It is 5 minutes to midnight
The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists have moved their Doomsday Clock from 7 minutes to midnight to 5 minutes to midnight. The clock conveys how close the scientists believe that humanity is to catastrophic destruction by various means - nuclear weapons, human-induced climate change, developments in the life sciences.
The change of the clock from 7 to 5 minutes reflects increased nuclear proliferation (North Korea, Iran) but also the increased risk from catastrophic climate change.
Previous lows were in 1953 (2 minutes) during the start of the Cold War atomic weapons race and in 1984 (3 minutes) during Reagan’s term in office.
The highest ever was 17 minutes in 1991, just after the signing of the SALT treaty (Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty) at the end of the Cold War. Proliferation since then has led to a steady decline in the time.
In the words of Private Fraser from Dad’s Army:
“We’re dooomed”
(Riona)That’s odd?