As of mid-2025, global tensions involving the United States, China, Iran, and Israel have escalated across several fronts, contributing to a complex and volatile geopolitical landscape. Here's a concise summary of the major developments and conflicts:
Oliver Reed – First Person Internal Monologue
I'm Oliver Reed. I'm 28 years old, and so far… life hasn't exactly panned out the way they said it would.
I lost my job—manufacturing, ten hours a day, five days a week. Gone, just like that. Tariffs, they said. Restructuring. Efficiency. All just different ways of saying you're disposable.
I couldn't find anything new. I tried. I really did. Applied everywhere. Walked into buildings that said "Now Hiring" only to find out there was no interview, no opening—sometimes not even anyone inside. Just silence.
I lost my apartment not long after that. Rent doesn't wait for hope. Now I'm back living in my parents' house, alone. They moved out last year—retirement dreams, cleaner air, a slower life. Good for them, I guess.
It wasn't always like this.
I remember back in 2012, when I was sixteen. Everyone said the same thing:
Work hard.
Focus in school.
Go to college.
You'll make it far.
You'll have a good job.
[I believed them.]
But the world kept shifting. Prices went up. Degrees lost value. Layoffs came for people like me—quiet, steady, forgettable. The future they promised? It never showed up. The truth is, things change. Too fast. Too often. And the future... the future is unpredictable.
Now I just drift, scrolling through nonsense, watching the world panic over wars that probably won't happen, while I heat up the same frozen food and wait for something—anything—to change.
[Oliver worldview]
Oliver Reed – First Person Worldview
"This world to me… sucks."
"Honestly, it's the worst place to be born into—especially the United States. People keep saying it's the "land of opportunity," but what they don't tell you is how expensive everything is. Rent, things to eat, cars, healthcare—you name it. But that's not even new. That's just the background noise now."
"What really gets me is the people."
Everyone hates each other. Online, in traffic, at work—hell, even in families. It's all tribalism, outrage, finger-pointing. And it's not just politics or race or class—it's everything. Everyone's constantly looking for a reason to hate or cancel or destroy.
"And I'll be real with you… I don't think I'd even like myself if I had to meet a copy of me. I don't know if I could stand being around me. I get it. I see what I've become. Jaded. Numb. Tired."
"People talk about the past like it was better. Maybe it was, maybe it wasn't. Either way, it's gone. Doesn't help me now.
And the future? That's a whole another mess."
"This world is paradoxical—up is down, lies go viral, truth gets buried. One day it's peace, the next it's war trending on TikTok. You never know what's real. You never know what's next. You can't plan anything. You can't trust anything."
"So yeah… this world sucks. And I don't know what I'm supposed to do in it anymore."
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🌐 Summary of Global Conflict (U.S., China, Iran, Israel)
1. United States vs. China
South China Sea Tensions: The U.S. continues to challenge China's territorial claims with naval patrols, increasing military confrontations near disputed islands.
Taiwan Issue: The U.S. has reaffirmed support for Taiwan amid growing Chinese military drills around the island, pushing Beijing to accuse Washington of interference in internal affairs.
Tech and Trade War: Trade restrictions and sanctions continue over AI chips, semiconductors, and cybersecurity concerns, intensifying economic rivalry.
2. United States & Israel vs. Iran
Nuclear Escalation: Iran has accelerated its nuclear enrichment program, prompting fears it's nearing weapons capability. The U.S. and Israel have both issued warnings and increased covert operations and cyberattacks against Iranian facilities.
Proxy Conflicts: Iran-backed militias in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen have clashed with U.S. and Israeli interests, with drone strikes and missile exchanges becoming more frequent.
Potential Strike Scenarios: Reports suggest Israel may be preparing for preemptive strikes on Iranian nuclear sites, which could draw in the U.S. and escalate the broader regional conflict.
3. China & Iran – Strategic Partners
Military and Energy Cooperation: China continues to strengthen ties with Iran through long-term energy deals and military cooperation, challenging U.S. sanctions.
Diplomatic Backing: Beijing often defends Iran in international forums, complicating Western diplomatic efforts to isolate Tehran.
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⚠️ Implications
Rising risks of regional wars in the Middle East and Indo-Pacific.
Realignments in global alliances: China and Russia backing Iran; the U.S. reaffirming ties with NATO, Japan, South Korea, and Israel.
Increased cyber warfare, disinformation, and economic disruption.
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[Real story time beginning]
[TikTok anticipation of ww3, memes and news and fyp pages, pov:you been drafted for war...what's happening in Florida...Iran and Israel conflicted...etc]
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Summary: Oliver Reed and the TikTok Fear-Mongering
Oliver Reed, a 28-year-old obese man with brown hair, dressed in a red shirt and beige pants, sits scrolling through TikTok. His feed is flooded with fear-mongering videos—panicked voices, dramatic edits, and bold captions warning of an impending World War III and mass drafts.
He sighs.
To him, it's all familiar noise. The internet, especially TikTok, thrives on sensationalism. Oliver has seen this pattern before: panic-driven content, half-truths, and viral misinformation designed to grab attention, not inform.
He doesn't buy into it. Despite the global tensions, he firmly believes WW3 isn't coming. It's not that the world is peaceful—but the idea of an all-out global war feels like clickbait more than credible threat. For Oliver, it's just another trend in a long line of social media hysteria.
He scrolls on.
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Oliver Reed: Numb at the Desk
Oliver Reed sits slouched at his desk, the glow of his screen washing over his tired face. He's surrounded by endless content—videos, games, articles, shows—yet nothing grabs him. So much to watch, yet nothing to choose.
He feels numb.
Anime, once his escape, no longer excites him. The ending of Jujutsu Kaisen Chapter 271 marked the last spark of anticipation he felt for the genre. After that, everything dulled. He'd already let go of Dragon Ball and Naruto, once pillars of his youth. One Piece still lingers, something he watches occasionally, but it feels more like habit than passion.
He never bothered with Solo Leveling. And as for Tower of God—he stopped reading after Season 2 of the webtoon. Season 1 had been incredible: a tight, mysterious, emotionally driven arc that drew him in. But Season 2? It felt bloated, aimless. The fire was gone.
Now, with TikTok screaming about war and the world on edge, Oliver just stares at his screen—paralyzed by choice, but uninterested in all of it. Not afraid. Just... empty.
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Chapter One: Burnt Ends
The next morning, Oliver Reed woke up to nothing.
No alarms. No schedule. No purpose. Just the low hum of the ceiling fan and the late morning sun bleeding through the blinds.
He was unemployed.
It hadn't always been this way. For nearly a decade, Oliver worked in a manufacturing plant, handling aluminum components—steady, physical work that paid the bills. That all ended after a wave of economic shifts triggered by Donald Trump's tariffs on aluminum and steel. Companies shrank, contracts vanished, and one day, Oliver was handed a severance check and a box.
Since then, he'd given up on the job market. The job market was fried. Burnt to a crisp, at least in Florida by 2025. On paper,
companies were hiring—"We're growing!" they'd say. "Now accepting walk-ins!" But every time Oliver showed up, dressed and hopeful, it was a dead end. No one at the front desk knew about the position. HR was out. Sometimes the building was locked entirely.
Fake listings. Ghost interviews. Automated rejection emails before he even got home.
It wore him down. Not just the joblessness, but the humiliation of hope. The sense that everything was rigged, hollow, performative.
Now, he sat at the edge of his bed in his usual red shirt and beige pants, scrolling past the news, TikToks screaming about war, influencers peddling side hustles and crypto. None of it felt real. Not anymore.
Just like the job listings.
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Oliver shuffled into the kitchen, the floor tiles cool against his bare feet. The house was quiet—too quiet. His parents had long since moved out, retiring early and relocating up north. But the house remained in their name, and so did Oliver, like some half-forgotten keepsake they left behind.
At 28, he lived alone in his childhood home.
He hadn't moved on.
He hadn't moved at all.
He opened the fridge. A stale gust of cold air hit his face, sharp and hollow. Inside sat the same thing that had been there for days—a single hot pocket, unopened, frostbitten in the corner of the shelf like a sad, processed monument to routine. He stared at it for a long second.
He didn't want it.
He didn't want anything.
But he took it anyway, like he always did. A motion, not a decision.
Microwave. Two minutes. Beep. Silence.
The hum of the appliance filled the kitchen, the only sound in the entire house. Oliver leaned on the counter, arms limp, eyes glazed over. This wasn't depression in the dramatic, cinematic sense. This was something duller. Like static. Like a life that was still technically on, but tuned to a dead channel.
No job. No drive.
Just the hum of the microwave, and the cold weight of another day.