Reply #25: Optimism always flew [View All]

[PATRICK]

in the face of the history books. I always suspected we had not come all that "far". Nor have we, although many advances are immutably part of human progress as are the flaws we carry and bury in blindness which recur like malaria.

Most people, especially when communally supportive of decent ideology and behavior are very very good, but only a few or a slice are ready to face and fight abuse, poisoned ideology and the challenges or responsibility and leadership when the support dissolves like a ghost. Most are good because they need to believe life is good, immutable, a paradise on earth with set and stressless rules with a lot of elbow room. Knowledge of the universe as a likely paradigm of our existence is to stressful to shape one life, pad one's niche. We talk about human weakness, deny sainthood, wink at flaws, believe that things will just go on like the seasons and walk dumbly into the next slaughterhouse. Seeing decently people descend into brutalization and cycles of violence is even worse but is the vulnerability of the common.

Waiting around, delegating our responsibilities, and enjoying peace, progress and prosperity is the surest way to lose all three to ruthless misfits.

Optimism needs people who make things better, not people who trust to fate and presumption.