Are you optimistic about the future?

[thartley]

Thinking in global terms, I have tended to be less optimistic the more I learn.  BUT, I found this winning essay that is doing a good job of changing my mind. 

I know its long, but it is well worth the read.  I promise.

http://www.happynews.com/...2272006/deborah-sharp.htm

[Ginafish]

That's a great article. That happy news website has another piece of inspiration for you:
Never too Late

[thartley]

But are you optimistic about the future? 

[Ginafish]

Yes.

[thartley]

I guess everybody else is still thinking.   

[Nick Lane]

I want to answer the question before reading the article, then I will come back and tell you what I think about it after I do so.

Am I optimistic about the future? I have to be. Something I always force myself to do is look at the glass as half full. The problem is, there are times that I want to do nothing of the sort. I get whiny and I start to drown in self-pity. At this juncture I will admit it is very hard to remain optimistic about the future of American and, moreover, the world. The reason I say this is because I am recognizing a very disturbing trend. There is a force that can make or break anything and anyone. This force is the media, and the disturbing part is that the mainstream media is displaying a harsh and naive bias which is easily scooped up by those who don't know better. I worry that if this trend continues we will only see problems popping up, and I will be too sad to even say "I told you so." But, the one thing that allows me to remain optimistic (even if things go down hill) is the fact that Americans are resilient and will hopefully see the truth, even if we have to be wrong in order to see it.

Now to read the article...

[Mus.]

See, that's what's wrong with the world today. Too many people wanting too much. Sure the things she mentioned, like more children surviving and people living longer might be good from an individualistic point of view but when looking at the grand scheme, it's bad. There's too many people as it is and with the expectancy of 20 billion people by 2030 I can't help but feeling worried about the way things are unfolding. Call me a pessimist but I see a future like this. A few lucky ones living rich, enjoyable lives while the majority of people are struggling just behind the wall. There simply isn't enough resources for everyone to get enough. Sure a little space expedition to Mars may be neat but will it help people living in poverty?

I feel so bad now, bringing everyone down again. Mind you, I have an avatar that proves one is two and a signature with a dancing Spider-man so if that helps you feel better about my claims then that's just good.

[Nick Lane]

I just finished the article, it was a good read.

Over the last seven years I have seen a transformation in American character. After September 11, there was a refreshing connection, a universal emotion that held us together as one. We stood up in the face of terror and said "No, we will NOT back down." We were adamant about keeping our freedom, our lives and our family. We were adamant about being Americans. I can remember watching the news footage unfold on FNC and CNN and all the major networks. I saw people jumping to certain death from buildings, I heard people screaming and I saw my country and my people under attack. I heard stories about people carrying disabled persons down twenty flights of stairs that brought tears to my eyes but what I saw next was a country scorned, but a country together. We were America and we were one.

Over the next seven years people grew tired and their memories faded. Many lost sight of that day that our country was under siege. They forgot about the firefighters running into unstable buildings, never to return. They forgot about seeing jumbo jets toting hundreds of innocent human beings plow through buildings which would eventually crumble to their knees. They forgot who they were and what they are supposed to stand for. The media force launched into a downward spiral and people began to get mesmerized and even brainwashed. Now it seems that most have lost the last little memory of a time when we stood together as one. When we stood together as Americans.

It used to be that Americans were proud, happy and resilient. Now we are whiners, liars and stupid. I have had people look me in the eye and say they do not feel bad for 9/11 victims. I have heard the most outrageous accusations about this country and what it stands for, spewed from the mouths of the very people who reap her benefits. I have felt my heart break as I watched Americans become anti-Americans. I can see the false front that these people believe and I can see the truth that they resent. I am living in fear of my fellow citizens, of what they may mistakingly bring on the rest of us. I am living in fear that we may plunge into a sharp descent with the wrong hands at our helm. And I am in fear that it may be too hard to recover from the ensuing crash and burn.

I am in fear, but I am American. And by definition that means I am supposed to be strong, proud and prepared. I am supposed to be happy, resilient and most of all, optimistic. And I am, because I am American.

[Nick Lane]

See, that's what's wrong with the world today. Too many people wanting too much. Sure the things she mentioned, like more children surviving and people living longer might be good from an individualistic point of view but when looking at the grand scheme, it's bad. There's too many people as it is and with the expectancy of 20 billion people by 2030 I can't help but feeling worried about the way things are unfolding. Call me a pessimist but I see a future like this. A few lucky ones living rich, enjoyable lives while the majority of people are struggling just behind the wall. There simply isn't enough resources for everyone to get enough. Sure a little space expedition to Mars may be neat but will it help people living in poverty?

I feel so bad now, bringing everyone down again. Mind you, I have an avatar that proves one is two and a signature with a dancing Spider-man so if that helps you feel better about my claims then that's just good.

Mus.,

Several of your points are valid. It is true that overpopulation will cause problems and it is true that there will be some outrageously rich people and many horribly poor people but, and I hate to say this, that is life. My theory is that everyone has the opportunity to make something of themselves, if you don't open that door, then that is your fault. I understand children born into tough situations have trouble getting out, but you can't honestly say that there is really anything anyone can do to fix that. The point of the article is that we have come so far in a century, there is no doubt that we can go even further in another. I turned my reaction into a blog-like post that is above this one, but I had to respond to your remark.

By the way, if you are intimidated by the length of my last post, I apologize. But please take the time to read it, it is not as long as it looks and it took me some time to write and it is something I have invested a lot of emotional thought into and something that I truly believe in.

[Mus.]

Oh I didn't see that one, I was still writing my rant when you posted yours. I'll read it now.


Edit: might as well post it in a new reply.

[Nick Lane]

Oh I didn't see that one, I was still writing my rant when you posted yours. I'll read it now.

Yeah, it took me a while to write it. Partly because I put a lot of thought into it and partly because I kept getting up and doing other things in the middle of writing it.

[Mus.]

Ok then, read it. It was a good read, you had some good points. I can see you're very patriotic. I have a similar view of the world today but in a more universal way. Where you say American, I think humanity. At least up to the third paragraph. There things become a bit too patriotic for me. It's nice you're proud of your roots but I can't imagine myself ever feeling the same way about being Finnish. I'm more of a world person, don't really feel any strong connection to any government or nation. Anyway, I agree it's funny, and/or sad, how tragedies bring people together but as soon as things are well again people sink back to, dare I say, ignorance and become blind to the bad things in the world. That's where humanity should improve itself, learning to take responsibility even when all is well. That way things will be well more of the time.

[Nick Lane]

I know that my post there focused on America, but I too have a very strong world view. I wish that countries would let go of the trivial hatred for eachother and stop crashing planes into buildings and blowing up train cars. But it looks like that isn't going to happen for a while. I am careful, however, that I don't tredge into the "one world" point of view. Some think we should abolish countries and have just one big plant but this would never work. Cultures are so different, as are governments and people. Everything is so different that trying to combine would be like tossing a Communist, a Fascist and a Capitalist into one room and telling them to agree. It will only cause problems.

That being said I don't want you to think I only care about my country. I do care about America, deeply, as this is where I live and I find it hard to not care. If I didn't care, the place I live would probably become less favorable to me. But I also am very big on humanity as a whole, as I think I illustrated in this post.

By the way, are Mus. and I the only two using the forum right now???

[thartley]

By the way, are Mus. and I the only two using the forum right now???

Nope. 

I'd like to throw more of my hat into the ring here. 

One idea I would like to pose on the subject of national vs global points of view is in response to Mus saying he could not imagine feeling that strongly about being Finnish and that he is more of a world thinker.  One of the most beautiful things about being an American is that you are not American necessarily by birth.  Being American is a choice.  In a very basic way, America itself is a microcosm of the whole world.  Anyone would be hardpressed to find another country on earth whose population is as diverse and global as America's.  If they choose, people can come to America and make a new start.  Its what our entire country was based on, why we are called the world's "melting pot" and politically "The Great Experiement". 

As an American, it is very difficult for me to imagine a country where the vast majority share the same pedigree, as is the case in many other countries.  I'm not saying that is a bad thing, I'm just trying to explain that, from my point of view, America is already "global" by its very population and many of our problems stem from simply trying to get along with each other. HA!  Sometimes, it seems like our domestic issues are the same as our foreign affairs. 

I am optimistic about the future because the more that ordinary people from all over the world communicate and interact with each other, the more they can form their own opinions and views on things from outside their world.  We are finding out that we can accomplish more and better by working together, and I believe that all the adversity in the world right now that makes people depressed and have such a bleak outlook will be the very things that will bring the world back together and accomplish great things.

The medical community is not hindered by national borders.  People in one country will make great discoveries by standing on the shoulders of the breakthroughs made in another country.  People from China will come to America to study medicine, and people from America will go to Africa to study disease.  Somewhere in the middle, a cure will be found.  Its that kind of thing that makes me optimistic.  Its the fact that one country will step up and make unprecedented progress using alternative fuels while other countries will observe the outcomes and effects and find better even more efficient ways to do it, but it took that one country's courage to make a change to get it going.  Its when a disaster strikes on one side of the world, regular people on the other side will reach their hands out to help them without knowing them just because they can.

Is everybody like this?  No.  If they were, the world would be in much better shape, but I'm optimistic about it. 

[Nick Lane]

That is a good point, Thartley. I just think people are losing sight of what really matters. Did you read my post?

[thartley]

absolutely I read your post.  And I agree, people are losing sight of what matters. 

I have a lot more to say on the subject, but time and place are important factors.     And I am still thinking....   

[Ginafish]

That is a good point, Thartley. I just think people are losing sight of what really matters. Did you read my post?

From your posts, Nick, I'd like a to know in one phrase what is it that you think people are losing sight of: 1) that the opinions of people are too influenced by a bias media or 2) that patriotism matters and it's dangerous to be anti-American (which I really see as anti-government from your discussion).

If I'm completely missing your point of what is it is that people are losing sight of, could you provide a short option 3?

[Nick Lane]

My point is people are losing sight of the fact that if we do not stand together as one we will crumble as nothing.

Now for a slightly longer thought: the anti-government POV is fueled by the media bias and people are no longer living by "all of one, one for all" which puts us in a dangerous descent to chaos and utter anarchy. In my opinion, of course.

[Ginafish]

I get it now. Thank you for the concise statement.

[Nick Lane]

I get it now. Thank you for the concise statement.

Anytime! Sometimes when I post I get carried away and "writer Nick" jumps in and starts going crazy.

[ZeroG]

Please pardon me while I let 'writer Bill' speak. 

As Mus. and Nick said, there is a national view and a world view. I will also add a  personal view as well. The personal view will vary from person to person. I am positive about my own personal future, but no one but me wants to hear about that.

My view on the future of the U.S. is becoming pessimistic. It started with the declining value of our currency. I am by no means an expert in economics, but I think the U.S. dollar is still way over valued. I use the 'beer standard' for this. A beer still costs more in Norway than in the US. Nations use to use gold to guarantee the value of their currency. It is now based on trade and debt. From a world perspective, this is a good model, but the downside is that it does bring the countries having problems into the light.

With the world saying we are having problems, I look inward to the U.S. to see that we are operating at record deficit. I see this as partly through funding of the war, but enhanced by the increase in the cost of energy. Also, the banking system was hit with a major mortgage loan crisis, taking billions out of the economy. And the stock market keeps heading south. This is causing a recession, which could lead to a depression, and nothing is positive when you are depressed.

Going back to the original question, based on the US stock market, I would say most people are pessimistic (Bearish) on the future. Why are they bearish? Is it because the media propogates bad news more than good? It looks like a vicious circle where the numbers go down because of something, the media reports it, people stop investing, the numbers go down, the media reports it...on and on until something happens where good news is all people want to hear.

On the world view, I am positive. With a few exceptions, I think the global economy operates under a healthy model. There is variety in size, government, religious view, economic power. With energy on the open market, and available across the globe, we have a good scenario for the short term future. My long term view will be more positive when I see more efforts to reduce consumption of the limited resource (oil), and more efforts to look at renewable energy sources. We seem to be stuck.

Since Nick brought up 911, an interesting thought occured to me the other day. There was an unwritten rule before agricultural based societies took over the world. Give as good as you get, but don't be predictable. This is the way Daniel Quinn said tribes kept each other in check. They would randomly attack a neighboring tribe but not annihilate them. Annihilation came with agricultural based societies like the Spaniards conquering the Incas. Random attacks (sounds like modern day terrorism?) kept the attacked tribe intact so that it could retaliate. It was a good healthy agreement and benefited both tribes.

I realize it is not easy for people to think of 911 as healthy. But, as Nick said, it did unite us (U.S.) and kind of made us pay more attention to how we operate in the world. I say 'kind of' because I am not sure people in charge are thinking about this. Every once in a while we may ask what we did to provoke such a horrendous act, but it doesn't go anywhere. I think the problem with the U.S., as seen by the terrorists, is we don't honor sovereign nations. Because we are born with certain inalienable rights, we think everyone born on the earth has them also. And we get mad when we see human rights of people in other nations being denied.

We got in this position because of WWII and what Hitler was doing. We stayed away too long and it cost a bunch more to undo what was done. And how did it all end in WWII? With a nuclear last resort. And that is just what we fear will fall into the wrong hands. For the world to become less jittery about this scenario, all nations need to re-adjust their engagement strategies on a global forum. I am still positive about the future of the world, and trust something like a global agreement will come about, probably due to the declining oil supply.

So, I am positive about my own future. Pessimistic about the short term future of the US, as are most other citizens too. I am positive about the long term future of the world.

[Nick Lane]

ZeroG,

What I find funny is that we are both somewhat pessemistic about the US short term future for different reasons. I worry that people have lost sight of the truth, have been brainwashed and will make a mistake in November that could really hurt this nation. You worry because our economy is sinking. I also worry about this.

I don't blame the war, as I have said before I see the war as a prevoked act that we had no choice but to engage in. I don't want to argure about whether or not we "should" have gone to Iraq because we are already there and the only argument worthwhile is what to do next. In a somber way I get your point about 9/11. It united this country in a way that is foreign to most at this juncture and, in that respect, it is healthy. I think that if the media bias was abolished and people sought the real truth rather than spoon fed propaganda, we would be in a better place. I am hesitant to blame our economic woes on the war; yes, a lot of money has gone into Iraq, but it is counter-productive to say "If we hadn't gone into war, we would not be in a recession." Not only is it untrue, it's irrelevent. It is STUPID to talk about what we should or should not have done because you cannot change the past.

I am not saying that you are saying this, just making a point.

[PK]

For a very brief moment 9/11 not only united Americans but the entire world.

Remember all the candle light vigils that were happening around the world soon after it happened? Countries we didn't even consider friends were sympathetic to us. For a brief moment we had the worlds shoulder to cry on and we had unity.

But what happened next is why I am not optimistic about our future.  For some reason we feel that the best way to improve the quality of life is by taking people's freedoms away and making them live in fear. I remember a time, not too long ago, when schools didn't have metal detectors, kids could ride their bikes across town, water was allowed on planes, and flashing lights from a cartoon promotion weren't mistaken for bombs.  Is this progress?  I sure hope not!!  We've created a society that suspects everything and trusts no one.  The fences we already have will be getting higher and higher until we can no longer see our neighbor.

The only chance we have for a good future is to tear down the walls, relax the laws, and to use tolerance instead of force. America was once respected and great. We can be that way again but we've got to lighten up a little and maybe learn a few things from other countries for once. Because we're obviously not doing something right.

[ZeroG]

There was, and still is, a ton of money going to the war. And we will be paying for it long after everyone comes back home. The problem I have is that money was spent on the war as if we had an endless supply of money. No effort was made to cut back on expenses in other areas. If we got a cut of the oil exported from Iraq, we could balance things a little more, but that will never happen. What gets me is we spend like a naive wife who thinks as long as there are checks, there is money.

The internet is breaking down the walls. We are having a discussion between 3 countries right now! My impression of Thailand has drastically changed. I use it as a way of looking at my life differently. And Mus. has really given me insight into how people from Finland live. Overtime, as the world get more connected, the walls will fall, and it will be harder for governments to do covert things which have caused so many problems. Not much happens today without it being put on the internet to be scrutinized by millions.

[David Jimerson]

I'm always optimistic about the future.  Pessimism does no one any good.