EarthQuakes and Praise

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Jan wrote:

> In our century, famine and pestilence has been virtually eliminated. We 
> have had wars, but not to any greater extent than in previous times. 
> After 1945, we have been living in a world more peaceful than any such 
> period in recorded history, at least after Pax Romana. I have myself 

I call it Pax Americana ;-)

Note that things only *seem* bad because:

1)  We didn't live during, say, the Middle Ages, and thus can't really
    compare our personal experiences during the sacking of Constantinople
    with our personal experiences in the 20th century.  The anxiety a
    factory worker in Topeka Ohio might experience about the U.S. budget
    deficit can in no way compare with the anxiety felt my the residents
    of Jerusalem or Masada when they were under siege by Roman troops.

2)  The rapid dissemation of news heightens the sense of violence in
    faraway places (to Americans) like Sarajevo and Kobe.  For the most
    part, even crime in the city I live/work in normally doesn't affect
    me directly.  It just might seem bad because I happen to read the
    newspaper.

Richard Masoner