Devolutionary pressures and continued separatist demands mean that some countries may not exist in their present form by 2050. Greater globalisation and advances in technology may lead to the fragmentation of some states as sub-regions are able to deal directly with counterparts in other countries, effectively bypassing governments. In other cases, while there may not be pressure for national borders to be altered, there could be increasing calls for devolution of power to the local level, particularly as cities gain greater economic, demographic and political weight.
Today's megacities have bigger economies than many countries, and their economic weight is likely to grow. This will increase their ability to act independently of their national government. For example, the decision of several US cities, states and technology firms to sign up to the Paris Agreement on climate change, in response to the US Federal Government's decision to withdraw from it, may in the future be replicated by other cities on different issues. As urban areas grow, the capacity and mandate of municipal authorities is also likely to increase, not least to handle the challenges of developing and expanding new urban infrastructure. If the power and influence of major global cities expand in the coming decades, they (and their populations) may have more in common with other cities around the world than with their national government. Those multinational corporations that thrive in the coming years are also likely to become bigger and more powerful, and they too may be increasingly able to act independently from the state.
Maintaining this corporate absolutism will be the automated weapons, mercenaries, and proxy terrorists that these corporations and their partnered intelligence actors are preparing. Perhaps even more destructive tools for violence will get involved in this; the U.S. military has already implicitly articulated plans for invading communities within U.S. borders when society breaks down enough for this to be deemed necessary. When the foundations of capital and empire fall out, our ruling class aims to plunge society into an engineered state of neo-feudal warfare. This is what it looks like when an unsustainable system eats itself.
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
1
1
1
