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Yours Truly & Sir Kenaz were delighted to have been joined by Sir Aspen, our resident scholar in all things Aridoamerica. We discuss the end of the Faustian West, the Ascension of Aridoamerica & all of the Fun, DOOM-ful futures that await both the West & the non-West in the coming decades & centuries. Enjoy, Dear Listeners! 😉

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Solid convo fellas.

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100% América will Balkanize. Empire decay—and subsequent regeneration—from the geographical margins is one of the insights I think Peter Turchin got right. In the US, everything between the Appalachian and Rocky Mountains is the margin.

I love the name Aridamerica and agree with your general geographical region. Árido is going to be straight up steppes warlords (ahem, biker gangs) and local militias. Expect taxes to cease flowing in from this region first to pay for “protection.”

As a Chicagoan, I often thought about a militarized Great Lakes region—an empire that surrounded the world’s largest supply of fresh water. A breadbasket yet troubled by savage Lakes People. Urban warlords, Water World and abandoned skyscrapers.

The Eastern seaboard will try to keep control as long as possible, but it will decay exactly as it formed. Maybe they can keep Appalachia but it would only ever be the parts near the highways.

Fun to speculate.

We’re in the Dreamtime now. Babies 🏄‍♂️

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