I, in my more cynical moods, feel blessed that I lived at the peak of human civilization.

And have no denial that I contributed, through a lifetime of hydrocarbon consumption, to the current climatic problem. I’m trying to do better, though.

I’ve had some very good luck in my life, mostly through no fault of my own, but because the world seemed to be peaking right along with me. But more and more I’ve had the feeling lately that I’ll probably be dying just before it gets really ugly. And I’m grateful for that. I don’t think I have the personal resources any more to deal with what’s coming.

I was able to really take advantage of some very favorable conditions when I was the age our Millennials are today. I’m not running myself down, but I am honest enough with myself to recognize that my youth was filled with opportunities that we are not passing down to out children and grandchildren. Its not their fault, but they are facing hard times, and I think they are starting to realize that. When I was thirty, the world was my oyster. I was invincible. And today I can look back and honestly say I had a great run, no matter what comes next. I had more than my share and I have no complaints. But if I were thirty today, I’d be bitter and I’d be angry. I would feel cheated and betrayed. And I would have every right to feel that way.

Its not just political developments, foreign and domestic as I implied above, but its the environment, the economy, and the social arena. I don’t see the Jetsons and Star Trek in our future, I see Soylent Green and the Omega Man. For the first time in my life I’m starting to feel pessimistic about the future; I’m starting to feel very lucky I spent my prime in the last half of the twentieth century, not the first half of the twenty first.

Yeah, I know. Old farts are supposed to be always whining about “the good ole days”, mostly because that’s when they were young and strong and confident (not to mention, getting laid regular!). But believe me, I’m also wiser than I was back then, and I have made allowances for that. My feelings about the future are based more on what I see around me than what I am now, or who I was then.