"Fast away the old year passes,

Hail the new, ye lads and lasses."

A decade, plus one year, of the new millennium have come and gone. The new era has seen the continuing triumph of man’s ingenuity over the elements … especially in the field of communications, where everything is instantaneous. The internet and smart phones fill the need to know, now.

But have we really triumphed over the elements? Evidence of global warming suggests that Mother Nature may have the last laugh. Our continuing need for energy, mostly generated from petroleum products, seems to be causing sea levels to rise; meanwhile the movement toward renewable energy struggles to gain traction. What’s the future to bring?

America’s workers and businesses are still trying to keep their heads above water as a stubborn recession drags into its third—or is it the fourth?—year. The economists say that by the numbers, the recession is over. But when will the recovery b...