The Final Word by Jim Thompson


Historians have it much easier than contemporarians.



Historians have it much easier than contemporarians. Here at PM, we often find it difficult to express forward-thinking opinions about contemporary issues. It is easy to look in the past and interpret, especially given one's own biases and prejudices. However, to sit at any given point in time and successfully predict the future —- that is another matter. Yet, successful business is dependent on accurate predictions of future outcomes.

Our opening editorial in this issue is a case in point. Yet, as fraught with danger as its predictions appear to be, there are really only a couple of "ifs" that affect their outcome. These "ifs" are
(1) a supposition of ever-improving standards of living around the world, which are dependent upon
(2) us not killing each other off wholesale, and
(3) us not destroying the planet.
Granted, they are big "ifs," but in this case they are identifiable.