Thoughts on 2008

Rather than make New Year’s resolutions, I’ve opted to make predictions instead.  Resolutions require effort and accountability on my part, and any failure is ultimately personal.  But predictions, unless I am foolhardy enough to make any about myself, either happen or don’t happen independently of anything I do.  So whether an asteroid hits Mars or not, most people won’t remember and those who do will just view a miss as a bad guess, not a lack of personal discipline and willpower.

If you’ve read any previous posts about the generational cycles at work and the recent tip from an idealistic cycle into a civic cycle circa 2003, you will realize that 2008 is a significant year of potential upheaval, much like 1968 was for the idealistic generation.  So here are a few predictions for 2008 (actually they are guesses, but I have no hope of making the National Enquirer unless I label them predictions):

1.    Scientists say there is a 1 in 25 (improved from 1 in 75) chance of an asteroid hitting Mars on January 30, 2008.  This will be my long shot pick, because I’m going with the asteroid nailing Mars big time, which will create a lot of doomsday fear on Earth. Asteroids may become the new bogey man since the USSR ceded that position some years back.
2.    The Democrats will win the White House and have full control of both houses of Congress.  This will prove as disastrous for them as it did for the Republicans who once in power found no coherent means of governing. And since they had both branches tied up, they had no one to blame.  Blame is very important in politics.  The Democrats would be wise to relinquish at least one house of Congress to the Republicans, or the backlash in 4-8 years will be severe.
3.    Real estate will continue to languish.  See this post by David Wolfe for some interesting views on why.
4.    Bird flu will be back in the news
5.    Overall, 2008 should be a year of significant social turmoil. The History Channel documentary on 1968 claims it was the year that changed the world forever.  Look for 2008 to bring forth some eerie parallels.