Black Riven

In the end of the second chapter we were in the 'before' time, and Raymond arrived to a lecture given by his ex-Wife. This third chapter is still in the 'before' time, and is when we get to catch up on what the world has came to. Along with proof read I would also like to to get a critique for the events described, and some of the scientific facts (did I get them right, or not?).
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"The peaceful era that characterized the years between 2030 and 2038 following the resolution of the Middle East situations and a final oppression of terror ended in a big bang when a nuclear, self caused accidental explosion demolished Jerusalem and a quarter of the Palestinian territory."

On a big stage, illuminated by professional lightning from the ceiling, the helicopter shot CNN footage of the same event was shown on a big plasma flat screen behind the speaker- Professor McClure E. Mary, a historian and teacher of social studies. Above the screen was a paper sign where the subject of today's lecture was written: society in the apocalyptic times.

The name wasn't an exaggeration. As Professor McClure went on to explain, the explosion was the beginning of a series of sudden disasters that befell different parts of the world one after another, changing global mentality and creating the illusion of the world slipping to oblivion.

"After that event, which killed millions and reignited the tensions that were thought to be disappearing in the Middle East, an outbreak of a deadly new disease that was nick named "end", a word play on the initials of the medical term "Neurological Decay", "ND", broke out in eastern Europe, adding to the Israeli Palestinian disaster and claiming the lives of 20 millions in Croatia, Russia, Poland, Latvia, Bulgaria and the sorrounding countries."

"A cure to that brain and nerve destroying plague was found after 6 intense years of hard work on behalf of all Europe, Far East, and the US, but not before immigrating briefly to other parts of the world."

"2039 saw troubles on the US soil as the Californian air reached such dangerous pollution peaks that it was deemed unsuitable to breath. Its dwindling population, suffering from astronomical death rates from lungs cancer, was moved to other cities and states outside of the danger zones in California, and in 2042 Washington followed."

"Troubles began to appear in other parts of the world as well. Radical Japanese extremists "Fuki Nihon" has began causing turbulences in Japan by rebelling against the demanding, stressful life that was forced upon the Japanese students from a very early age. These extremists gained enough support to eventually collapse the Japanese order to everybody's surprise at 2045."

"The unexpected revolution deteriorated Japan's manufacturing power, and after a while affected global economy since Japan, following its trend from the Second World War of developing cutting edge technologies, have become a major player in world economy. Its collapse affected Western Europe, Russia, and the US, all of which were busy with their own problems, and in the case of the US- the need to build major cities to replace those with excessive air pollution."

"2050 was also the peak of the imminent threat of dwindling natural resources. Since that year and forward, all over the world strict regulations were set in motion to protect and manage nature's gifts to us, and prices went up accordingly. The timing of this problem was a perfect recipe for economical destruction. Poor countries fell into a state of bankruptcy and total anarchy in a manner of 10 years. War returned to the soil of the Middle East and between Russia and Chechnya. The peaceful regions of Scandinavia ended up in a war when the surrounding countries began to put political pressure for unification which the Scandinavian countries, and in particular Norway, saw as return to the times when they were forced under an outside rule."

"Where war did not break out other problems took the role of disaster making. Africa has been ridden with famine and disease. The AIDS virus that have been put under control in many Western countries through awareness and education have undergo a mutation and began eating at the local populace much like End did some 10 years ago."

"The heating of the Earth have caused the water levels to rise once the poles began to slowly melt. The result was destruction of port cities in Norway, Britain, Russia and Canada. The movement of tectonic plates in South America caused devastating earth quakes and a few new volcanoes, and as if that wasn't enough a meteor hit- which due to the lacking resources and money problems was not stopped successfully- rip the Asian region into two, causing ecological changes and covering the sky with dust."

"The surviving countries on the edges of the impact were left in total disarray and were eventually assimilated by the modern global empires and some European countries including Britain. That assimilation move, executed at around 2073, saved those countries and empires from the coming economical devastation, but caused opposition both patriotic from the assimilated countries and global from countries that disagreed about the sharing of the Asian survivers."

"The tensions have been rising for the next 20 years, and occasional conflicts involving military actions brought the first prospects of a possible war. With all the good will to preserve the natural resources there was literally no realistic way to do that while dealing with all the major problems each place in the world dealed with. What happened eventually was that the tensions were not only about the sharing of the Asian resources, but also due to the realization that there won't be enough of those resources to support everybody, and that eventually, as it was said off record by most governments in the world, some day it would come down to 'us or them'."

The screen behind her went black for a few seconds after the footage from various global news channels presented its last frame, it showed not only the disasters that she mentioned, but a few of the others as well, like the species of aggressive mosquitoes that suddenly appeared in the Amazon rain forest, and carried a disease just as aggressive as its carriers. The screen sprung back into action as she continued her speech.

"In the face of all these sudden disasters, which were for the most part spontaneous events, many people found themselves facing immediate loses and problems, and their lives from then on began to revolve around that. Those who were lucky enough to live in the well established places like the US, UK and Russia did not suffer direct hits from the situation, but felt its weight none the less. What happened here in the US, was that people's view of the world and attitude towards life has changed. From a steady stride towards a brighter future of the 2030's it now succumbed to the frightened notion that there's nothing certain in life anymore, and that the world is going downhill to its demise."

"The economical reality affected everyone, making corporations crippled and the government dysfunctional. The middle class was befallen by poverty and those of us who used to get paid with high figures- surgeons, programmers, and successful businessmen- became a middle class struggling to pay off debts or get paid at all. The different disasters that happened in the US and over the world brought deep concern about the future, painting it in grim colors, and the irrationality, the sheer randomness of those events raised a fear of the unexpected, a feeling that at any time a new disaster may strike out of the blue and tear your world apart."

"The government, who was supposed to ensure the safety and well being of its citizens, lost much of its power and ability to execute its plans, and with it- its credibility. Facing one broken promise after another, not only from the government but also from employers, companies and many others, today's person is not easily trusting, is cynical and skeptical, and believes only what he sees, never what is being promised to him."

"The effects of this new reality manifested themselves in every aspect of our culture, from youth sub cultures to the way people interact with each other on a daily basis. Of the more alarming changes are the 300% rise in drug use amongst teens and young adults and an increase in violence in public places such as schools and clubs."

Behind her, pictures of political slogans and protests were replaced with a warning regarding epilepsy and footage of a club with enough flickering lights to give anyone a seizure appeared. Empty sounding metallic synths were playing dissonant chords and electronic melodies over rhythmic passages of chromatic noise, and a big mass of young people were jumping and twisting themselves to its beat, their movement lagging as a result of the illusion that flickering lights create.

The ones next to the light tubes- the latest invention in the pseudo holographic lightning- were more easily visible, and one could make out the weird hair cuts of some of them and the spiked coats.

"What you see behind me is footage from a typical club party, which is also where most of the drug use is happening. These clubs have become a cultural icon amongst the youth of today, as they stand out as the embodiment of the modern state of mind- a 'live your life to the fullest, and live it for today' type of ism that is constantly trying to outrun a sense of impending doom. Today's people, motivated by the fear of a sudden disaster, have embarked on a race to enjoy life in its maximum magnitude, participating in heavy drinking, excessive drug use, and sex with random people, sometimes in the form of organized orgies."

"The music you are hearing at the moment reflects both the needs of today's youth and its emotional state. The mood it's trying to convey is of emotional emptiness, something that people identify with due to the hopelessness and insignificance they feel because of the ever changing and collapsing world around them. The use of dissonant sounds is a bit harder to pinpoint, but their origin seems to be a reflection of the dissident approach people now have towards life- and as in life, so in music. The distorted noise in this case is mostly for the rhythm, but is being used by bands of other genres very much in the same way dissonant chords are used by others."

The presentation behind her changed to footage of police at a crime scene.
"Another social phenomenon today is the ever escalating crime rates due to the extreme financial conditions. Over 40% of the populace is living in the streets now, and though the government claims that in the next 4 years a solution will be found for everybody, it looks like it's unlikely to change. When not stealing to survive people engage in illegal trades and piracy. Due to the police being short handed at handling all the cases it is now much easier to get away with things, and murder rates have gone higher as well. It is now more dangerous than ever to live in major cities, and the level of suspicion of people went accordingly."

Raymond looked at his watch and sighed. The lecture was supposed to go on for another hour and he knew perfectly well what it was going to be filled with. With so much trouble in their country, all summarized into a tight hour and a half lecture, he wondered how on earth could she still believe that this was a good place for children.