"As a result of Trump's comments about the need to escalate the arms race, within days of his inauguration the Science and Security Board of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists moved the Doomsday Clock thirty seconds closer to midnight, to two and a half minutes, reflecting the board's sense of urgency regarding the possible destruction of the planet. Composed of scientists, including nuclear physicists and climate experts, the board meets twice each year to discuss where the clock's hands should fall in light of world events. The Doomsday Clock made its debut on the cover the bulletin's June 1947 edition, showing the clock at seven minutes to midnight. Since that time, the clock has moved both closer and farther away, depending on the board's assessment of the risk of global disaster.
"With the end of the Cold War in 1990, the minute hand slowly moved backward, to a full seventeen minutes away from midnight. It has slowly moved up again in the years since. 'Unchecked climate change, global nuclear weapons modernizations, and outsized nuclear weapons arsenals pose extraordinary and undeniable threats to the continued existence of humanity,' the bulletin's editors said in January 2015. 'World leaders have failed to act with the speed or on the scale required to protect citizens from potential catastrophe.' The half-minute move in 2017 brings the clock the closest to midnight that it has been since 1953, the year after the United States and the Soviet Union both conducted tests of the hydrogen bomb. When the scientists moved the clock in 2017, they declared, 'Never before has the Bulletin decided to advance the clock largely because of the statements of a single person. But when that person is the new president of the United States, his words matter.' The Doomsday Clock brings scientists' concerns about nuclear and environmental dangers to public attention.
"Despite the hopeful signs, it is not yet clear what lies ahead. Whether or not symbolic gestures like the Doomsday Clock, the organizing momentum of Black Lives Matter, the energy of those who took to the
streets to march in protest against Trump's election, the grassroots activists who jam town hall meetings, and the energized journalists who are exposing corruption can coalesce into an effective and powerful opposition remains to be seen. The challenge of reviving democracy requires an energized nationwide organizing effort.
"It is not clear whether the forces supporting fortress America will prevail, or whether the newly energized opposition will triumph. When Americans fear and distrust each other, we become weaker and less secure. Perhaps the misguided fears that have harmed our democracy will give way to an embrace of energized citizenship. There are signs that this might be happening. If the momentum continues, we might see a new commitment to the common good. That is the only way that Americans will be able to build a truly safe and secure society. After all, citizens need to remember that beyond all the guns, gates, and screaming headlines, the vast majority of people in this country have no desire to harm anyone. If, rather than retreating from each other, Americans could come together in mutual trust and support, democracy might yet flourish. Perhaps Americans are finally ready to abandon fear and embrace democracy."
