How Would a System Breakdown Happen?

[Conserative Morality]

It was sarcasm... I was making fun of the person who claimed it earlier in the thread.

Actually, I think he was being sarcastic as well. In fact, I'm pretty sure he was.

[Conserative Morality]

Thanks guys, I don't know where I'd be without you.

Lost. Alone. UNLOVED.

But don't worry. You're not without us. We love you. Except Dyakovo.

[Jagalonia]

Thanks guys, I don't know where I'd be without you.

Lost. Alone. UNLOVED.

But don't worry. You're not without us. We love you. Except Dyakovo.

When all else fails, one can always count on the senate for love....Unless you're a gaul...Then you're fucked.

[Conserative Morality]

When all else fails, one can always count on the senate for love....Unless you're a gaul...Then you're fucked.

Or a German. Or a Jew.

[Caninope]

I'm pretty sure that EMP blasts not only disable all current electronics... but also all future electronics...

You would be wrong.

Dy, I love ya and everything, but you really need to get a new sarcasm meter.

[Dyakovo]

Thanks guys, I don't know where I'd be without you.

In a soviet gulag?

[Jagalonia]

When all else fails, one can always count on the senate for love....Unless you're a gaul...Then you're fucked.

Or a German. Or a Jew.

Touchee salesman....Touchee...

[Dyakovo]

It was sarcasm... I was making fun of the person who claimed it earlier in the thread.

Actually, I think he was being sarcastic as well. In fact, I'm pretty sure he was.

So my sarcasm detector is broken as well...

[Dyakovo]

You would be wrong.

Dy, I love ya and everything, but you really need to get a new sarcasm meter.

Yeah... 900 already pointed that out to me...
* is ashamed*

[Jagalonia]

Thanks guys, I don't know where I'd be without you.

In a soviet gulag?

Nah, probably a german work camp....

[Jagalonia]

You would be wrong.

Dy, I love ya and everything, but you really need to get a new sarcasm meter.

Your post count...It's....

[Caninope]

Dy, I love ya and everything, but you really need to get a new sarcasm meter.

Yeah... 900 already pointed that out to me...
* is ashamed*

It's OK. We've got a long course ahead of us, but rest assured, with the help of 1980's SNL, Monty Python, and our very own Panzerjaegar, we will help you through this tough time.

[Pottslande]

What a fascinating thread about sarcrasm!

[Conserative Morality]

What a fascinating thread about sarcrasm!

Yeah, it's really great.

[Jagalonia]

Yellow Stone Natl. Park erupting would be devastating to the US.

Reasons:

1) The massive amount of volcanic ash would ground air travel for the majority of the country for months if not weeks.
2) Ash would clog up the engines of vehicles and thereby shutting down transport.
3) There would be an endemic of respiratory problems related to inhaling the ash, causing many deaths among the elderly & young and overloading the hospitals with patients.
4) With vehicles knocked out of commission communities would be facing a supply problem and be forced to ration little supplies there are. Riots and theft would be rampant across the affected areas.
5 ) With the eruption of the volcano would bring about mass hysteria, both religiously and financial. With the already weak economy the panic selling of assets would plunge the US and the world back into a deep, global depression.
6 ) The environmental impact from the ash cloud would lower temperatures globally, kill many animal populations (such as bees), and result in significantly lower food production. Fisheries as a result are fished to near extinction with the laxation of government controls.
7 ) Religious and partisan groups would begin to clash over the distribution of limited food supplies and bring about tensions among racial and religious communities.
8 ) States with higher food production become more and more secessionist as the mass of refugees and government quotas are seen as a burden to the population. With the collapse of the world economy the US Government defaults leading to dire economic problems.
9) World hunger reaches new high, leading to the US pulling out of many countries and shutting down its borders to immigrants. The resulting political and economic isolation worsens the problems within the states leading to mass calls for independence.
10 ) The states that attempt to break away from the US are seen as treasonous by the states that depend on the Union remaining in order to feed their populations. National Guard units are called up and ordered to seize the farms of these 'rebellious' states resulting in border clashes. The federal government fails to negotiate an amicable peace resulting in Civil War. The government collapses as rioting, murder, and partisan fighting breaks out across the former US.

I'd like to draw this to the fore, as it does seem rather realistic.

[Pottslande]

Yellow Stone Natl. Park erupting would be devastating to the US.

Reasons:

1) The massive amount of volcanic ash would ground air travel for the majority of the country for months if not weeks.
2) Ash would clog up the engines of vehicles and thereby shutting down transport.
3) There would be an endemic of respiratory problems related to inhaling the ash, causing many deaths among the elderly & young and overloading the hospitals with patients.
4) With vehicles knocked out of commission communities would be facing a supply problem and be forced to ration little supplies there are. Riots and theft would be rampant across the affected areas.
5 ) With the eruption of the volcano would bring about mass hysteria, both religiously and financial. With the already weak economy the panic selling of assets would plunge the US and the world back into a deep, global depression.
6 ) The environmental impact from the ash cloud would lower temperatures globally, kill many animal populations (such as bees), and result in significantly lower food production. Fisheries as a result are fished to near extinction with the laxation of government controls.
7 ) Religious and partisan groups would begin to clash over the distribution of limited food supplies and bring about tensions among racial and religious communities.
8 ) States with higher food production become more and more secessionist as the mass of refugees and government quotas are seen as a burden to the population. With the collapse of the world economy the US Government defaults leading to dire economic problems.
9) World hunger reaches new high, leading to the US pulling out of many countries and shutting down its borders to immigrants. The resulting political and economic isolation worsens the problems within the states leading to mass calls for independence.
10 ) The states that attempt to break away from the US are seen as treasonous by the states that depend on the Union remaining in order to feed their populations. National Guard units are called up and ordered to seize the farms of these 'rebellious' states resulting in border clashes. The federal government fails to negotiate an amicable peace resulting in Civil War. The government collapses as rioting, murder, and partisan fighting breaks out across the former US.

I'd like to draw this to the fore, as it does seem rather realistic.

I'm quite liking this as well.

[Noavak]

I'd like to draw this to the fore, as it does seem rather realistic.

I'm quite liking this as well.

And if your looking for total anarchy the civil war could put a strain on limited food supplies resulting in mass hunger and starvation. As the fighting continues state and local governments begin to collapse under the strain of riots, rogue militias, and the destruction of farm land.

[Gothic Space Empire]

I'm planning on writing a story based on a world after a sort of apocalyptic system breakdown of the government, turning the United States into anarchy. I wanted to find a way to extrapolate from the current state of the world in order to achieve this condition, using economic and political forces as well as current issues (but especially economic).

So, I would like your opinions. How do you think a breakdown of our current system would happen?

I think there would have to be some kind of resource starvation. E.g. oil sources gradually used up means extraction becomes more difficult, which means higher prices for oil products (e.g. petrol/gasoline), this causes problems for a nation where everything is spread out (and thus requires motor vehicles for transportation).

[Georgism]

Shut down the internet? A lot of things rely on the internet now.

[Mediterreania]

Shut down the internet? A lot of things rely on the internet now.

[Andaluciae]

Shut down the internet? A lot of things rely on the internet now.

If the internet does die, we can rest easy knowing that Bruce Willis will save us all.

Literally. We'll keep watching the greatest Christmas movie ever--Die Hard 2--until ybe tubes return.

[Conserative Morality]

(Image)

"Mr. President! Leet Haxorz are trying to shut down the internet!"

"Which one?"

"ALL OF THEM."

"Dear God. Get me Bruce Willis."

[Mediterreania]

(Image)

"Mr. President! Leet Haxorz are trying to shut down the internet!"

"Which one?"

"ALL OF THEM."

"Dear God. Get me Bruce Willis."

"Why are you doing this?"
"Because anarchy."
"Because anarchy what?"
"Because anarchy!"

[Mike the Progressive]

Alright: First we elect a guy who makes history by his mere electoral victory. Second he would have ran his campaign on hope and change, getting everybody excited and optimistic but unfortunately turns out to be like every other politician. Third, he says he'll fix the economy but instead focuses on something stupid, like health care, and rather than delivering the promise of never supporting a mandate, he supports a mandate. Fourth, we re-elect him.

Fin

[Conserative Morality]

Alright: First we elect a guy who makes history by his mere electoral victory. Second he would have ran his campaign on hope and change, getting everybody excited and optimistic but unfortunately turns out to be like every other politician. Third, he says he'll fix the economy but instead focuses on something stupid, like health care, and rather than delivering the promise of never supporting a mandate, he supports a mandate. Fourth, we re-elect him.

Fin

Nah, that's par for the course in American politics.