Can good predictions be made? Yes. There are many examples of highly-qualified futurists who made generally correct predictions (and it's not just the fact that some ought to be luckier than others). Examples: F. M. Esfandiary [1], Jules Verne, Genrih Altov (Генрих Альтов) /Altshuller/. It seems possible to predict future well, even though it's not always clear what the best approach/methodology is.