Predictions for 2015

[gay_Aleks]

Considering the beatdown (ha-ha-ha Tolni, 2010 called, they want their jokes back!) Rihanna has received in the past, my money's on her. Skrillex just looks too nerdy to make something dramatic as suicide.

Oh, look. 4k posts. Great.

 

[warpus]

I don't know much about pop culture but my new prediction is that Rihanna is going to overdose on her 27th birthday while snorthing Jay Z's ashes on a sex tape filmed by Mr. T, which is going to be surprisingly released at the next oscar ceremony as a tribute to the late Charlie Sheen, who will convert to Islam and and attempt to fly a plane into Kesha next Tuesday.

 

[gay_Aleks]

Heh. Fly a plane into Kesha. Heh heh heh.

 

[hangman]

Heh. Fly a plane into Kesha. Heh heh heh.

I wouldn't put it past Charlie Sheen. Or Tom Cruise. Who knows what the CoS would put him up to?

 

[Paul in Saudi]

"Police in the tristate will be conducting a full-court press on drunk driving this weekend."
Macy's will have a sale.
Starlets will expose their buttocks on the red carpet.
Iowa will have a stampede of politicos.
A Hollywood person will die.

 

[Aleksey_aka_al]

Crimea will remain in Russia. Donbass will remain by itself. More territories/oblasts/cities will secede from Kiev. Pro-Maidanists will fight each other hard. Terror acts will happen in Russia. Islamists will be much more active in the south of Russia. But they will be supressed easily. The liberal opposition will do crazy things in the warmer period of the year. And the West will exploit both the islamists and the crazy oppositioners once again to critize Russia and demonize Putin and other Russian politicians. There will be no serious political steps considering the Eurasian Union. Sanctions will continue but most Russians will not care any more. Russian economy will change its orientation from the West which will affect the consumerist mentality in a good way.

 

[gay_Aleks]

Fallout 4 will continue being unreleased.

 

[Phrossack]

The war with ISIS continues well into 2015, as those motivated to launch the ground invasion necessary to defeat them are too weak, and those strong enough to do so are not motivated. The Yazidis and other non-Sunni religious groups in and around ISIS territory are either driven off, killed, or enslaved. More beheadings of hostages also occur.

People act surprised when oil prices shoot back up.

Israel and Palestine fight again.

Ukraine and the rebels reach an uneasy truce after the rebels continue to appear with Russian arms, equipment, advisors, and troops of mysterious origin. The separatist region reaches an agreement with Russia like that of South Ossetia. Ukraine is left smaller, weaker, poorer, and forever driven against Russia and into the arms of the West.

Jurassic World receives mixed reviews but everyone sees it anyway because dude, frickin' dinosaurs.

Star Wars VII is better received than the prequels but people complain anyway because it isn't identical to the originals.

Powerful droughts, storms, and wildfires strike across the world. Many begin to suspect that climate change might be a thing after all but nobody does anything about it.

The American economy picks up somewhat. This does not help Obama politically.

 

[Fr8monkey]

July - New Horizons probe flys past Pluto... Find a piles of missing socks sent there by the portal in my dryer.

 

[Antilogic]

Phrossack's list sounds pretty reasonable.

I'm torn on ISIS. They have lost a significant amount of their earlier momentum, so I'm hesitant to predict they will successfully overthrow the governments of Iraq, Syria, etc. However, there doesn't appear to be much concrete progress on eliminating them.



This isn't exactly a prediction for 2015 (at earliest it could be 2016 or in the 2020s, later than then the conditions are likely to change), but I think I have convinced myself the next president from the GOP will carry the state of Pennsylvania.

 

[gay_Aleks]

It's far safer to bet that he's from Virginia.

 

[Commodore]

I have some predictions for 2015 that I am guaranteeing will be 100% accurate

Spoiler Only open if you are prepared for the stunning truths contained within :

1. Some good stuff will happen.
2. Some bad stuff will happen.
3. Some new people will be born.
4. Some old people will die.

 

[sophie]

Star Wars VII is better received than the prequels but people complain anyway because it isn't identical to the originals.

I'll complain because it'll be too much like the Star Trek reboots: a cynical cashgrab designed to capitalize on the nostalgia of fans with little actual cinematic substance beyond that objective.

 

[Gucumatz]

Oil hits over $100 a barrel again by the end of the year

 

[Mouthwash]

(1) IS will gain foothold and continue their ethnic and religious cleansing. The West will not intervene in any meaningful way.

Wrong on point one, right on point two. ISIS is already losing ground.

(2) Turkey will continue its slow descent into authoritanism and Islamism.

The Turkish public is probably as anti-liberal as it is going to get. I do think that the AKP will consolidate power though.

(3) Israel will get into another semi war with its neighbours.

Unlikely.

(4) Russia will continue its slow imperialism.

Oh yes.

(6) Star Wars VII will turn out be surprisingly good.

Star Wars VII will prove that being "good" isn't actually enough in a franchise like Star Wars.

(8) Oil prices will rise sharply due to the spread of violence in the Middle East.

Uh... I'm ending this here.

 

[Antilogic]

I think another flareup between Israel and either the West Bank or the Gaza Strip is more likely than a war with its neighbors (like Jordan, Egypt, or Syria).

 

[gay_Aleks]

Now, now. That's unfair. This thread is called "predictions", not "things that will totally happen and don't need a clairvoyant to tell you it'll happen".

 

[Mouthwash]

I think another flareup between Israel and either the West Bank or the Gaza Strip is more likely than a war with its neighbors (like Jordan, Egypt, or Syria).

Lebanon is actually the most likely candidate.

 

[Antilogic]

Really? What has developed there to make that likely?

 

[Mouthwash]

Really? What has developed there to make that likely?

Just the base rate, and the fact that Gaza isn't going to flare up for a while.