MORE FUTURE HISTORY


Back in October, I told you about the time machine I built from parts borrowed from washing machines and an old Mack truck. I only fire it up once in a while because time travel can be risky, and sometimes your experience can be traumatizing. Since I have been a bit overwhelmed by the amount of things to write about, what with the "new guy" taking his Presidential sledge hammer to our founding father's great works, I thought I'd take another trip into the future. You know, just to take a peek at what lies ahead. Big mistake!

This time I decided to set my destination for ten years into the future. My time machine only allows me to travel through time, it does not allow me to travel to different locations. So my report is limited to what I saw in my own home town and what I could learn from the media of the year 2019.

As I walked around my hometown, the first thing I noticed was the poverty. I double checked my instruments to make sure I hadn't entered some sort of parallel universe...I hadn't. I could tell it was my town, but it looked dirty, and run down. There were few people walking around, and the few that there were had sullen looks on their faces and shabby clothes. There were very few cars and the ones that were actually moving were rusty and beat up.
The other thing that struck me were the posters and billboards that seemed to be placed in such a manner as to make it impossible for you to look in any direction without missing one. Each had a different depiction of a greying Barack Obama. All flattering, and most on a field of red. I hadn't seen anything like this since the old pictures I used to see of Saddam Hussein, or the ones of Mao and Stalin from High School history class.

I decided to find out what happened. I went to what used to be a family restaurant, but now resembled some sort of soup kitchen you would see in the inner city. I sat down next to someone and told them I was recently released from the hospital after suffering an extended coma. Yeah, it was not the best cover story, but he bought it.
I asked what the deal was with all the Obama signs. He said, "Didn't you hear? He is our 'Dear Leader', he is our President." I asked how he was still President after his two terms. "Two terms?" he said. He then told me how in Obama's first term, he had amended the constitution to allow unlimited terms for President of the United States. After his Supreme Court nominations were approved, and with the support of a liberal Congress, there was no one to stop him.
I then asked what happened to all the people that used to live here. He said, "Many died in the war of 2012. Others died of what they called the 'new plague'. You see, when we tried to merge with the European Union via the United Nations, there was a revolt. The people formed militias and splinter groups of armed citizens trying to save the nation. Having mixed allegiances, many in the military opted to either stay neutral and not fight. Many joined the revolt in hopes of defending the Republic. This forced Obama to utilize the remainder of his military to put down the revolt with heavy armour, air strikes and martial law. They had nearly succeeded in stopping the 'American insurgency' until they showed up. The world had been watching our upheaval and decided to take full advantage. The Russian and Chinese coalition trained and armed Muslim factions from around the globe to infiltrate and then sabotage key infrastructure in America. Since our industrial abilities had already been depleted to non-existence by years of naive fiscal policies, it was impossible for us to rebuild or maintain military superiority."

"Wait a minute" I said. "If a Chinese/Russian coalition has taken over America, then how is Obama still President?" He looked at me as if I should have already guessed. He then explained; "Are you kidding? Obama did everything but personally open the door for the commies to walk right in and take over. They left him in charge because they knew he sympathized with them and he could convince the masses to comply with the new 'leadership'. Now we live to support the state".
Though I was stunned to hear of this horrifying turn of events, I asked him about the "new plague" he mentioned earlier. He told me how the new plague was really not that bad of a virus compared to many mankind had dealt with in the past. Apparently the real problem was a shortage of Doctors and medicine. You see, after our health care system had been taken over by the government, fewer and fewer people wanted to become Doctors. Going to school for eight to ten years to become a government employee, as opposed to having a private practice of their own was just not that appealing. The double whammy came when the pharmaceutical companies were taxed into un-profitability and consequently forced to close their doors.
Obama had made good on pretty much every one of his original campaign promises, but the people were too short-sighted to see the consequences of his agenda. They were so enamored by his style, that they didn't bother to consider his substance.
Anyway, this virus which during any other time could have been treated with anti-biotics spread like wildfire through the urban areas first, then on to the rest of the population. Over three million people in the US alone died within the first month of the outbreak. A year later, two thirds of the world population had perished.
I then asked what had happened to the restaurant that used to be here. He told me that after the first round of tax increases, the family that owned the place could no longer afford to stay in business, especially since most of the customer base had lost their jobs. He told me to take notice how there was no cash register here now. That's because the government had nationalized the food industry and now "distribute" food without charging the people. At first, I wondered how bad that could possibly be. Then I saw what was being served...potatoes and onion soup, with stale bread and water. Proving once again that there is no such thing as a free lunch.
At that point, I had seen and heard enough. I said "Good bye" to my futuristic friend and ran as fast as I could back to my time machine.

I'm not really sure if this destiny can be changed, now that I have witnessed it, but I do know that being right about someone or something is not always everything it's cracked up to be.