Dark Visions

Why is it that so many of our views of the future are dark, apocalyptic views, rather than sunny, optimistic views?

How many futuristic movies have you watched where the future looked grim, dominated by greedy corporations and overbearing governments?
How many novels have explored this same ground?

Is is because more people have a dim view of our future prospects and do not trust those in power to do the right thing?

Or is it simply the excitement factor? Do people want to see a big, dark, violent battle at the end of their lives rather than just simply working until they drop?

Even people who like new age persepectives get hooked on deciphering Nostradamus or the Mayan calendar and the fact that it does not go beyond 2012. Then again, I remember the turn of the millennium, when tons of doom and gloom fans were predicting dire consequences because they believed that computers would not be able to adust their dates and roll over into the 2000. Of course, they were absolutely wrong about that.

Perhaps it is just easier to imagine what is already there falling apart than it is to imagine a future where everything works for everyone even better. And if that is true, what does that say about us?

Maybe our dark visions are related to the fact that we get more used to seeing the negative side of people in our daily news reports than seeing the good side of people. Yes, that tells us something too.