The United States in the second half of this century[edit] White Americans have become a national minority.... Budget deficit. Roadblocks . hordes of biotech nomads. The Cold War with the Netherlands[edit] The state is practically incapacitated: the ball is ruled by the Extraordinary Committees. The state is almost dead, but politics is still alive. And it still employs sober people, such as the protagonist of the novel, Oscar Valparaiso .. An excellent organizer with a successful career and a sincere desire to revive America from the ashes of decay. He is confident that he will be able to solve all the problems of America. But can he solve his own problem? The problem of a person who can not even say about himself that he was ever born...A picture of the future in Sterling's novel may seem completely alien only to those who do not see its origins already here, in the present. Just look around!