Raise a half-full glass to this brave new world

The Rational Optimist: How Prosperity Evolves

It was ever thus. The end of the world was widely anticipated in AD1000. The Lisbon earthquake in the 18th century was hailed as a sign of divine retribution for sin. One of the bestsellers of 1923 was Decline of the West. “Optimism is cowardice,” proclaimed its author, Oswald Spengler.

The truth is rather different. Worldwide life expectancy is up by more than a third in the past 50 years. We have cleaner air and rivers than we have enjoyed for centuries, and birth rates are falling dramatically everywhere. Whether one counts air and water pollution in California or vaccination rates in Bangladesh or life expectancy in Japan, things have got better for most people in most places.