Philippines 3314 P.W.
by Vincent Ryan Ong

Let me tell you about my country and my world, so that you’ll know more about yours. On second thought, it’s more complicated than that. You see, technically, we live in the same world and probably the same country, but not the same era. The year is 3314 P.W. and I am recording this message in the Philippines using an ancient language called English.

My name is Vincent. I am known by a dozen other names depending on where you are (Tsun Kiet in the Chinese territories, etc.) I am also one of the few inhabitants here on Earth whose name was last used some millennia ago. I know that the future has always been an enigma to your generation and it goes a long way back to the dawn of civilization. The universal history is readily available to us but you won’t have a way of deciphering them due to the “technology” that you currently have. What I will be imparting to you now is an extremely general idea of what transpired between your era and mine. My only assumption is that it is currently the 21st century A.D. in your time.

Zooming in on the Philippines, nothing much changed since 2000 A.D. except for the weapons used in the army. It has significantly improved and the police force is much more adept. Don’t look at this as a good sign though. The weapons have definitely improved but still eons away from other countries’. As what has been the policy before, these weapons are either rejects or obsolete gadgets of the United States and Great Britain. Yes, these two are sharing the top spot in the international arena as of 2095 A.D. The police force is mainly composed of foreign nationals as the government lost all hope on locals. Corruption is still an issue but I doubt you didn’t think of that.

By 3000 A.D., 278 minor wars and 3 major wars have been fought on Earth. Some counties as you know them now are no longer part of the world. New countries and continents emerged in the pacific region. The Theory of Plate Tectonics was deemed impossible some centuries back. The internet was an archaic technology used extensively only by fourth world countries (where the Philippines sadly belong). The successor of the internet was called the Parallel Universe (PU – read as ‘poo’). I know that this is a familiar concept to you now but you might need to re-align your understanding of how this actually is, as of 3000 A.D. A PU is a virtual universe that anyone who has access to an electronic device can go to. This is much like the internet that you know except that you’re not restricted to use it only on your computers, notebooks, hand-held PC’s, mobile phones, tablet PC’s, etc. Basically all electronic devices in the first and second world countries (and some on third world countries) are PU-enabled. Once you’re connected to your home PU, you can then jump into other PU’s created by other people. PU’s transport you physically to the target universe, unlike the internet which you can browse in the comfort of your room. The advantage of PU is the fact that you get to have an actual feel of the universe and not just be content with looking and browsing at it. The first PU was created by the same group who created the internet.

For the environmentalist in you, it will be my pleasure to tell you that the ozone layer is back to its old self. No hole exists as of 3010 A.D. The primary reason for this is the complete elimination of any pollutants. The technology invented during the latter part of 2700 A.D. was able to replace the old one used during your time thus allowing the ozone layer to heal. The sad news is that trees and wildlife (which now includes your regular pet dogs, cats, and even fishes) are not your common sight as of this millennium. They are only found on designated areas for preservation. There is an exception to this on all the fourth world countries though. In fact, the existence of such entities is abundant in the said group of countries that tourists would flock in from the farthest places on Earth just to have a feel of the Old World .

As of this millennium, the Philippines have had some 1455 presidents due to the uncontrollable addiction of Filipinos for an EDSA Revolution. The last of these was done on 2997 A.D. While the other countries are contending for the supreme title of having the most advanced technology, the Philippines is doing its best to hold the same title but in terms of agricultural technology. It was also forecasted that by 3500 A.D., the Philippines will be the only producer of natural food products in the world. Thailand, Malaysia, China, and the other countries in the region have joined the race for superiority in infrastructure technology and industrial technology. If the local government pushes through with this vision, by 4500 A.D., 80% of the country would be rice fields, farms, etc. somewhat catapulting the Philippines back to what it was during the colonial times. With all the countries depending heavily on the Philippines, natural food will be like oil during the 20th-23rd century A.D. World oil deposits were completely depleted by late 2290. [All vehicles fully depend on electric power from fuel cells as early as 2200.]

On 6785 A.D., the biggest war in human history broke out. The Philippines joined Switzerland as a neutral nation due to lack of military defense. The nuclear silos in the country were deemed to be too dangerous by the United Nations around early 5069 A.D. The other countries have abandoned their nuclear projects almost 3 millenniums back. The war started due to what else, but religion. There are around 632 major religions in the world and some thousands of minor sects. This is not like your other world wars where there are only two factions. This war has more than 5 sides and the United States and Great Britain are on two opposite sides of this. Christianity has long been proven false but new ones emerged which were loosely based on the Old Catholic faith. Judaism surprisingly still exists and is gaining ground as one of the top religions in the world. In this era, religion is not about you, your beliefs, and your supreme being. It is about branding you for where your loyalties lie (think about gangs, fraternities, cults, etc.)

It is also worthwhile to note that as of this year (6785 A.D.), the Philippines have been starting over from scratch as it has abandoned its now-useless agricultural supremacy. Natural food is not needed anymore. It was not needed for the past few centuries due to supplementary alternatives provided by government of other nations. Obviously, they realized that being too much dependent on one country is bad for their economy. And by the way, if you’re interested as to when the Philippines’ Fiscal Crisis ended, it has not. It has been renamed into Centennial Crisis (2200 A.D.), then Millennial Crisis (4000 A.D.) The past 50 to 70 presidents have been trying to sell the country to willing parties but there were no takers. Some even offered the country for free as a place to hold prisoners for other countries but still, no one would bite. Their prisoners are faring better than the locals anyway. Just for kicks, I do have good news and a bad news for you. The good news is that Filipinos have become known worldwide, in a good sense, mind you. They have been gathering awards like crazy on top competitions in the international scene as early as 5000 A.D. Some are even in the scientific journals due to their discoveries and inventions. The bad news is that these people, Filipinos by blood, are no longer citizens of the Philippines when they achieved their feats. The Philippines, long known for its unsupportive nature to local talents did not fund these well-meaning individuals nor recognize their potential. Having nowhere to go, these people approached other nations and were promptly sponsored and applauded. Honorary citizenships were granted as long as these “heroes” discard their own, which they gladly did.

By 7259 A.D., the two remaining factions in the war came to a ceasefire. Preliminary talks were held near the Egyptian pyramids, last of the remaining Wonder of the Old World. This treaty brought about the new United Nations. Ironically, there are only two members of this organization, which were the last two factions that exist as of this year. Looking at the world map will show us that there are only two nations left. One was controlled by what we’ll call as the Westerners and the other by what we’ll refer to as the Orientals. The other factions either joined one of these two or were simply wiped out. Although a neutral country, the Philippines was “acquired” by the Orientals and used as leverage because the Westerners invaded Switzerland in early 7000 A.D. Take note that even if the war was started due to religion, it did not end singing the same note.

When the new treaty was rolled out, it marked the start of the P.W. (Post War) era. Peace has reigned since then and there has been no major nor minor war for the past 3314 years. Technology is being shared between these two nations, which is a good setup for the Philippines. Being part of one nation means that technology is spoon-fed to the colony (yep, the Philippines is back into being a colony and the locals aren’t complaining now) and there are no budget constraints simply because it is not being handled by the local government. The future looks bright too because the Orientals are sending the Philippines off to the more advanced Westerners in exchange for blueprints of new technologies. In a way, a win-win-win situation is achieved. This is a win for Westerners as they have new land to exploit; a win for the Orientals as they have new technology to further enhance and learn from; a win for the Philippines because it has a richer source.

As you can see, the saying that, “All’s well that ends well” is still true after all these years. One thing to remember is that the future, although sometimes predictable, is not a pre-written thing. You or anyone’s action can change what the world will be tomorrow, next century, or the next 5000 years. If you like what I have shared with you, by all means continue what you are doing now. As for me, I am definitely enjoying myself.