Is the world coming to an end!

A few months ago I stopped buying my daily newspaper for the first time since I started work as a 14 year old shelf stacker at Keymarkets. I always loved my daily rag but they have become so depressing with news of the credit crunch, Inflation, deflation, falling house prices, job loses, immigration. The British Army fighting a never ending war in Afghanistan and even Albion getting bogged down at the foot of the table again.
I remember the 3 day week, the power cuts, the miners strike, Britain going cap in hand to the International Monetary Fund for hand outs. I remember 3 million unemployed and working at British Leyland where we went on strike if the tea was cold or somebody left a door open.
Now following my newspaper boycott I now turn off the television news as well, its just too depressing to watch. Is the world coming to an end? Will we be back to the days of "The Grapes of Wrath" with hordes of people traveling the countryside to search for work?
I hope not of course but you have to remain positive. The world is there to use as a tool to happiness and I feel lucky that if the worse case scenario would be me with no money, no home and no prospects I would still have my bike to see the world. I just hope nobody nicks my bike!