The world is in an uneasy mood.
On the face of things, the outlook is quite reassuring. There is peace between the great powers, the global economy is in reasonable shape and an unending cascade of new technologies seems to be opening up a boundless future for mankind.
And yet there are shadows. There is no peace in Africa — on the contrary, the continent seems cursed by a succession of vicious civil wars, rebellions and guerrilla campaigns. Nor has global prosperity or the benefits of the information-technology revolution reached tens of millions of impoverished people.