid code of conduct that must be followed in order to gain entrance into the gates of heaven. Redemption is available to any person who gives most of their worldly belongings to the church and sincerely repents of their sins. Of course, the upper classes control the clergy, for the most part, and are privately secular and completely materialistic, but the masses believe the second coming of Christ will occur before the end of the century.
Salient technological advances -- space travel has largely been abandoned because of its expense and because it is believed by so many to be fruitless since the end of the world is near. Unmanned satellites are commonly launched to maintain the telecommunications network and to generate weather data. Reliance on fossil fuels is still a problem, and the lack of energy has reduced some small nations to dependence on subsistence farming and exports of raw materials. What have advanced is interactive telecommunications. All homes have the ability to receive and transmit, voluntarily and without the knowledge of the occupants, a huge volume of information. Most teens are addicted to "Intervision" an interactive communications system that allows them to play games, watch video, watch sports, do homework, view video-magazines and communicate directly with other teens. Few engage in team sports or exercise at all.
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