Faith Popcorn: 2009 Looks Gloomy

Futurist Faith Popcorn has peered into her crystal ball and found that 2009 looks dismal. In a press release, she says it will be a year "marked by unprecedented fear, anxiety, and uncertainty. A year in which we'll see a range of consumer reactions to a nation that has seen itself moving in the wrong direction." She goes on to declare, "It's the end of the world as we know it."

Yikes. It sounds like we might as well cancel any planned joy and hunker down until 2010. But will it really be so bad?

Call me naive, but I refuse to believe such dark clouds loom. Here's why:

• The bad news is old news. Ever since the October stock market crash and daily bad news about the economy, consumers have learned to buck up. We still shopped on Black Friday. No one's cancelling Christmas. In other words, we're learning to cope.

• Change is coming. We'll have a new president in January, and he's already promised "change" in the form of an economic stimulus package and improved relations with the rest of the world. It seems too significant to write off completely.

• 2009 will be a year of the next generation Kindle, the spread of high-definition movies, and cheaper food. With so much to look forward to, how can anyone be so pessimistic? Personally, I look forward to a year of "cocooning," as Popcorn calls it.

What do you think -- do you agree with Popcorn, or with me?