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The Curmudgeon Finds Good News!

Because this article has no abstract, we have provided an extract of the full text and any section headings.

As one who has never been terribly fond of New Year's Eve, I have always found the joviality to be a bit forced. You can imagine my glee at the thought of people who feel that, as the century and millennium change, we must break records for ethanol consumption, boisterous behavior, and (presumably) morning-after regrets. To make matters worse, this year the attempts to place the New Year into some meaningful, historical context are almost embarrassing, indications of a myopia and parochialism rarely seen outside of a cloistered environment. Apparently, the past 1,000 years existed solely for the purpose of justifying parties—and lists.

We have been busily making lists of the "top 10" or "top 100" events, people, and inventions of both the century and the millennium. Notice that the "really" important stuff on these lists has happened only recently. Of course, humans have always focused on their own times . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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