ABSTRACT
In his short story “The Secret History of World War 3,”3 J.G. Ballard describes an apparently futuristic, although in many ways quite familiar, scenario: World War III took place on January 27, 1995, between 6:47 and 6:51 p.m. . . . and nobody noticed it. The fact that an event of this magnitude could have remained unknown to most people is indicative of what the condition of postmodernity is for Ballard. In the early 1990s, in a half-imagined, half-real America, President Ronald Reagan is called back to serve a third term and drag the country out of a devastating economic and social crisis, the worst the United States has gone through in the past century. A constitutional amendment is passed to allow the retired Californian to return to office and take America back to the glory days of the 1980s. Immediately upon Reagan’s return, the economic situation improves drastically, as if by magic. In a strange displacement of popular support toward a political leader, the US population decides to focus on Reagan’s health, which from now on becomes the barometer for how well the nation is doing as a whole. When his health is good, the economy thrives. When his health is poor, the specter of the crisis resurfaces. National TV networks are monitoring the President’s health 24 hours a day. If his temperature goes up by a third of a degree, newsflashes interrupt sitcoms and other regularly scheduled programs, and doctors are brought on the set to explain the medical situation and reassure the public. Some networks have even decided to insert printouts of the President’s heartbeat and blood pressure readings that scroll at the bottom of the screen. Meanwhile, the Cold War still rages on, and US troops are getting ready to engage a Russian nuclear submarine that has entered US territorial waters off the coast of Alaska. Reagan and his military advisers decide to launch three sea-based nuclear missiles, and the Russians
reply by sending two of theirs. There are several casualties on both sides. A few minutes after the exchange of fire, Gorbachev (who has become President of Russia) calls Reagan and an armistice is concluded. The Third World War, a nuclear conflict, lasted no more than 245 seconds. Nobody in the United States noticed the war as everyone was glued to their TV screen, desperately waiting for the next report on Reagan’s irregular heartbeat. A few news-anchors briefly mentioned the war, in passing. All in all, it was lost in the flow of information about the President’s health. Once the President’s heartbeat became normal again, public anxiety immediately subsided.
