Furthering the discussion prompted in Joe's post here (read the comments) I point you to a must-read (and a real knee-slapper IMO)-- a recent piece by Williams, in which he catalogs just a few highlights from the never-ending string of end-of-the-world predictions coming from "authorities" on climate and economics.

(And we gun owners are often called paranoid)

I grew up hearing many of these prophecies of doom, and what's a kid to do other than believe them in a time when there was no opposition in the media, and a time (then as now) when the public schools were parroting them as gospel?  What's a kid to do with a mind full of such doom and gloom, other than become cynical about the world, fearful and somewhat hopeless about the future?

Those who perpetrate such idiocy, besides being liars and scoundrels, are practicing child abuse.  Most of the people so abused will never realize that they're being abused-- they'll just live in fear of the world and in hatred of their fellow ("Earth destroying") human beings.  I finally figured it out, and it's part of why I'm now in such vociferous opposition to the lefty-loon-cultists who spread this trash.  I can't get my childhood back, but I can help fight the continuing abuse.

"Oh, but can we afford to ignore these dire predictions?" you might say.  OK.  Can we afford to ignore the fact that you <i>may</i> be a child rapist?  Do we have to wait for you to actually rape a child in front of witnesses before we incarcerate you?  Wouldn't that be unfair to your potential victim(s)?  Shouldn't we save your potential victims in advance?

Stupid, isn't it?  This country was founded to protect human rights-- not save the planet from dwindling resources, or to control the weather, etc..  With our freedom protected-- our ability to act in our own interests, unimpeded and un-harassed, we will have the best chance of successfully overcoming life's challenges.