I bet you're about 10 years younger than I am. I asked about his vision of the future and whether he thinks the sci-fi future in general has changed in the past decade from one of postapocalyptic Road Warrior scenarios to something a little more optimistic. It was a funny response, asking how old I am. People my age remembered the Cuban Missile Crisis and the Vietnam War, and by the time the '80s came around, we just figured that Reagan and those Bozos couldn't hurt us. So Otherland is a bit of a litmus test.
Some people say what a pessimistic future it shows, and others say what an optimistic future.
Xabbu stumble into Otherland, a secret online realm constructed by a cadre of the world's most powerful capitalist mavericks. And everything seems vaguely American. The entire world standing back helpless while the U.S. saves the world is an idea of ridiculous arrogance. From living in the U.K. and Europe, I've learned that the shining pre-eminence of America is a pretty blinkered view. I've deliberately picked several characters who didn't have that.