Countdown to Doomsday

A warning for our world on the brink of Armageddon

Israel vs Iran warfare reminds us that the scientists’ own harbinger of the end is the Doomsday Clock, first started in 1947. Today the Clock includes global warming and artificial intelligence in its list of danger signals.

Created by members of the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists organisation, the Doomsday Clock represented their fears for a world threatened by the very real possibility of an all-out war between the USA and USSR.

Luckily (and perhaps surprisingly) a nuclear exchange has not so far taken place, though in recent times, assorted bellicose statements from the Kremlin where its clash with Ukraine is concerned are a concern for all, from military planners to those of us just glancing at headlines. And that discounts the near-constant state of enmity between Israel and its enemies in Iran.

The Doomsday Clock was originally set at seven minutes to midnight, representing its authors’ fears of likely disaster, rather than an actual time. Since 1947, the Clock has been reset a number of times – it’s been put back 8 times, forward 17. In 2024, it remained at 90 seconds to midnight, now it has crept ahead by one more second. So where does humanity stand right now? At BLAZE we consider all these kind of warnings to be just that – warnings. So the sensible policy is to sift through the statements, realising that many, even most of them, are really only headlines to grab attention. And that attention-seeking is a tool to gain more attention, as bait for clicks, or to get financial backing from wealthy individuals, organisations or credulous politicians, as ever eager for votes.

But that doesn’t mean we should just ignore all such doomsday warnings, as many contain simple truths, or show possible ways forward. But to live in fear of an unknown future is probably the worst decision of all. And that makes the best policy is far and away to at least question very carefully, any of those activist groups whose primary interest lies in publicity and backing for their particular enthusiasm.