Pope Francis and the Meteor

Dec. 26 (Bloomberg) -- As we await the dawning of the newyear, I would like to look back on a pair of stories thatreceived less coverage than they should have during 2013.Although different, each raises profound questions about ourfuture. I don’t claim that these are the most important stories,or that nobody noticed them at all -- only that we should bepaying more attention, and should ponder their implications,both in the year to come and in the decades beyond.

In February, a meteor struck the Earth’s atmosphere andexploded above Chelyabinsk, Russia, causing more than 1,000injuries but no deaths. Had it approached at a slightlydifferent angle, the carnage would have been titanic. Theexplosion should have served as a warning. Instead, the storyflashed briefly across the world’s consciousness, then vanished.The dissipating of interest is easy to understand: A meteorstrike in which nobody dies is “dog bites man,” not “manbites dog.”