The Glass Floor

Some readers may have seen my speculation piece on the 'glass ceiling' of human endeavour. This pointed out the apparent inability of humankind to overcome its most deep-seated problems, such as war, crime, disease and death - a fundamental limit to our powers. Yet, it's not only the constraints of history that we need to worry about.

It's also the minefield of our future.

Will technology turn us all mad? A bewildering multiverse of virtual realities, disconnecting us from the natural world and, indeed, each other. Will viruses win the final match, sending our short-lived human pretentions into the footnotes of time? Will global warming iron us flat?

And what about the 'dull' subject of economics? Western countries are massively in debt and it's not unlikely that one day the bubble will burst. A downgrading of our triple A credit rating, a weakening of the Pound in currency markets, a loss of confidence in the bond market, and escalating interest rates, could all torpedo the delusional basis of our borrow and spend economies. 

Good grief!

Actually living within our means could feel like a fate worse than death...