Future Imperfect: It Gets Better …Probably

There are two quotes that describe my feelings on the future. The first comes courtesy of The Amazing Criswell’s dead-eyed introduction in filmmaker Ed Wood’s cinematic abortion, Plan 9 From Outer Space: “We are all interested in the future, for that is where you and I are going to spend the rest of our lives.”

Criswell, at least according to Wikipedia, was “an American psychic known for his wildly inaccurate predictions,” a phrase that cracked me up for a straight five minutes. To be known for one’s inaccuracies is an achievement all its own—most of us are wrong constantly, but few of us are canonized for it. But therein lies Criswell’s secret genius: The only way to be right about the future is to be wrong.

The future will always defy expectations. So much chaos is woven into its perceived coherency that any particular outcome is completely up for grabs. Consider the past five years, the greater contours of which have been shaped by climate-borne catastrophes, a global pandemic, racia…