RE: https://mastodon.social/@Daojoan/116389155177174187
1000% this:
“Optimism is treated like a belief in astrology.
Pessimism reads as intelligence now.
Optimism reads as naivety.
This has gotten so baked into educated Western culture that most people don't notice they're doing it. But it's toxic, all the same.”
“Cornel West split optimism and hope into two separate things...
• Optimism is a spectator sport, in his framing. You watch the data and decide whether the trend lines look good.
• Hope is a commitment to act as though improvement is possible, because without that commitment you guarantee it isn't.”
MIC DROP:
“The optimists who were wrong still attempted something.
The pessimists who were right attempted nothing.
And the world runs on attempts, not on accurate // profound predictions of failure.”
“When pessimism becomes the default in public conversation, it starts building the world it claims to be describing. People who believe nothing can be different don't vote, don't volunteer, don't start companies, don't run for office, don't build the thing that might have mattered.
Pessimism at scale is a self-fulfilling prophecy.”
“I would rather be wrong about what we're capable of than right about why we shouldn't bother trying.”
You and me both, @Daojoan — thanks for articulating that
Counterpoint:
There are 5 very dead rich folks at the bottom of the ocean because they were overly optimistic (or one was and the rest were gullible). Ignoring evidence that doesn't match your world view isn't optimism, it's foolhardy denial.
And there is a middle ground between optimism and pessimism - realism. It's not wrong to dismiss both optimism and pessimism in the absence of actual data. As with most things, wisdom lies somewhere between the extremes.
Scott Francis
Tom Bortels