Do you think this book predicts the future?

[Fu Zaila]

I find it incredibly possible for the United States to lose power at some point in the future. It is still a relatively young country and unrest is rising. I have not read enough of the book yet to say whether or not this specific would is a possibility but at this point, anything is possible.

I agree. We can't rely on a government forever. Things are changing, and we can only hope it's not for the worse!
In this book, even though I feel it is more detailed than the real world could ever be, it does seem to be a possibility.

[ArriettyClock]

I think that it is possible for any country to lose their monopoly if certain situations decline rapidly. Especially if this creates civil war, fractures relationships with other countries, or damages their economy.
Current politics is not only straining current relationships (i.e. withdrawing from the climate deal, and supporting one side or another in current and long-standing feuds), but it is also separating it's citizens in views. For me, this has escalated quickly recently, and if it continues to escalate in the same rate, could be catastrophic.

[Fu Zaila]

Everything will depend on collective belief of the citizens because they are the one who will decide about the future. Present day governments and corporates only can try to shape their belief.

That's what is happening. But the people would refuse to be spoon-fed sooner or later. Just like Agent Silver, in this novel, even though I haven't read it.

[Fu Zaila]

Probably not, in most cases, the future will ultimately be more mundane than anything else really. Remember Soylent Green? It takes place in 2022 and the only thing that has happened similarly is that soylent actually exists (As a powder but still)

But 40 years is still a long time, and with the rate the technology is advancing in present day, we can't really not expect some drastic changes in the future (the book is set in 2058).

[Fu Zaila]

I really enjoyed reading this book! I think it is entirely possible that such a dystopia could occur. According to our current legal system, corporations are people too. Can you imagine a company such as Google taking a stand against big goverments like the US? They actually already are! Recently, the company pulled out of Project Maven because their technology was being used by the Pentagon in controversial (and illegal) wars.

Imagine Elon Musk really solving the Flint water crisis (as he has pledged to do on Twitter). People would start to realize that we don't need these corrupt politicians anymore, but rich corporations will be there to fill the power vacuum!

Exactly! These big organisations are gaining power, and people are starting to lose their faith in the government which is supposed to represent them. A dystopian future isn't that far a possibility, but one can hope not!

[Supergirl1]

Probably not, in most cases, the future will ultimately be more mundane than anything else really. Remember Soylent Green? It takes place in 2022 and the only thing that has happened similarly is that soylent actually exists (As a powder but still)

But 40 years is still a long time, and with the rate the technology is advancing in present day, we can't really not expect some drastic changes in the future (the book is set in 2058).

40 years is not such a long time. Google was born 20 years ago, and most of the big tech companies we know today were also born in the 90’s. Anything is possible, the only thing that seems probable is most likely drastic change!

[Bianka Walter]

I could absolutely see oligarchy based governments becoming more prevalent in the future.

It does seem like a major shift would have to occur socially and politically for the future Gariffo writes about to come true, but those can happen very rapidly. Consider the Internet - in the 1990s, it was mainly used by academics and several books or articles published then did not predict the rapid growth of the Internet or how it is used for entertainment today.

I actually can’t picture any future without some form of presidency. I feel like something would have to go very wrong (as it did in the book) for an oligarchical government to come into play. But I also struggle to see a future that has space travel - so I’m obviously a bit narrow minded

[ouranosshammayim]

The question "who" or "what" and "where" in the superpower issue may just be a great possibility but the reality is that we really are consumers, and it has created us and in us the dreaded future.

[Surakshita-11]

A book is not really capable of depicting future. But Yes, the current situation of government definitely shows possibility of something of that sort can happen and United States may be over ruled by some other country.

[Bianka Walter]

This is a definite possibility. The political climate in the U.S. right now is really damaging the relationships with other countries, and there does not seem to be an emphasis on advances. I would not be surprised if the U.S. was not a world leader in 10 years, let alone 40.

This is actually so true. In order to be a world leader, you have to have the world on your side. Damaged relationships prevent this from happening. The more damage, the more the U.S. will fall, I suppose.

[Ana-Maria-Diana]

It has a chance of becoming real as all of dystopian novels have. I think our future will be a sort of dystopian but much worse of anything we can imagine.

[Kibet Hillary]

I don’t believe the United States will ever lose power. It’s the most powerful country and I think will stay that way.

This is true but. It is hard to change the state of things as they are currently. However, there is nothing certain and that cannot change at times. Though it is very hard.

[Kibet Hillary]

In my opinion, the current state of things in the world, the US being the superpower cannot be easily changed. The story maybe depicting a futuristic world but the reality is that it may not be as easy as it seems.

[Bookcool123]

Some advancement of technology may arise in the future but it may be close to the tehnology given by the author here. There are still the moralists that would balance the direction of such future events. Meaning, there may be ups and downs but it all depends on the common good of the country.

[Bianka Walter]

Imagine Elon Musk really solving the Flint water crisis (as he has pledged to do on Twitter). People would start to realize that we don't need these corrupt politicians anymore, but rich corporations will be there to fill the power vacuum!

I love this! It's actually quite terrible that I would sooner put my faith in Elon Musk than certain other world leaders. It's funny how people with nothing to prove are the ones that we find ourselves looking toward for answers. I would happily live in a world run by Elon Musk. There would be a lot more cars floating in space, but I could live with that