I apologize if it seems that I introduce material associated with conspiracies but I feel I have been driven to them, having no alternative. At present, the world looks so bizarre to me, I cannot satisfy my sense of logic otherwise - and if it isn't obvious already, the adventure of trying to confirm LENR in the minds of others tends to justify such an outlook IMHO.
Saying that the human race - and its elite - are no more irrational than in the past is no comfort if technology could give anyone the power of a weapon of mass destruction. Worrying about assault rifles looks like small potatoes, over the long road. Thus, unless we gain the oversight of benevolent aliens or develop a mass psychic consciousness that protects us, the future looks more like Afghanistan. Do some say that SETI can't find aliens because they probably advanced far enough to blow themselves up?