In 1990, George Bush Senior had inaugurated a New World Order, based on uncontested US military supremacy and western economic dominance. This was to be a unipolar world without rivals. Regional powers would bend the knee to the new worldwide imperium. History itself, it was said, had come to an end. But between the attack on the Twin Towers and the fall of Lehman Brothers, that global order had crumbled. Two factors were crucial. By the end of a decade of continuous warfare, the US had succeeded in exposing the limits, rather than the extent, of its military power. And the neoliberal capitalist model that had reigned supreme for a generation had crashed. The End Of The New World Order and the Search for a Way Forward.
posted by philip-random on Oct 25, 2012 - 24 comments

US President Barack Obama is in Australia today. The main policy announcement is a new, permanent US Marine Corps presence on Australian soil. This is interpreted unambiguously as a 'containment strategy' for China and other Asian nations, with Australia playing the loyal deputy Sheriff. Most Australians don't think we should be forced to choose.
posted by wilful on Nov 16, 2011 - 130 comments

Haruki Murakami talks about fiction in the 21st century. Part of the International Herald Tribune Magazine's year-end issue, 2011: Global Agenda. [more inside]
posted by azarbayejani on Dec 5, 2010 - 36 comments

1894. [more inside]
posted by Minus215Cee on Sep 9, 2010 - 16 comments

Grab your John Deere hat and your Asian girlfriend! Metafilter's most hated music website is telling you what the 500 best songs of the 21st century are! [more inside]
posted by bardic on Aug 19, 2009 - 147 comments

British Library warns of 'black hole' in history if websites and digital files are not preserved. "Historians of the future, citizens of the future, will find a black hole in the knowledge base of the 21st century." In addition to dead file formats and lost information from government websites, Lynne Brindley also points to the habits of individuals. "I call it personal digital disorder. Think of those thousands of digital photographs that lie hidden on our computers. Few store them, so those who come after us will not be able to look at them."
posted by cashman on Jan 26, 2009 - 63 comments

Is the 21st century making you miserable? This young fellow may know why. Is he right, folks?
posted by wallstreet1929 on Feb 9, 2007 - 51 comments