Probably the most hackneyed proverb to emerge from China is the old curse, “May you live in interesting times.” Interesting if what we think we want our lives to be — and reasonably enough, when we’re thinking in terms of zest and fun and diversion. What interesting fusion cuisine! What an interesting pre-Raphaelite museum exhibit! What an interesting and precocious daughter you have, madam!

But interesting is emphatically not what we want if we are doctor’s patients; a medically boring person tends to be a healthy one. Interesting times — such as the ones we appear to be living in now — are characterized not by civic and fiscal health or fascinating museum exhibits, but by crisis. It’s an excellent curse, really.

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