What do you make of the decreasing estimates of population growth in the next century? Are you inclined to say that this is wishful thinking on the part of experts, or that perhaps this is evidence that things are “getting better”?

A boy was exploring a swamp with his parents when he accidentally stepped into a pool of quicksand. Crying out in dismay, he quickly sank to his waist, then to his chest, then to his neck.

“For the love of God, help me!” the boy cried out.

“Don’t worry,” his parents told him. “Admittedly, the situation looks bad at first glance, but you have to take into account the general trend, which is reassuring. You see, you sank to your waist in two seconds flat, but it took more than ten seconds for you to sink to your chest and fully sixty seconds to sink to your neck. These calculations demonstrate that your situation is not as alarming as it might seem. Although you’re still sinking, the RATE at which you’re sinking is definitely decreasing!”

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ID: 439
posted: 31 Oct 1999
updated: 22 Feb 2019