Watching news reports, one could easily say that the rising level of hateful behavior is appalling! A United States representative called for harassing public officials of the opposing political party. A restaurant owner refused to serve a government official, while others refused to serve police. Hollywood actors and comedians say threatening, vile, and disgusting things against political leaders and their family members, stunning our sensibilities! Sadly, some applaud and cheer these rants rather than soundly condemning such behavior.

As interested observers and students of the world scene try to absorb and digest all the conflicting information that comes their way, a profound sense of hopelessness grips some, and feelings of hostility and aggression are stirred in others. There is a sense for most people that things are not going to turn out well.

Like many sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) in their early state, Mycoplasma genitalium (MG) usually has no symptoms. This means an infected person can unknowingly transmit his or her disease to other sexual partners (BBC, July 11, 2018). The disease causes pain, fever, and bleeding, and even leads to infertility. Medical professionals are watching this bacteria mutate and develop immunity to certain antibiotics, rendering it untreatable in some cases.

Earlier this year, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) predicted a 13,000 percent annualized inflation rate in Venezuela (Washington Post, July 24, 2018), yet its recent revision makes its earlier prediction seem miniscule.

Have you ever browsed Facebook, Twitter, or your e-mails and found an irresistible quote, perhaps shared with you by one of your online friends? A quote you’ve never read, a quote from some famous person, a short, pithy message that was too memorable not to pass on? And so, even if you aren’t the online “sharing” type, you give it a shot; point-click-send, and there it goes to all your friends, followers, or contacts. You’ve just become another link in a chain, spreading some inspiring nugget across your little slice of the social network.