The CoDominium

[Ecthy]

That's the sound they make for you guys?

[DRoseDARs]

Yes. Now you will never look at The Three Stooges in the same way again...

[OzzyKP]

Originally posted by Bill3000
The last real-life event according to that timeline was in 1991. Just a couple years later, there's another communist revolution in Russia, and in 2000, the nations of the US and USSR merge. This doesn't seem unrealistic, that in 10 years, the two major rivals, both ideoligically and militarily, MERGE, when there are so many differences? The U.K. and the US I could remotely fathom, but not the friggin' US and USSR. Not even Russia today - we still have tensions with them as seen on the forums today.

Yup that's as far as I made it then I laughed in disgust and came back here to comment.

Please...

[Zkribbler]

Re: The CoDominium

Originally posted by Pax

http://www.chronology.org/pournelle/

How likely do you think to countries like U.S./Russia or U.S./U.K. would form a superstate with a standing military.

Two possible motivations:
(1) An outside threat -- China gets really big & nasty.
(2) Economic benefit -- can't happen now, not as long as Russia is a kleptocracy.

[Pekka]

Not likely, as in not going to happen.

[Mr. Harley]

Good God, the man wrote the first story in that universe in 1972, I wasn't even quite a teenager yet! The timeline is deceptive, the US-USSR didn't exactly merge, and in fact the sort-of forced marraige, more like a worldwide hegenomy, falls apart later on and Earth dissolves into WW3, if you want to call it that.

Given the context of his time, the Cold War, Superpower politics, etc. it was not a bad timeline at all. Just like Red Storm Rising they are good reads, buy already obsolete. Like the computers in the first Star Trek, or the flying saucer in Forbidden Planet, todays cutting edge near future SciFi - maybe like Neuromancer and Cyberpunk - may well seem stupid to your kids. Enjoy the years.

[Urban Ranger]

Originally posted by shawnmmcc
...maybe like Neuromancer and Cyberpunk - may well seem stupid to your kids.

You don't have to wait that long. They are stupid to me.

[Pax]

it's not about the dates. It's about whether or not you think that the two most powerful countries during the cold war could merge.

[Pax]

Let me give you 2 examples. Before the 90's, No one would have ever believed that a pot-smoking draft dodger could become president. Before 2000 no one would ever believe that a coke sniffing draft dodger could become president.

[Donegeal]

HELLO!!! Science Fiction people! Its fake no matter how you look at it...

OOOOOooooooo!!! The entire back history to "The Mote in God's Eye"!!!!!!



Looks like I've got some reading to do...
(I have already read "Mote in God's Eye", "The Gripping Hand" and "King David's Spaceship")

[Mr. Harley]

Pax - they don't MERGE. Read the timeline. They form a combined supra-government and military, that lets them run the rest of the world. It still falls apart and starts WW3, but it does keep a peace. They don't merge, they split the world up. In 1972 that was not inconceivable.