A Case for Optimism (sans Rose-Colored Glasses)
David writes:
"It’s all so horrifying and I’m flirting with extreme nihilism at best.
I'm living at the intersection of Rage and Sadness. And it's exhausting. Nihilism seems the only traffic light out of this. Although, there is Fear. Because Fear is no longer for the weak... it seems best used by the sensible. Perhaps this is nihilistic, but fear is all we have left."
Fear was never about weakness. Fear is a rational response to dangerous things. Fear, like anger, is an emotional tool rather than perpetual state of being. Nihilism (and its second cousin Pessimism) is considered by many to be the course of rational thought but it isn't. Skepticism is rational. Nihilism is the sole armor of the irrational; it is the purview of the foolish.
Loosely defined, nihilism is the belief that society and, consequently, life is without purpose or meaning. Pessimism is likewise known to be a lack of hope for the future.
Optimism is a confidence in the positive outcomes of tomorrow.
A Nihilist, a Pessimist, and an Optimist are walking along a sidewalk. They come upon a huge pile of shit. I mean, huge. Like, a wheelbarrow dump of shit right in the middle of the path.
The Nihilist looks at the shit, shrugs, and walks right through it. "Doesn't matter anyway. Life is already shit so who cares?"
The Pessimist sits down. "There'll only be more shit ahead. What's the point?"
The Optimist, always prepared for whatever may come his way, pulls out a shovel and moves the shit in piles around various trees. "These trees needed some fertilizer anyway."
"For mine I am an optimist by nature. My reading of history is that the world has always stepped back from the edge of disaster. Against all odds, here we are, alive and kicking." — Rabbi Laibl Wolf
Optimism isn’t merely hope. It isn’t happiness or a cheery disposition.
Optimism is an act of resilience against the brutal harshness of living the existential crisis.
As optimism is a breeze when things are going your way, despair is the path of least resistance when things turn to dire. Seeing through the mist at a better future takes effort and commitment like a solid marriage or a massive novel you’ve committed to writing. It’s a project to be managed not a feeling to languish within.
The Nihilist is a reactionary. Things not going his way? He gives up, throws his arms in the air, and declares that it doesn't matter anyway. Often, nihilism is just an excuse to behave like an anti-social cunt.
The Pessimist is lazy. Too focused on his unmet expectations to look into the past to provide context for the present and see how that may affect the future. He lacks imagination.
The Optimist is the only true realist. Confronted with a horror of a present, he looks at the past to see how anyone survived previous horrors, takes instruction and inspiration from those examples, comes up with a game plan and moves forward toward a future of which he'd like to be a part.
One cannot truly call himself an optimist who refuses to see the horror. Pretending that people are essentially kind and generous is stuffing the ostrich head in the sand. People are apes with higher brain functions and follow the rules of the jungle. Tribalism, essentialism, war for resources, the history of brutality of all humanity goes far beyond the past 200 years. Taken in whole, we aren’t a very enlightened and forgiving species.
Further, optimism is an individual choice. It’s not something that can be enforced but it is something that can be inspired. The American Experiment, despite its many missteps and flaws, is grounded in a belief that humans can govern themselves justly and effectively. Given the larger picture, belief in democracy is only slightly more delusional than the guy playing slots so he can pay his rent. The odds are astronomically against success and yet the choice to persevere is made.
And so we look hard at the present moment in time.
Republicans vie to elevate the dimmest bulbs in the country to office, pledging loyalty to a corrupt former president who actively sought to overturn an election he lost. In turn, Democrats vie to elevate those who live in fantasy world where things like high gas prices or violent crime aren’t real problems while mystical structural forces and improper language use are keeping Americans in a permanent state of oppression.
There are 393 million guns in America and mass shootings that occur like episodic television. Half the country wants to ban abortions; the other half wants to have them available until the first breath is taken. The economy is in turmoil, anxiety disorders and suicides are at an all-time high. It's getting really effing hot and we aren't really doing much except for that whole river in Egypt thing.
The Nihilist says "Fuck it. The whole thing is meaningless."
The Pessimist says "Figures. Nothing we can do anyway."
The Optimistic says "OK. Humanity has been here in many ways before. Americans have been at least this polarized in the past. The fight for so many of the civil rights recently rolled back is what forged whole movements. Humans are both awful, horrible, violent pieces of greedy, self-interested shit and the generous creators of an enduring future filled with kindness and love. Only the weak give up, only the lazy refuse to imagine better, so help me find my shovel. I have trees to fertilize."
