Some would say that the high spot of the century so far came at one minute past midnight on January 1st 2000. The 21st century arrived, not with a bang, not with a whimper, but with the collective sighs of relief of tens of thousands of IT professionals around the world as the Millennium Bug failed to cause "The End Of The World As We Know It". Everything went to Hell in a handcart after that, say the cynics, and with good reason.

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The European Union ceased to exist as a coherent political entity about five years ago. Immense civil unrest followed which continues to this day. Civil war is a distinct possibility in China as the remaining Communist hardliners (kept alive by the miracles of modern medicine) unleash the Army on democracy campaigners, while taking bribes from the corporations who are exploiting the largest captive market in the world. The Middle East is, as ever, a battlefield: Israel is effectively under siege and Iraq is rattling sabres at both Iran and Saudi Arabia.

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In America, the President sits hamstrung in the Oval Office. Promises made and deals cut during the election campaign have come back to haunt him and he has seen Presidential power eroded by the power of the corporations who backed him. Consider this: by 2010 there were only four major computer companies in the world, only four major oil companies, six automobile manufacturers, maybe five consumer electronics firms and four pharmaceuticals corporations. Less than two dozen multinationals control most of the world's major industries. As for the media, in the USA there are just three main corporations controlling the vast bulk of television, radio, music, the movies, magazines and Net content.

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In the USA today, you either punch a clock for a corporation, or you fall through the cracks. But, hey! This is America, the land of the free, and the land of infinite possibilities. And we still know how to party!

Saturday night in Downtown Seattle, the end of a long, hot day. Temperatures hit 110F and a vicious smog enveloped the Downtown District. A series of  road accidents brought gridlock to the city centre. At least three murders have been attributed to motorists going berserk from a mixture of heat, the poisonous atmosphere and the incessant sounds of car horns. 

Earlier today two street gangs came to blows over a truck full of mineral water that had broken down in the buffer zone between their respective turfs. It took a Police chopper and riot squads to break up the fighting. A psycho went berserk at a rail station, murdering 12 people and injuring 20 others before being mown down by the cops. The crime rate has soared along with the temperatures and the City Government is already preparing contingency plans should the heat wave continue.

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Unfun.

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Now the good citizens of Downtown are out to party. The heat is no longer so oppressive and thrillseekers, party goers, corporates and street gangs are heading for some well-earned relaxation in the City's night spots. Along with the crowd are those who make their living from the general populace: muggers, pick-pockets, car thieves, drug dealers, hookers and hustlers. All drawn into the melting pot that is Downtown. How many will see dawn?