In 1968, a butterfly biologist wrote a book called the Population Bomb. The author’s name was Paul Ehrlich, a professor at Stanford. In it, he made bold predictions about the future – within years we would all be starving, we would run out of water, resources, everything. Wars would escalate. Hundreds of millions would die.

Ehrlich is a professional doomsayer.

Essentially all of his predictions proved wrong (most expert predictions are wrong, I have been learning). His frightening projections shaped the views of generations of people all the way up today resulting in many of us, and government, making faulty policy decisions.

But none of his scary predictions were true.

Here we are in 2022/2023 and CBS 60 Minutes puts him back front and center.

Michael Shellenberger on Twitter: “On CBS “60 Minutes” w/ @ScottPelley last night, @PaulREhrlich claimed a) humans are causing a “sixth mass extinction” & b) that it would require “five Earths” for all humans to enjoy a Western standard of living. Both claims are totally & utterly false. https://t.co/xXslyyUxQ2″ / Twitter

Paul Ehlich has aptly demonstrated his ability to predict the future is zero. He’s been wrong about everything. But sure, bring him back with ever more scary pronouncements.

That’s fear-based propaganda – not news. Media focuses on fear because it sells eyeballs to advertisers. But it is also causing mass mental health problems and poor decisions to be made.