The good news is that we may not be alone in the universe. The reason why extraterrestrials haven't visited yet is because of a higher rate of Gamma Ray Bursts (GRBs) during the past few hundred million years than now. The current rate of GRBs provides a window of opportunity (of several hundred million years) for species to develop into spacefaring civilizations. The bad news is the existence of GRBs, incredibly powerful explosions caused by collisions between collapsed stars that can 'cleanse' entire galaxies of life. Eternal pessimists are welcome to interpret both events as dire -- random, unstoppable galaxy-sterilizing gamma ray blasts and marauding extraterrestrial refugees, anxious to find new ozone rich environments.