ABSTRACT
Doomsayers have been predicting catastrophe for centuries. End of the world prophecies have been a staple of fundamentalist religion; their accuracy record is zero. There is a bias in the pronouncements of professional prophets of doom. Doomsayers suffer a chronic inability to grasp the power of human ingenuity to overcome problems and obstacles and improve our lives. The one constant of our story is resilience in the face of challenges, our ability to surmount them, and rise to yet greater heights. Our most important resource is not oil, steel, or farmland, but our human minds and their immense capacity for new thoughts. What really saves us from the Malthusian trap is the flood of ideas that thinking minds pour out almost limitlessly. Too many environmentalists are scolds who dismiss human needs and wants, focused on fulminating about our "crimes." Instead, a good environmentalist should be like a good lawyer, seeking positive ways to reconcile human development and planetary health.
