Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Welcome! Log in to stay connected and make the most of your experience.

Input clean

What’s Scary About the World Today

It’s scary out there…

Despairing about the state of the world is a popular pastime for amateurs and professionals alike. It’s easier to imagine the apocalypse than to visualize progress, and apocalypses certainly make for more compelling movie plots. But our fears are fickle, prone to change with the latest headlines. Ten years ago, for example, everyone’s favorite apocalypse-in-waiting was the suitcase nuclear device in Times Square.  If you search Google Trends for the term “suitcase nuclear device”, you’ll discover that its search popularity peaked in July 2005 and has been in steady decline since then, except for a recent uptick probably reflecting concerns about the malevolent potential of ISIS. Today people are scared by other things. I just searched Google Trends for “US Russia War” for example.  Not too many people were worried before 2013, but since then it’s been climbing the charts.

Keep reading...Show less
Access all of The Cipher Brief’s national security-focused expert insight by becoming a Cipher Brief Subscriber+ Member.

Related Articles

Israel’s Bid to End the Iranian Nuclear Threat

OPINION — In the early hours of June 13, Israel launched a series of airstrikes, codenamed Operation Rising Lion, targeting Iranian nuclear [...] More

Report for Tuesday, June 17, 2025

9:15 AM America/New York Tuesday, June 17 [...] More

Women Who Weaponized Words in World War II

BOOK REVIEW: Propaganda Girls: The Secret War of the Women of the OSSBy Lisa Rogak / St. Martin’s PressReviewed by: Tammy Kupperman ThorpThe Reviewer [...] More

What’s Happening in L.A. May Not Stay in L.A.

OPINION / COLUMN -- “At this early stage of the proceedings, the Court [for the Northern District of California] must determine whether the President [...] More

South Korea’s New President

OPINION — On June 3rd South Korea turned the page and is embarked on a journey of peace and prosperity. Lee Jae-Myung handily won the presidential [...] More

Report for Monday, June 16, 2025

7:38 AM America/New_York Monday, June 16 [...] More

The Houthi Balancing Act After Israel’s Attack on Iran

OPINION — How will the Houthis respond to the devastating Israeli strikes on Iran? This moment could prove decisive for both the Iran-led axis and [...] More