I've spent my whole adult life living under an apocalyptic, pessimistic narrative about the future of the world, which has only intensified in recent years. It seems that humans are hard-wired to take more note of bad possibilities, and there's probably some evolutionary reason for this. Anyway, a book has recently come out, based on freely available data, and thoroughly researched, that gives a much more optimistic prognosis. Below is a long interview with author Marian Tupy. I feel like an existential weight is lifting from me.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIANLddo-ec
Points made include: We're richer by far in terms of productivity and quality of products; absolute poverty has declined precipitously; commodity prices have fallen; we're not going to overpopulate the world in any cataclysmic sense; everyone has increasingly more than enough to eat; there's more land for nature, and that trend seems upward; more people are moving to urban areas and that’s advantageous rather than disadvantageous; there are more democracies and so we’re better governed; we’re more peaceful; and we’re less likely to die from catastrophes. And we're not about to be burnt to a cinder: Tupy condemns that narrative as untrue and irresponsible.
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