Ain't So Bad: And just to end on an high note for a change, I would like to point out how good things are.

If you spend any time reading the newspapers or watching CNN or wandering the Internet, you would think that we are on the verge of apocalypse; as if there was a race to see what tragedy will befall us first: financial, social, or environmental. In fact, on balance, the world is better off (especially here in Western civilization), than at any time in history and there is no reason to expect it won't get better. But you can't tell people that. The loudmouths of the world are so wholly invested in doom and dire predictions that they will take grave offense and protest indignantly.

Personally, I find this confounding. I can only assume it is because they don't have enough drama or interest in their personal lives so they make some up to fill the hole. Or perhaps they do it as a way to make themselves feel that their problems are not their own fault but stem from the curse of living in these horrible times.

Anyway, if you are one of those folks who is all end-is-nigh, you might gain some insight into why you feel that way by reading Journalist Bites Reailty, Steve Salerno's brilliant exposition on why the media is so deeply invested in the horrific. Then you may want to pause and consider how lucky you really are to live now.