Like most Americans, I was relieved to learn the Doomsday Clock has once again sped up, bringing humanity closer to the end of all things and putting us well within reach of the sweet, welcoming silence of extinction.

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists – one of my top-five favorite doomsday-related bulletins – revealed Jan. 27 that the Doomsday Clock has advanced to 85 seconds to midnight, a full four seconds closer to global catastrophe than last year and the closest to midnight it has ever been.

What happens at midnight? In scientific terms: POOF! The things we’ve built and the ways we’ve behaved and the manner in which we’ve rudely neglected the planet that has been kind enough to host us will result in our destruction. Roll the credits. There will not be a sequel. Whomp-whomp.

Reflecting on the state of things globally, John Mecklin, the bulletin’s editor, wrote:

“Hard-won global understandings are collapsing, accelerating a winner-takes-all great power competition and........

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