I'm not disputing the signficance of that, but from the viewpoint of disasters it hasn't been that severe. And the fact remains that nearly every generation for the past two thousand years has had something that they pointed to that some thought represented End Times.
2 Peter 3:4 (New International Version) 4They will say, "Where is this 'coming' he promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation."
I wouldn't disagree that each generation is susceptible to believing the disasters they are experiencing are unique. The letters written to the Thessalonians is a good case in point. These letters offer a lot of insight into what to expect as far as the sequence of events because the Thessalonians thought they had been "left behind" and Paul was explaining to them what had to happen first. So we see in Scripture the same tendency in the generation following the Crucifixion.
There is pretty clear prophecy that tells us when we are very close to the return of Jesus Christ. The reformation of Israel. The return of Jews to Israel. A peace treaty with Israel and the muslim nations that want to kill all the Jews. The rebuilding of the Temple. Some of these things have occurred and some haven't. From my perspective it could be tomorrow, or a 1,000 years I don't know. I do believe it is sooner rather than later.