Giving Thanks

Dear Classical Wisdom Reader,

I know, I know... currently we are in an era when everyone likes to bemoan the state of the world. It’s a common thread, one that grabs the headlines, fills the social streams and casts its long depressing shadow over way too many conversations.

So my note today may seem unfashionable... contrarian to the current ‘vibes’... untastefully positive and optimistic.... I know from personal experience that often when I present good news, my interlocutors seem... resistant. I have no idea why that has come to pass (I regularly muse it’s a subconscious wish to immanentize the eschaton), but it undoubtedly occurs.

To anticipate those responses, I’d like to add an important caveat to all that I mention below. I’m not saying we are ‘done’. That everyone can pack up their bags, go home and say humanity is now complete.

Of course not!

I’m just saying, with the humbling perspective that comes with studying history, actually contemplating what life was like long ago (as well as not so long ago), it is worthwhile taking a moment, especially on a day like today, to think about just how far we have come.

So with that aside, I’d like to press ahead and say a few things for which I am truly, truly grateful…

Hunger is Down

The percentage of people in the world who are hungry has never been lower. Not so long ago 37% of the global population (in 1969–1971) were undernourished, this has dropped to ~ 15%–16% around 2000. More recently, by 2019, about 8.9% of the world population was undernourished. Of course every empty belly is a tragedy, but if we were to transport ourselves to any time period except for now, the number of hungry would be astonishingly higher.

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Poverty is Plummeting

Poverty, likewise, is dramatically decreasing. In the 1820s, 80% of the population was living in extreme poverty. Let that sink in for a moment... eight in ten were barely surviving... By 1981, early World Bank survey data show roughly 40–45% of the world in extreme poverty. By 1990, around 38–43%, and today it is less than 10%. Even in population numbers, it went from almost 2 BILLION people in the 90s to 800 million today. What a change!

Here, specifically in Argentina, poverty was reduced by more than 40%, from 52.9% to 31.6%. (According to Unicef, 2.4 million Argentine children have escaped poverty in the past 18 months).

Of course for reliable charts, we can only use modern data, but you can imagine what the larger scale graph would look like...

The Humpback Whales are doing alright!

While the North humpback whale has had a strong recovery and steady progress, the Southern populations have rebounded impressively. For example, the western South Atlantic humpback whales are estimated at ~25,000 individuals, which a recent study says amounts to ~93% of their pre-exploitation numbers. While in Australian coastal populations, monitoring suggests some groups have already exceeded 50% of pre-whaling abundance.

Babies Live

This one is personal to me, as I very nearly died in childbirth (fortunately, 14 blood transfusions later, I am still here)... but both maternal and infant death rates have declined dramatically. Pre- Industrial revolution estimates were around 1–1.5% mortality rates for the moms and a whopping 20–30% for babies. Today those numbers cratered to ~0.2% women die and ~3–4% children.

Medicine and Hygiene

This one doesn’t need much explanation, as I think it is fairly intuitive to anyone who has ever had an antibiotic, antiseptic, or any painkiller. Don’t get me wrong, I love the ancient world, but one look at the Roman toilets and I say thank you every day to the modern john. Just imagine Doctors without soap, the world before germ theory, and life before floss. To quote the political commentator, P. J. O’Rourke: “When you think of the good old days, think one word: dentistry”

Reading is all the Rage

You might not think it looking at all the doomscrollers these days, but literacy rates are at an all time high. This is especially true among groups historically not literate, closing the much needed disparity and allowing whole new generations of young and curious minds to learn.

Interconnectivity

And the potential output resulting from those increasing literacy rates are exponentially higher due to the incredible interconnectivity of the internet. I remember ten years ago, driving through the Savannah in Tanzania and marvelling at Masai Warriors on their cellphones. Right now there are kids in every corner of the earth researching, watching online courses, accessing any book they want.

Even Classical Wisdom is read in 200 countries in the world (including 51 readers in Tanzania). And to each and everyone of you around the globe, thank you for helping keep the Classics Alive! I am so grateful that right now more people than ever before in the history of the world have access to the wisdom of the past....

Join the Classics Loving Ranks! Especially if you are in the Sudan, we only have one reader there.. ;-)

Hard Won Wisdom

I could go on, of course, and talk about all the amazing marvels that brilliant men and women have discovered, created, and imagined that make our modern lives infinitely safer, easier, healthier, and longer... I am grateful to all those individuals who have contributed to this amazing project called humanity. I am appreciative of our ability to learn about those who came before us and what they have given...

For the reality of most of history (including the period to which we dedicate these humble pages), people had it really, really rough. Their words of wisdom were hard won. When Epictetus writes about preparing for the death of a child or loved one, it’s because it happened to almost everyone. When Epicurus speaks about finding joy, it’s because pain was much more common. When Heraclitus riddles on the power of war, it’s because it was a constant reality.

We truly stand on the shoulders of giants...and for that I am thankful.

Happy Thanksgiving.

All the best,
Anya Leonard

Founder and Director

P.S. If you know someone who could do with a little historical perspective, a bit of half glass full optimism in our era of doom and gloom, please feel free to share:

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