United States

From Gothpoodle

Latest revision as of 19:42, 17 June 2010

• Population: 480 million
• Aspects: Great Power, Free, Fourth Wave
• Notes: Many regions are Fifth Wave.

The U.S. has often seemed an actor among nations, devoted to playing one role or another on the world stage. “Land of the Free” was followed by “the Arsenal of Democracy,” then by “Leader of the Free World.” That last role survived for decades, bolstered by the largest national economy on the planet, the most powerful and advanced military, and a truly imperial network of alliances and defense commitments. By the 2020s, however, the U.S. was unable to maintain its leadership role. Former allies were asserting their independence in world diplomacy. Meanwhile, the American economy was being surpassed by those of other nations, and its military power was in slow decline. By the era of the Overturn the United States was simply one Great Power among many.

American society is sharply divided along cultural and generational lines. The political system is dominated by a bloc of elderly, wealthy, Christian, and deeply conservative voters. Arrayed against this dominant coalition are Transhumanists, cultural minorities, recent immigrants, the underemployed, and the younger generation. The schism reveals itself in almost every aspect of American society, from federal budget policy to popular entertainment.

American internal politics are quite lively. The ancient Democratic and Republican Parties still dominate events, although the grand alignment of liberal and conservative factions has shifted several times in the past century. The Democratic Party has been ascendant since the Tricentennial elections of 2076, due to strong support among Hispanics and the super-elderly. Democrats are currently the nation’s major conservative party, promoting Preservationism, strict regulation of new technologies, and diplomatic and economic isolation. Republicans are the nation’s leading liberal party, providing a haven for technocrats, industrialists, scientists, and supporters of the American space program. Republicans tend to promote technological innovation and global free trade; a few Republicans are openly Transhumanist in sentiment.

Despite the continued dominance of the two major parties, a series of election reforms early in the century opened up the political system somewhat. Today most Presidential elections involve several third-party and regional candidates, who become involved in coalition-building between election day and the installation of a new government.

The long-established workings of American politics have recently been disturbed by a new political movement, calling for cyberdemocratic reform of the political system. This “People’s Power” movement is fragmented, and includes both establishment politicians and armed radicals. The latter have been quite active since 2095, forcing the American military to fight a low-level counterinsurgency campaign in several of the country’s urban zones. Modern American society is dominated by no one culture, but the most common cultural flavor is Hispanic rather than Anglo-American. English remains the sole official language, but Spanish slang and loan words have become common in the “standard” American dialect. Most Americans are more cosmopolitan than their ancestors of a century ago, although they feel closer ties with Latin America than with Europe. This shift is reflected in American foreign policy, which since mid-century has been more deeply involved with Central and South America than with Europe or the Far East.

Today, many Americans are ambivalent about their national identity. Even patriots tend to focus admiration on a specific aspect of modern American society: the space program, the rapid pace of technological innovation, the high standard of living, the richness of the local entertainment industry, the nation’s cultural diversity, national history, or some other item. The United States has become a place where personally constructed identity – the individual’s choice of genetic, cultural and technological style – is more important than any sort of national consciousness. Some Americans consider this a sign of final decline for the nation, while others revel in the freedom of the time.

For most of the century, the United States was the world’s leader in almost every area of technology. To a great degree, the Third Wave civilization was built by the United States, and the technologies of computers and digital networks have always been most advanced here. The American segment of the Web is richer and more complex than any other. The United States was slower to adopt radical biotechnology, but it had become a center of human genetic alteration and bioroid manufacture by the late 2040s. Recently the United States has tended to fall behind Europe in the development of cutting-edge Fifth Wave technologies, but so far this disadvantage has been minimal.

American foreign policy has yet to recover from the country’s loss of superpower status. Since the 2050s the United States has avoided alliances with any other major power, restricting itself to relationships with strategically placed minor nations. American policy is particularly cool toward the European Union and the Pacific Rim Alliance, although long-standing partnerships with Australia and the United Kingdom remain in effect. The United States’ best relationships are with Latin America, specifically Argentina, Ecuador, and Mexico.

The 60 States

There are 10 new states in the Union. These fall into three major categories.

Completely New States: Both Guam and Puerto Rico were admitted to the Union in the 2020s. Considered on its own, Guam is the wealthiest island-state in Polynesia, with extensive data-haven, financial, trans-shipment, and tourism industries supplementing income from U.S. military activities. Puerto Rico holds a similar position in the Caribbean, with the addition of extensive biotech and pelagiculture industries.

City-States: As a whole, the United States has had no serious trouble with secessionism in the past century. On the other hand, several individual states have divided into smaller political units. In most cases, this was a result of persistent cultural divisions between a major metropolitan area and a state legislature dominated by suburban or rural interests – a trend similar to the appearance of “free cities” elsewhere in the world. Atlanta, Chicago, Miami, New York City, Greater San Francisco, and Seattle-Tacoma all function as distinct states within the Union, sending their own senators and representatives to the United States Congress. San Diego does likewise, with the complication of its relationship with Tijuana, Mexico; the two cities cooperate very closely despite their allegiance to different national governments.

Cibola: The most unusual of the new states is Cibola, founded in the 2070s by carving out the Four Corners region of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. Cibola is dominated by Native American interests, particularly the Navajo and Hopi tribal governments. It is sometimes promoted as the harbinger of a new relationship between Native American tribes and the federal government.

There has been one other significant adjustment to state borders, although it did not affect the count of states. The District of Columbia has been almost completely annexed by the state of Maryland, leaving behind a much smaller Federal District. The current “federal enclave” includes only a small packet of territory around the Washington Mall, its only permanent residents the President, his family, and the White House live-in staff.