Stuart Armstrong of Practical Ethics makes an unlikely point based on the disparity between the 1920 100m Olympic record and that set this year by Usain Bolt:
In 1920, prohibition had just been instituted in the USA. Some women were voting for the first time, though most couldn’t (neither could most men, in fact). The British empire was at it’s [sic] height, communism had just triumphed in Russia (the only country in the world to legalise abortion), homosexuality was a crime in most places, GDP was about a 30th of what it is now, life expectancy was 54 in the USA and tuberculosis was incurable.
Even when things seem darkest for cause or country, I try to remember that the world was darker 100 years ago and will probably be brighter in the future. Pessimism is for pre-millenialists.
Also, theology jokes are fun.