I have long been skeptical of the merits of running around screaming that the sky is falling. If the sky were really falling – I assumed – everyone would notice and behave accordingly. The last two weeks have challenged that assumption, though. In a situation where the sky really does appear to be falling, millions of people are working desperately to convince themselves otherwise. Even now, when reading the daily headlines makes anyone sound like a conspiracy nut, many are beset by the impulse to believe that what we are seeing cannot possibly be as bad as it appears to be.