Believe me, I know, to spend so much of our lives here, on social media, immersed within a cacophony of catastrophe, and carnage, it’s easy to think that the world is f**ked. Everything is on fire, about to explode, and we are all heading face-first into the cold concrete of our own oblivion. But… it’s not true. The reality is, that the world, in the grand scheme of things, is doing better than ever. We are living longer, happier, healthier, freer, more educated, and more protected lives than at any other point in human history. Yup. The world is good… there I said it. I know the naysayers with their chronic sense of victimhood and pessimism, will try to drag you back into the pity party; but it’s a fact, the slow upward trend of human progress, that has been on the march for centuries, is undeniable, was hard won, and is worth enjoying. So why do we not feel better off? Well here’s another way of looking at it – In 2016, 40 million planes landed safely at their destination. Meanwhile, 10 ended in fatal accidents – which is 0.000025% of the total. Which of these flights do you think the newspapers wrote about? In the past 70 years flying has gotten 2,100 times safer; yet as your plane zooms down its runway, juttering to an awkward take off, this slow but unprecedented journey of aeronautical achievement will no doubt vanish from your mind. The same is true in many areas, in all corners of the world. And yet, so many of us live in terror; sat permanently in the brace position, clutching our life jackets, awaiting the inevitable fireball ahead. But sometimes, it’s okay to sit back and enjoy the view, to relax, and drink from one of those tiny cans of coke instead. That doesn’t mean there’s not still a lot of urgent problems to be solved, but as Professor Hans Rosling puts it, it’s possible for things to be ‘both bad, and getting better at the same time’ And they are. Things are getting better. Everywhere. Let’s take a look. ~ Data taken from ‘Factfulness’ by Professor Hans Rosling, and ‘Beautiful News’ by David McCandles.

2026-03-09