By Amelia Hamilton

Welcome to Are We Doomed? The weekly column in which I take a look at recent news and try to determine if it’s all downhill from here.

Sir Tom

You may have heard about 100-year-old British veteran Tom Moore, who raised almost £33 million pounds (that’s $40 million) to help Britain’s National Health Service deal with the COVID crisis. Last week, he was knighted by the queen.

Verdict: I love seeing people come together to help their communities, and it’s great to see him rewarded for his hard work. If we could all be a little more like Sir Tom, doom wouldn’t be able to touch us.

First Contact

Asteroid material is set to land on Earth in December and, by “asteroid material” I mean maybe aliens.

Verdict: I’m not sure bringing aliens to Earth is really the best way to round out 2020, but maybe they’re more like ALF. I guess we will just have to wait and see if this spells doom.

Grandma, How Drunk You Are

Underaged teen girls are dressing up as elderly grandmothers to buy booze – and COVID masks are helping the ruse.

Verdict: I guess the horribleness of having to wear a mask all the time has a grey goose lining!

Why not?

It kind of makes sense that, in 2020, bears would have nunchucks.

Verdict: This definitely seems problematic to me. We might be doomed.

Congratulations, Alyson and Dylan!

What’s better than a love story? A hilarious love story.

Verdict: Having fun and being in love are pretty much the best ways to keep the doom away.

Hero

Six year-old Bridger Walker saw a dog charge at his little sister and jumped in to save her because, he explained, “if someone had to die, I thought it should be me.” He was mauled by the dog, but is doing ok.

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Hey, all. Please, share my nephew’s story so that it gets as much exposure as it can. We know that our little hero would love some words of encouragement from his favorite heroes. On July 9th, my six year old nephew Bridger saved his little sister’s life by standing between her and a charging dog. After getting bit several times on the face and head, he grabbed his sister’s hand and ran with her to keep her safe. He later said, “If someone had to die, I thought it should be me.” After receiving 90 stitches (give or take) from a skilled plastic surgeon, he’s finally resting at home. We love our brave boy and want all the other superheroes to know about this latest hero who joined their ranks. @tomholland2013 @chrishemsworth @robertdowneyjr @markruffalo @prattprattpratt @twhiddleston @chadwickboseman @vindiesel @chrisevans EDIT: I just finished visiting with Bridger at his home. His wounds are looking so much better! He’s in great spirits, and his awesome personality is intact. He can’t smile too widely yet, but he was grinning as I read some of your comments to him. I’d also like to mention here that the dog’s owners are really great people who have been nothing but kind to Bridger and his family. We feel no resentment toward them at all, and—if anything—there’s only been an increase of love between our families as a result of this incident. EDIT 2: Once again we’re blown away by the amazing comments and messages that Bridger’s receiving. I’ve had lots of inquiries about a GoFundMe. Bridger’s family has asked that any one wishing to help out financially can, instead, donate to @mission_22 or @wwp. Bridger is also a huge fan of Science, especially Geology. So I’m going to start a post where people can share with him pictures of cool rocks that they see. EDIT 3: Once again, everyone’s kindness has meant so much to us. I’m trying to get to all of the messages that I can, but it may take some time. For those who have inquired about sending Bridger some rocks, here’s the address to use: Bridger Walker P.O. Box 22141 Cheyenne, WY 82003 #BridgerStrong

A post shared by Nikki Walker (@nicolenoelwalker) on

Now, actor Chris Evans has sent him a real Captain America shield (Evans plays that particular superhero) to acknowledge his heroism.

Verdict: The best way to keep the doom at bay is to be as selfless as little Bridger.

In the final analysis… There are aliens and armed bears, but there are also selfless Earth humans to balance the scales. I think we’re safe…for now.

Want to know if your situation is doomed? Write and tell me about what’s going on and I’ll let you know what you can do to keep the doom at bay (unless it’s just totally doomed, in which case I’ll tell you that, too). You can tweet me @ameliahammy using #AskAmHam, message me through my Facebook page, or e-mail editorial@velvethamster.com. Let me help!