The Doomsday Clock: Two Minutes to Apocalyptic Midnight
Hmmm, would it concern you if I told you that we are only two minutes from global catastrophe?
You may take comfort in the knowledge that this timeline is metaphorical. It is the current setting of The Doomsday Clock which I am given to understand represents the likelihood of a man-made, global catastrophe.
The origin of The Doomsday Clock dates back to 1947. The Chicago Atomic Scientists, a group of international researchers who participated in the Manhattan Project (an R&D project during World War II that produced the first nuclear weapons) developed the concept.
For The Doomsday Clock, hypothetical global catastrophe is represented as midnight. How close we theoretically are to that point is represented by minutes to midnight. The original setting back in 1947 was seven minutes to midnight in light of the threat of nuclear war. I confess I do not know what scale was used for that original setting.
The scientific body reset the hypothetical clock this month to two minutes to midnight. The change was made in part because of North Korea’s advancing nuclear weapons program and provocative actions in response by the U.S. and other countries.
I should note that the threats taken into consideration in setting the clock have evolved to now include politics, energy, weapons, diplomacy and climate science.
The clock has been reset 22 times since its origin ranging from a comparatively stress-free 17 minutes in 1991 to the current 2 minutes. The last time it was set to 2 minutes was 1953 when the U.S. and Soviet Union began testing hydrogen bombs.
What exactly does one do with this kind of warning? It seems to be an apocalyptic point of view. On the other hand, the threats it references are quite real. We live in a world in which we are never quite sure what tomorrow will bring and not even certain that tomorrow will even arrive.
Live in constant fear or in blissful denial. Are those our only options? I prefer to think there is a space in-between that we can settle into.
Live in the knowledge that each day is a gift. Whether you believe that gift comes from God or from the tides of fate, it does not really matter. The point is that we did not earn the day. It was granted to us to be enjoyed and valued and fully lived out.
Live also in the knowledge that each day is the last of its kind. Assuming tomorrow comes, it will be different from today in subtle and sometimes earthshaking ways. We will wake up to a new reality and have no choice but to adapt to it.
Live also in the knowledge that whatever the day, its value is measured not in minutes or in dollars or in wins and losses. Its value is measured in how much we embraced the moment, were kind to others and remained faithful to our values.
The Doomsday Clock metaphor has its usefulness, but perhaps not in the way that the scientists intend. It reminds us that time can slip away from us while we are caught up in the very act of racing the clock. I believe the minutes to midnight will manage themselves if we live into each day with joy, humility and reverence for one another.
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~ Michael Robert Dyet is the author of Until the Deep Water Stills – An Internet-enhanced Novel which was a double winner in the Reader Views Literary Awards 2009. Visit Michael’s website at www.mdyetmetaphor.com or the novel online companion at www.mdyetmetaphor.com/blog .
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