If recent headlines are a reliable barometer of the state of the world — «43 Missing Students, a Mass Grave and a Suspect: Mexico's Police»; «Egyptian Judges Drop All Charges against Mubarak»; «Boehner Says Obama's Immigration Action Damages Presidency»; «U.N. Panel
Issues Its Starkest Warning Yet on Global Warming» — then it seems that we are living in an age of intense violence, unbridled corruption, purposeful gridlock, and such persistent environmental degradation that
frequent drought,
flooding, and hurricanes have become the new normal.