However, not everyone views this moment in our history the same way.  For example, one "expert" that is being heavily quoted by the mainstream media is claiming that 2019 was the culmination of "the best decade in human history".  His main argument seems to be that since "the ecological footprint of human activity" appears to be shrinking, the world must be a better place than it was before as a result.  And certainly there are many other voices out there that are boldly proclaiming that we have entered a golden new era of peace and prosperity and that the best is yet to come.  You can buy that argument if you want, but there are other voices that believe that everything that is wrong with our society is reaching a very dangerous crescendo.  For those with that perspective, it appears that we are very close to a societal tipping point and that the years ahead are when we will finally pay the price for decades of exceedingly bad decisions.

So what do you think?

Will the 2020s be the best of times or the worst of times?

As you ponder that question, here are 50 numbers from 2019 that are almost too crazy to believe…