apocalypses fails to occur, they come up with another “existential threat.” They know there’s always a market for these real-life horror movies. No matter how often they’re wrong, they figure the public will wonder: What if they’re right this time? In theory, an apocalypse is possible, but it’s less likely than ever, and the threats to worry about are not the ones that get the most attention. Most of the ones you hear about are false alarms, and the proposed solutions will do little except enrich the doomsayers. Before you waste time worrying about the wrong things, let’s take a calm look at the Big Fears and rate each one’s plausibility...
The safer the world becomes, the harder we try to scare ourselves. Now that most people in the developed world live to a comfortable old age, now that we’re rich enough to avoid famine and plague and the other threats that routinely killed our ancestors, we can afford to fantasize about disasters that will end civilization and destroy the planet. Doomsaying has become an industry, a jobs program for journalists, academics, politicians, and self-proclaimed experts warning that the end is nigh unless we adopt their plans for salvation – which usually involve entrusting them with new powers and tax dollars. When one of their predicted
By John Tierney
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