The Global Worst Case Scenarios Wired Magazine predicted in 1997
Three years before the new millennium, Wired Magazine printed an article entitled “Top 10 Scenario Spoilers.” The article listed things that could go wrong in the 21st Century.
The article was remarkably prescient. What the article didn’t envision was all ten predictions coming to fruition (sorta). The pandemic prediction was a bit off, so far. “Only” 5 million have died worldwide so far fewer than the 200 million predicted in the article.
I guess the good news is if we, and democracy can survive the worst-case scenario of all ten predictions at play, we can survive anything. Of course, that’s a big “if.” We may know by November of 2022 if democracy is destined to die in the U.S.
Here’s the list, much easier to read than the photo.
Ten Scenario Spoilers:
Tensions between China and the US escalate into a new Cold War — bordering on a hot one.
New technologies turn out to be a bust. They simply don’t bring the expected productivity increases or the big economic boosts,
Russia devolves into a kleptocracy run by a mafia or retreats into quasi-communist nationalism that threatens Europe.
Europe’s integration process grinds to a halt. Eastern and Western Europe can’t finesse a reunification, and even the European Unification process breaks down.
Major ecological crisis causes a global climate change that, among other things, disrupts the food supply — causing big price increases everywhere and sporadic famines.
Major rise in crime and terrorism forces the world to pull back in fear. People who constantly feel they could be blown up or ripped off are not in the mood to reach out and open up.
The cumulative escalation in pollution causes a dramatic increase in cancer, which overwhelms the ill-prepared health system.
Energy prices go through the roof. Convulsions in the Middle East disrupt the oil supply, and alternative energy sources fail to materialize.
An uncontrollable plague — a modern-day influenza epidemic or irs equivalent takes off like wildfire, killing upward of 200 million people.
A social and cultural backlash stops progress dead in its tracks, Human beings need to choose to move forward. They just may not…
