# Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all?



## Picklepower (Oct 27, 2013)

Just that, America is full of unrest, shit is still going on within the Middle East etc. the government spies on us to "keep us safe", and everyday in my class someone brings up how bad everyone's financial shit is. Is there any reason, at all, for anyone to be optimistic, about the future of the world? or are we all just screwed?


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## cypocraphy (Oct 27, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

The worlds always been fuckin' crazy. Would you rather have fought in World War I, or died of the bubonic plague, or shit yourself during the Cuban missile crisis? I think things will be fine.


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## teheviltwin (Oct 27, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

We're overdue for an influenza pandemic. If it's a highly pathogenic one it could kill off a billion or two. This will mean a sudden abundance of housing, jerbs and resources for a few generations. So you never know what the world will be like in a few years.


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## Picklepower (Oct 27, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

I actually have been reading  about the plague alot lately, and that makes me think, "Well at least we aren't there anymore." I just worry for the kids, who knows what the future will hold for them, I am not worried about my own safety or anything though. But in a lot of ways also, things are better off now then in the past, so I shouldn't feel too negative.


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## The Hunter (Oct 27, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

As an American, I don't give a shit about politics anymore. All I care about is what's happening around me and how I can make it a better experience. "Ugh, but the world is so shitty and awful people live in America!" Yeah? Well that's their problem and they're probably like that because they're pessimists themselves.


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## Mourning Dove (Oct 27, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

I think every country has its own problems and benefits. It depends on perspective. For instance, even though the United States is supposedly the country of great opportunity and equality, it still has a horrible clinical depression/unhappiness rate among its citizens!


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## Surtur (Oct 27, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

People are getting smarter, quality of life is going up, people are treating the environment better, people are living longer. Not sure whats wrong here.


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## Mourning Dove (Oct 27, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

Also, I think the media (at least in the United States) just likes to focus on the tragedies and problems in the world. This makes news viewers more unhappy/pessimistic in turn.


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## Picklepower (Oct 27, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*



			
				Mourning Dove said:
			
		

> Also, I think the media (at least in the United States) just likes to focus on the tragedies and problems in the world. This makes news viewers more unhappy/pessimistic in turn.



Yeah that's right. That's what sells apparently.


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## Pikonic (Oct 27, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*



			
				Mourning Dove said:
			
		

> Also, I think the media (at least in the United States) just likes to focus on the tragedies and problems in the world. This makes news viewers more unhappy/pessimistic in turn.


It only seems worse because we learn about every bad thing, I think we're better off than say 100 years ago.


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## QI 541 (Oct 27, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

The world's always been shit.  It's actually gotten much better over time, even if we're only one nuclear war away from wiping ourselves out.


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## teheviltwin (Oct 27, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*



			
				Picklepower said:
			
		

> I actually have been reading  about the plague alot lately, and that makes me think, "Well at least we aren't there anymore." I just worry for the kids, who knows what the future will hold for them, I am not worried about my own safety or anything though. But in a lot of ways also, things are better off now then in the past, so I shouldn't feel too negative.



I always find it interesting that people cite the bubonic plague rather than the Spanish Influenza. I suppose the Black Death is a cooler name but the 1918 H1N1 bird flu virus infected 500 million people and killed somewhere between 50 and 100 million whereas the plague killed 25 million. In WW1, at one point, it was more likely for an American soldier to die before he even reached the trenches because so many were taken out by that virus.


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## Some JERK (Oct 27, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

If you make it to 30 without being brutally murdered, sold into slavery, or dying horribly from a nasty infection, then you've already lived a far better life than 99% of the humans that pre-dated you. 

There was a scene in a zombie movie or something where this chick is going off about how maybe her kids would be better off dead since the world was now constant danger and struggle. It really pissed me off because i know some people would actually think that way. For the longest time that's exactly what life WAS: constant danger and struggle. Broken legs and deep cuts were death sentences, people got dragged off by roving groups of animals (or other people) and nobody ever saw them again. Your teeth were a ticking time bomb that were probably just going to rot out of your head, get infected, and then kill you. 

I'd say that despite all the bad shit going on today, we live in a far better world than we used to.


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## Niachu (Oct 27, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

It's human nature to focus on the negative, and if you can worry about that it means your basic needs (food, water, shelter, safety) have been met. That's not a bad thing. I despaired like that myself for awhile, so that's why I'm becoming more and more active to be a force for good.


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## Some JERK (Oct 27, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

Not to mention that if you ate today, yesterday and the day before, you've pulled off a hat trick that even a lot of people alive today would be envious of.


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## c-no (Oct 27, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*



			
				Picklepower said:
			
		

> Mourning Dove said:
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As some might say "If it bleeds, it leads." Honestly, I wonder if there is any news within U.S. media that focuses on the positives within the world.


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## Hollywood Hulk Hogan (Oct 27, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

Ya know something, brother? There is plenty of reason to be optimistic in humanity. As long as there are people are fighting for what they believe it, as long as there are people are fighting for the rights of every man, as long as there are people who will take a stand when it all comes crashing down, then you gotta be optimistic. There's plenty of Hulkamaniacs out there ready for a new world. Ready for a change in the world for the better. As these people have children and raise their own little Hulksters, the evil in this world will not succeed. For every evil person that is out there, there is a person training, saying their prayers and eating their vitamins, ready to step up and stop them. 
And ya know something else, brother? Those evil people are just cowards, man. They've never had to face good man to man before. And don't even think that evil will defeat the Hulkamaniacs, man. Hulkamaniacs are survivors. They are ready. They are prepared to take them down. And just like when the Hulkster faced Andre the Giant, managed by Bobby the Weasel Heenan, I must ask you, evil men out there, WHATCHA GONNA DO, BROTHER, WHEN ALL THE HULKAMANIACS OF THE WORLD, DESTROY YOU?!?!!


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## Kamen Rider Black RX (Oct 27, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

My guiding principle in life is that there is no such thing as perfection. I'm not being pessimistic with this, quite the opposite actually. Because nothing is perfect, that means there is always room for improvement. With that improvement, we advance as a society and live better lives. We learn, we grow, we survive. And that is what I think should be celebrated.

(Now if only I could explain this to Chris).

I'm just going to give you one of my favorite examples of this, the first World War. When it broke out, people looked forward to it and thought they would be home for Christmas. That war, with all it's atrocities, removed a lot of the romanticism from war and moved people more towards seeking peaceful resolution. Humanity became better because of it.


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## bradsternum (Oct 27, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

I don't believe that people are inherently good, but I do believe everyone has the potential to be good. I just try to be positive, and kind to most people. Except Jews. Obviously.


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## Zim (Nov 1, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

Life in general is not so bad. In fact for most of us, who don't live in 3rd world crap piles, we have it pretty good. People just like to think everything's going to hit the fan while they're alive because they want to think they're special. In their minds, the end of life as we know it will, without a doubt, happen during their life time. They want to get that "I Survied ____" t-shirt that makes them stand out from the next generation who didn't have to suffer like they did. They want things to go south so they can justify themselves.


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## Foulmouth (Nov 2, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

Shit Yes !!! This time in history is the best ever to be alive in terms of food,housing,water,energy,entertainment,-damn near everything really.
I figure a lot of the gloom comes from the media (who sell doom&gloom). I'm fairly old and in my life I've seen it go global warming, ozone layer, acid rain, nuclear accidents, nuclear war, global starvation,
 and you know, every one of these has turned out to be blown out of proportion scaremongering bullshit !
As long as your lucky enough to be born outside the third world you're doing good.
Pardon my rant , pet hate of mine.


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## Holdek (Nov 4, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*



			
				Picklepower said:
			
		

> Just that, America is full of unrest, shit is still going on within the Middle East etc. the government spies on us to "keep us safe", and everyday in my class someone brings up how bad everyone's financial shit is. Is there any reason, at all, for anyone to be optimistic, about the future of the world? or are we all just screwed?



To paraphrase Penn Jillette, on the long scale of things, it's always the best it's ever been, and people always think it's the worst it's ever been.


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## Wall of Originals (Nov 12, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

More and more gay and lesbian couples are able to marry in the United States and English Parliament has moved forward with marriage equality. As a woman, I am able to vote, something my ancestors couldn't do 4 generations ago. I am faithful in the human race, we have come so far in such a short time.


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## Da Pickle Monsta (Nov 12, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

The best part of the human race is that it will eventually go extinct.


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## Niachu (Nov 12, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*



			
				Da Pickle Monsta said:
			
		

> The best part of the human race is that it will eventually go extinct.



Why?


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## Holdek (Nov 12, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*



			
				Da Pickle Monsta said:
			
		

> The best part of the human race is that it will eventually go extinct.



It might, but it probably won't.


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## c-no (Nov 12, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*



			
				Holdek said:
			
		

> Da Pickle Monsta said:
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That would probably be the case. As much as we tear each other apart either in the name of nation, God, or some other reason, we also help each other either as well.


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## Da Pickle Monsta (Nov 12, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

Oh, we're all going to die eventually, as a race.  Maybe because of plague, or meteors, or war, or we evolve into something else, but eventually the sun's going to expand into a red giant and then it's bye, Earth.  And if that doesn't wipe us out, the eventual heat death of the universe certainly will.

As for our current affairs . . . well, sorry, I'm a pessimist.  We talk about how far medicine has come, but how many people don't receive life-saving treatments because they can't afford it?  This is a world were slavery and genocide are everyday concerns in many parts of the world.  In the 10, 000 years that humanity has walked the Earth, concepts like suffrage, racial and gender equality, and access to education have emerged as inalienable rights in only the last 250.  We've come far, that's true; but too many people have suffered and died for selfish reasons for me to consider us an "enlightened" race.


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## Hollywood Hulk Hogan (Nov 12, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*



			
				Da Pickle Monsta said:
			
		

> Oh, we're all going to die eventually, as a race.  Maybe because of plague, or meteors, or war, or we evolve into something else, but eventually the sun's going to expand into a red giant and then it's bye, Earth.  And if that doesn't wipe us out, the eventual heat death of the universe certainly will.



Don't you worry about that, brother. You are forgetting that Hulkamania is the most powerful force in the universe, man. As long as there are Hulkamaniacs training, saying their prayers and eating their vitamins, man, you got nothing to worry about.


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## QI 541 (Nov 14, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*



			
				Da Pickle Monsta said:
			
		

> Oh, we're all going to die eventually, as a race.  Maybe because of plague, or meteors, or war, or we evolve into something else, but eventually the sun's going to expand into a red giant and then it's bye, Earth.  And if that doesn't wipe us out, the eventual heat death of the universe certainly will.



I vote on war, if only because of the huge arsenal of nukes that currently exist and the amount of crazy people in the world.


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## Da Pickle Monsta (Nov 14, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

I remember reading that Earth is past due for a mass extintion event.  My money's on asteroid strike or super volcano.


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## Holdek (Nov 14, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*



			
				Da Pickle Monsta said:
			
		

> I remember reading that Earth is past due for a mass extintion event.  My money's on asteroid strike or super volcano.



It's possible, but the probability is extremely small.


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## Smokedaddy (Nov 15, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*



			
				Holdek said:
			
		

> Da Pickle Monsta said:
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When Yellowstone blows, I'm going to be sitting the back porch of my fortified compound in Jackson, sipping a cold one and watching the fireworks.


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## Holdek (Nov 15, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*



			
				Smokedaddy said:
			
		

> Holdek said:
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Is the back porch fortified?


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## Dork Of Ages (Nov 15, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

Jesus, people. Of course there's a reason for humanity to be opmistic. We can laugh at Chris!    

To be serious though, I don't really mind if humanity finds a stupid reason to explode everything sky high or Emanuel God give us the Final Middle Finger. It's more probably that shit will likely happen after we're dead. So I always keep a positive outlook on my current life and try to improve it in any way or method possible. Because, as the popular saying goes, You Only Live Once. So I always long to experience new stuff, because that's one beauty of human nature. Experience.


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## Da Pickle Monsta (Nov 17, 2013)

*Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*

You know, today I was having a rotten day.  But I went out to the store, and when I got home, I found my three-year-old daughter pretending to give her baby doll a bottle and humming a lullaby.

. . . and maybe, for just a little while, humanity can look just a little brighter.


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## Anonimo (Jul 10, 2014)

I've been worried about the future of the human race...when I hear about x cities will be underwater in about 100 years, I dread the thought of never being able to show my children or grandchildren certain parts of the world. I also dread thousands of years of culture going up in smoke. I'd be able to sleep better at night if I knew that part of our culture will be preserved should we ever leave Earth. I like the idea of seeing a new Globe Theatre, Guggenheim, Library of Congress, etc. being built in whatever part of our universe we end up in to ensure that at least some of our art and literature will be preserved. On one hand, I like the idea of traveling to a new world ala the Kryptonians or Starfleet, but if we end up colonizing new worlds, I worry that history will repeat itself, but then we'd all be dead before any of that happens I imagine.

I've read about methods scientists have thought up to cut carbon emissions, but I figure the governments are more concerned with one-upping each other and getting elected for the sake of status rather than actual contributions. Then there's the issue of money. We need those cocaine laced greenbacks love it or hate it, and I feel like they are one of the things that can impede society in some ways. This brings me back to my bit about colonizing other planets, in that only the rich will probably be able to go while most of us are just left to die.

Then I look to myself. Even if I could go green, I'm just one man. I'm not a scientist, and I wasn't very good at science in school. Is it selfish that I want to follow my dream of working in stage or film, industries which are practically predicated on environmental destruction? I like trains and railroading, and those aren't any better. I'm not a scientist, and I feel like I would just be someone with good intentions who became corrupted if I went into politics. Should I throw myself into a field I'm not good at in the hopes that I may get better, or should I follow my own path? Listening to the words of gloom and doom environmentalists, whether they practice what they preach or not, it just leaves me depressed at the end of the day like I am now...I only have one life, so which do I choose?


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## Hróðvitnisson (Jul 10, 2014)

In reply to the titular question - no.


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## Niachu (Jul 10, 2014)

Hróðvitnisson said:


> In reply to the titular question - no.



Why?


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## The Knife's Husbando (Jul 10, 2014)

Whenever I'm feeling down about the universe- _in tota- _I watch & listen to this:






This gives me hope. For us all. If the myriad people of the world can join together in the simple act of dancing together in happiness, then their is something worth fighting for in this life, after all.


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## A-Stump (Jul 10, 2014)

Nuclear weapons are actually an incredibly useful deterrent for any country that possesses the capabilities and vice versa. Any military mind knows that a land invasion into any major country possessing them means that they can launch and destroy your entire civilization. It's why Russia hasn't gone into full scale war with America and same for America; The Cold War was both sides itching to empty their silos at each other and you'd have to be one suicidal motherfucker to do that. 

Anyways with that in mind the future seems OK. The US is sitting on a wealth of valuable resources; Fields and fields of fertile land, many minerals, fossil fuel, some of the most powerful minds in the world (the US actually 'brain drains' other countries by taking their specialists away), easily accessible advanced technology, infrastructure which a lot of people bitch about but which is perfectly functional and always being worked on. The future looks pretty groovy.


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## Marvin (Jul 11, 2014)

Anonimo said:


> I've been worried about the future of the human race...when I hear about x cities will be underwater in about 100 years, I dread the thought of never being able to show my children or grandchildren certain parts of the world. I also dread thousands of years of culture going up in smoke. I'd be able to sleep better at night if I knew that part of our culture will be preserved should we ever leave Earth. I like the idea of seeing a new Globe Theatre, Guggenheim, Library of Congress, etc. being built in whatever part of our universe we end up in to ensure that at least some of our art and literature will be preserved. On one hand, I like the idea of traveling to a new world ala the Kryptonians or Starfleet, but if we end up colonizing new worlds, I worry that history will repeat itself, but then we'd all be dead before any of that happens I imagine.
> 
> I've read about methods scientists have thought up to cut carbon emissions, but I figure the governments are more concerned with one-upping each other and getting elected for the sake of status rather than actual contributions. Then there's the issue of money. We need those cocaine laced greenbacks love it or hate it, and I feel like they are one of the things that can impede society in some ways. This brings me back to my bit about colonizing other planets, in that only the rich will probably be able to go while most of us are just left to die.
> 
> Then I look to myself. Even if I could go green, I'm just one man. I'm not a scientist, and I wasn't very good at science in school. Is it selfish that I want to follow my dream of working in stage or film, industries which are practically predicated on environmental destruction? I like trains and railroading, and those aren't any better. I'm not a scientist, and I feel like I would just be someone with good intentions who became corrupted if I went into politics. Should I throw myself into a field I'm not good at in the hopes that I may get better, or should I follow my own path? Listening to the words of gloom and doom environmentalists, whether they practice what they preach or not, it just leaves me depressed at the end of the day like I am now...I only have one life, so which do I choose?


Society wouldn't exist without money.

Also, the human species is not leaving the solar system.

But yeah, we're doing very well. Always moving forward.


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## StallChaser (Jul 11, 2014)

Anonimo said:


> I've been worried about the future of the human race...when I hear about x cities will be underwater in about 100 years, I dread the thought of never being able to show my children or grandchildren certain parts of the world. I also dread thousands of years of culture going up in smoke. I'd be able to sleep better at night if I knew that part of our culture will be preserved should we ever leave Earth. I like the idea of seeing a new Globe Theatre, Guggenheim, Library of Congress, etc. being built in whatever part of our universe we end up in to ensure that at least some of our art and literature will be preserved. On one hand, I like the idea of traveling to a new world ala the Kryptonians or Starfleet, but if we end up colonizing new worlds, I worry that history will repeat itself, but then we'd all be dead before any of that happens I imagine.
> 
> I've read about methods scientists have thought up to cut carbon emissions, but I figure the governments are more concerned with one-upping each other and getting elected for the sake of status rather than actual contributions. Then there's the issue of money. We need those cocaine laced greenbacks love it or hate it, and I feel like they are one of the things that can impede society in some ways. This brings me back to my bit about colonizing other planets, in that only the rich will probably be able to go while most of us are just left to die.
> 
> Then I look to myself. Even if I could go green, I'm just one man. I'm not a scientist, and I wasn't very good at science in school. Is it selfish that I want to follow my dream of working in stage or film, industries which are practically predicated on environmental destruction? I like trains and railroading, and those aren't any better. I'm not a scientist, and I feel like I would just be someone with good intentions who became corrupted if I went into politics. Should I throw myself into a field I'm not good at in the hopes that I may get better, or should I follow my own path? Listening to the words of gloom and doom environmentalists, whether they practice what they preach or not, it just leaves me depressed at the end of the day like I am now...I only have one life, so which do I choose?



Underwater cities?  Take your kids scuba diving.  But yeah, global warming won't be pretty if we don't do something soon.  Not human extinction bad, but redraw all the maps for agriculture and habitability bad.  There will be a lot of refugees.

We won't be leaving the solar system for a very long time, if ever.  Even if really fucked up earth, it would be easier to adjust it back rather than terraform an entire new planet light years away.  It wouldn't be until the sun starts fusing He into C and swallows up the inner planets, and that's like billions of years away.  Who knows what the life forms on earth will even look like by then.

As for yourself, do what you're good at.  If you care about the earth, try to put that message into your acting.  Don't do something you dislike or are bad at because you think you're "supposed to."  You're not.


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## Anonimo (Jul 12, 2014)

StallChaser said:


> Underwater cities?  Take your kids scuba diving.  But yeah, global warming won't be pretty if we don't do something soon.  Not human extinction bad, but redraw all the maps for agriculture and habitability bad.  There will be a lot of refugees.
> 
> We won't be leaving the solar system for a very long time, if ever.  Even if really fucked up earth, it would be easier to adjust it back rather than terraform an entire new planet light years away.  It wouldn't be until the sun starts fusing He into C and swallows up the inner planets, and that's like billions of years away.  Who knows what the life forms on earth will even look like by then.
> 
> As for yourself, do what you're good at.  If you care about the earth, try to put that message into your acting.  Don't do something you dislike or are bad at because you think you're "supposed to."  You're not.





Marvin said:


> Society wouldn't exist without money.
> 
> Also, the human species is not leaving the solar system.
> 
> But yeah, we're doing very well. Always moving forward.


The more I think about it, it's more that I'm aware of these issues, but acknowledge that I'm only a small dust speck in the grand scheme of things. When I read articles about what people like Stephen Hawkwing or scientists say about how our planet is doomed, then I'm redirected to articles written by some more puritanical speakers with holier than thou attitudes. I look at my own life style and I feel bad because enjoying things that give me pleasure is basically saying "fuck you" to my next of kin. My parents switched our TVs to flatscreens, we throw out our trash instead of getting recycling bins, we eat meat, we're going to take a plane to Orlando for a vacation next month like we have since before I was born, our house relies on electricity, and yet we use those "trendy" twisty light bulbs. My parents and my brothers are aware of these issues, but when I bring them up at the dinner table, they tell me I need to take these things with a grain of salt. And it's not like I can just convert my house to solar power overnight, trade in my mom, dad's and my brother's cars for electrics or hybrids.

Then there's population issues that will come up. I'd like to have at least one child, but then I know that I'll only be contributing to overpopulation, however small that may be. I've thought about adopting, but then I'd need to come to grips with knowing that no matter how close the child is to me, he/she is not my real child. I feel like I can't do much of anything without feeling guilty about something. When I hear about things like this, couple it with depression, and my mind goes to some dark places. I don't want to continue a family line knowing that when the land masses become smaller, the refugees will break out into a war with the natives for territory that they may end up being plunged into.

These people have lead me to believe that the only way I can do anything to help is to kill myself or deprive myself of all pleasure, and turn my back on civilized society to live in the wild.  I once attempted suicide(albeit for different reasons) and I don't plan on going through with it. I'm too firmly rooted in my lifestyle to just change it that drastically. I want to live life, but I feel like if I'm not worrying about these issues and taking everything to heart, then it means I'm a terrible person. Am I overthinking things? Should I just dismiss some of these speakers as "cry wolfs"? Should I listen to them at all? Should I live my life for me or for other people, and does it make me evil if I choose the former?


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## theshak (Jul 12, 2014)

Picklepower said:


> Just that, America is full of unrest, shit is still going on within the Middle East etc. the government spies on us to "keep us safe", and everyday in my class someone brings up how bad everyone's financial shit is. Is there any reason, at all, for anyone to be optimistic, about the future of the world? or are we all just screwed?


The planet has not been hit with a meteor? That's A reason .


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## Niachu (Jul 12, 2014)

Anonimo said:


> The more I think about it, it's more that I'm aware of these issues, but acknowledge that I'm only a small dust speck in the grand scheme of things. When I read articles about what people like Stephen Hawkwing or scientists say about how our planet is doomed, then I'm redirected to articles written by some more puritanical speakers with holier than thou attitudes. I look at my own life style and I feel bad because enjoying things that give me pleasure is basically saying "fuck you" to my next of kin. My parents switched our TVs to flatscreens, we throw out our trash instead of getting recycling bins, we eat meat, we're going to take a plane to Orlando for a vacation next month like we have since before I was born, our house relies on electricity, and yet we use those "trendy" twisty light bulbs. My parents and my brothers are aware of these issues, but when I bring them up at the dinner table, they tell me I need to take these things with a grain of salt. And it's not like I can just convert my house to solar power overnight, trade in my mom, dad's and my brother's cars for electrics or hybrids.



Oh boy, you're asking me to rant.

There are always small things you can do, it just takes effort. Buy a recycling/compost bin or set your recyclables (plastics, glass, paper, batteries, electronics, plastic bags) aside and take them somewhere appropriate, don't buy stuff with micro plastics in them, take shorter showers, eat less meat, walk more, buy a reusable water bottle, shut off any lights/electronics when you're not using them, etc...

If your family is saying to take things with a grain of salt...well, that's just being lazy, pure and simple. When someone says that it's an excuse to not think about things too hard.

You may ask yourself if it's not enough, but you'll know that you're doing what YOU can not to contribute to the many environmental issues caused by people. When Stephen Hawking and others spell gloom and doom they always say "if things continue the way they are." I think people are starting to get the message, but obviously not fast enough for everyones' good. All of us wiping ourselves out before we ever get off the planet is a very real possibility, but that's not to say there aren't those who are doing what they can. I'm involved with several sustainability programs where I live, so I do take this to heart.

As for the overpopulation thing, most of the babies are coming from places like sub-Saharan Africa where we can't enforce any birth control laws. The population is on the decline in many western societies. If we wanna do something about the population it's seeing through that women have equal rights in places where they don't and rebuilding infrastructure in poor countries with lots of civil unrest. People have lots of babies when the babies don't have a great chance of survival (not an issue in developed countries) and educated, empowered women put off having kids and have less of them.

If you're still having existential worries...all I can say is enjoy life but enjoy it responsibly. Do what you think is best for others. No matter how powerless you feel, aspire to leave life on a high note instead of a low one.


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## Marvin (Jul 12, 2014)

Anonimo said:


> The more I think about it, it's more that I'm aware of these issues, but acknowledge that I'm only a small dust speck in the grand scheme of things. When I read articles about what people like Stephen Hawkwing or scientists say about how our planet is doomed, then I'm redirected to articles written by some more puritanical speakers with holier than thou attitudes. I look at my own life style and I feel bad because enjoying things that give me pleasure is basically saying "fuck you" to my next of kin. My parents switched our TVs to flatscreens, we throw out our trash instead of getting recycling bins, we eat meat, we're going to take a plane to Orlando for a vacation next month like we have since before I was born, our house relies on electricity, and yet we use those "trendy" twisty light bulbs. My parents and my brothers are aware of these issues, but when I bring them up at the dinner table, they tell me I need to take these things with a grain of salt. And it's not like I can just convert my house to solar power overnight, trade in my mom, dad's and my brother's cars for electrics or hybrids.
> 
> Then there's population issues that will come up. I'd like to have at least one child, but then I know that I'll only be contributing to overpopulation, however small that may be. I've thought about adopting, but then I'd need to come to grips with knowing that no matter how close the child is to me, he/she is not my real child. I feel like I can't do much of anything without feeling guilty about something. When I hear about things like this, couple it with depression, and my mind goes to some dark places. I don't want to continue a family line knowing that when the land masses become smaller, the refugees will break out into a war with the natives for territory that they may end up being plunged into.
> 
> These people have lead me to believe that the only way I can do anything to help is to kill myself or deprive myself of all pleasure, and turn my back on civilized society to live in the wild.  I once attempted suicide(albeit for different reasons) and I don't plan on going through with it. I'm too firmly rooted in my lifestyle to just change it that drastically. I want to live life, but I fell like if I'm not worrying about these issues and taking everything to heart, then it means I'm a terrible person. Am I overthinking things? Should I just dismiss some of these speakers as "cry wolfs"? Should I listen to them at all? Should I live my life for me or for other people, and does it make me evil if I choose the former?


Environmental issues are _purely_ a practical problem, and only because of the environment's relevance to humanity.

Growing up, whenever I heard about various animals going extinct or being threatened, I felt sad. Like environmental advocates really crank up the emotional aspect of stuff like that (it's good way to sell their views, of course). But now that I think about it a bit more, it's really silly to get emotional about it. The whole idea of evolution _is_ extinction. Every species today exists because it beat out tons of other branches on their evolutionary tree.

Sure, there are practical reasons why we want to keep an eye on threatened species, just because it might fuck up natural resources we might need. Or maybe they're pretty to look at, like in zoos. Otherwise, you shouldn't give a shit.

Plus, it's a large scale issue. Unless you're wanting to get a phd on a particular large scale issue, don't worry about large scale issues. I'm in the US, I'm one out of 300 million people. My obligation to the country on large scale issues is a function of my authority and how many of me there are. I'm not the director of the EPA or anything like that, so I split up responsibility with 300 million other people. (Of course, the size of my obligation, while small, is not zero. I do pay my obligation by being politically active.)

If you vote and recycle, don't worry about it.



Niachu said:


> There are always small things you can do, it just takes effort.


Heh, sometimes that effort isn't worth it.


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## Holdek (Jul 17, 2014)

A-Stump said:


> Nuclear weapons are actually an incredibly useful deterrent for any country that possesses the capabilities and vice versa. Any military mind knows that a land invasion into any major country possessing them means that they can launch and destroy your entire civilization. It's why Russia hasn't gone into full scale war with America and same for America; The Cold War was both sides itching to empty their silos at each other and you'd have to be one suicidal motherfucker to do that.



The problem is when things like the Cuban Missile Crisis or the Yom Kippur War happen and countries go on hair-trigger alert and then it just takes a mistaken signal or frayed nerves to start a nuclear back-and-forth that can't be stopped.  During the Cuban Missile Crisis two Soviet officers on a submarine thought that American depth pings were a prelude to a torpedo launch, so they gave the launch order for nukes to be fired at Miami.  Only the third officer on the sub stopped it with his veto power.

Or hell, just accidents, like when the Russians thought a meteor shower was an American ICBM launch prepared to launch a second strike.


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## LordCustos3 (Jul 25, 2014)

Picklepower said:


> Just that, America is full of unrest,


Take it from someone old....the current unrest is a pale shadow of the unrest of the past. We are living soft lives.



Picklepower said:


> shit is still going on within the Middle East etc.


The "Holy Land" has been a violent shithole since the Dark Ages. The current unrest there is neither new nor special. The intensity level of the unrest seems to be pretty constant.



Picklepower said:


> the government spies on us to "keep us safe",


This is also not new. Read up on how intrusive the FBI used to be under J. Edgar Hoover. We are merely getting as bad as it USED to be back then.



Picklepower said:


> and everyday in my class someone brings up how bad everyone's financial shit is.


Sure, it sucks....but it isn't "Great Depression" levels of suck.



Picklepower said:


> Is there any reason, at all, for anyone to be optimistic, about the future of the world? or are we all just screwed?


Just think about this:
100,000 years ago, we had lifespans that barely made it into double digits. The ones who ended up as sabre-toothed tiger shit were the lucky ones.
5,000 years ago, the best you could hope for was a thatched roof hut to keep out the rain. Until barbarians came along and burned it and you to the ground.
2,000 years ago, nearly everyone was a peasant who lived off of 400 calories a day in a world that had no deodorant or soap.
500 years ago, people still thought slavery was a wonderful idea and the only cure for a headache was beheading.
100 years ago, There was no such thing as refrigeration, air-conditioning or recorded music.
45 years ago, people wore bellbottoms and muttonchop sideburns unironically. 

Any complaints we have nowadays are the whiny bleatings of the soft and over-indulged.
Life used to be a miserable wretched abyss of boiling sewage....
Nowadays its an inconvenient gully full of oily bilgewater.

You don't know how good you have it.


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## Niachu (Jul 25, 2014)

LordCustos3 said:


> Any complaints we have nowadays are the whiny bleatings of the soft and over-indulged.
> Life used to be a miserable wretched abyss of boiling sewage....
> Nowadays its an inconvenient gully full of oily bilgewater.
> 
> You don't know how good you have it.



The "no one is allowed to complain, ever" stance isn't helpful, nor does it indicate awareness of how human psychology works. People always want something better. If we didn't, no one would have it as good as we have today.

Single mothers who can barely provide for their kids because they aren't making a living on minimum wage while prices for food and rent go up every year aren't being whiny because they don't have it as bad as mothers who had their babies picked off by lions 200,000 years ago. College kids stuck with crippling debt aren't "over-indulged" just because there are people their age in other countries who have no hope of an education.  

Not saying we should take our comparatively comfortable lives for granted, or that it's not stupid that there are many, many who do. But with an advanced society comes certain expectations, like a government that doesn't spy on us, huge corporations that don't exploit their workers, etc. Everyone has expectations society sets for them or ones we set for ourselves, and we get upset when those aren't met.

Now, I'm talking about the issues like the financial crisis, environmental destruction, human rights abuses...if you were talking about the kind of people who get mocked here, then I'm not arguing.


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## LordCustos3 (Jul 26, 2014)

Niachu said:


> The "no one is allowed to complain, ever" stance isn't helpful.



If that was the message you heard, that you misheard me.
I'm not saying "stop complaining" or "it can be sooooo much worse."
I'm saying that life in the modern age is a vast improvement over how things used to be.
This is something to be both heartened and proud of. We have accomplished to much, and have so much potential. Sure, most of that potential is wasted; but all it takes is a quick reconnoiter of how bad things used to be to see reasons to be optimistic. *Its two steps back, and three steps forward.*
OP asked "Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all?" to which I resoundingly say "Yes!"


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## niggers (Jul 26, 2014)

trying to find patterns in broken glass op

the world is rudderless. there were no good times and no bad times. just times.

if you want a goal just hope the singularity happens before you die and you merge with the machine-god


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## Niachu (Jul 26, 2014)

LordCustos3 said:


> If that was the message you heard, that you misheard me.
> I'm not saying "stop complaining" or "it can be sooooo much worse."
> I'm saying that life in the modern age is a vast improvement over how things used to be.
> This is something to be both heartened and proud of. We have accomplished to much, and have so much potential. Sure, most of that potential is wasted; but all it takes is a quick reconnoiter of how bad things used to be to see reasons to be optimistic. *Its two steps back, and three steps forward.*
> OP asked "Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all?" to which I resoundingly say "Yes!"



I agree. Interesting to think of how the people that lived centuries, even decades ago couldn't conceive of how things would improve, you know? Heck, if you told middle school me all the stuff I'd be able to do with my phone in just eight years I wouldn't have believed it.


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## LordCustos3 (Jul 26, 2014)

Niachu said:


> I agree. Interesting to think of how the people that lived centuries, even decades ago couldn't conceive of how things would improve, you know? Heck, if you told middle school me all the stuff I'd be able to do with my phone in just eight years I wouldn't have believed it.



Too true.
Case in point.....here's Patton Oswalt talking about his mp3 player:
https://ia700409.us.archive.org/12/...ssIsStrong/12Obama...AndTimeTravel...AndC.mp3


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## Hyperion (Jul 26, 2014)

With people like me running around reproducing no I don't think we should be optimistic.


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## ToroidalBoat (Aug 4, 2014)

The Olduvai theory could kick in and we revert to a preindustrial lifestyle after a probably brutal transition, so in the end it kind of works out if you're a fan of "the good old days." Or, given how much things have overall vastly improved since preindustrial times, especially in health care and sanitation, it may be a bumpy road there, but the future could get brighter overall with advanced technology. So I say there's still some optimism.


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## LordDarkrai (Aug 11, 2014)

I admit I still have negative thoughts myself, it flares up randomly. Each time, I know that it's not the way to spend any day. I want to believe people have potential within to become great. That's why I came up with ways to combat my negative thoughts by self-improvement, to find something within that can make a difference in someone's life.


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## Pickle Inspector (Aug 13, 2014)

Picklepower said:


> Just that, America is full of unrest, shit is still going on within the Middle East etc. the government spies on us to "keep us safe", and everyday in my class someone brings up how bad everyone's financial shit is. Is there any reason, at all, for anyone to be optimistic, about the future of the world? or are we all just screwed?


I think so, if only for technological advancements, I mean they've got to the point they can make artificial skin/blood vessels in labs and can use 3d printers to print bones and even organs, those last two things just happened this year so in the near future if you have organ failure you'll be able to go get a doctor to just print another one off for you.

This image might cheer you up.


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## wheat pasta (Aug 14, 2014)

Da Pickle Monsta said:


> *Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*
> 
> I remember reading that Earth is past due for a mass extintion event.  My money's on asteroid strike or super volcano.


I know this is an old post of yours so apologies for that, but my theory is that humanity _is_ the mass extinction event. Sure, some people are treating the planet better but there's so many hundreds of thousands of millions of people who are not. Many species in the ocean are dying out due either to pollution or overfishing, our rainforests are being destroyed and the animals within are running out of habitat and poaching is still a huge thing in a lot of places. For instance, we'll probably lose tigers soon as well as tuna fish and some species of crab. 
Even just in America where we're supposedly more enlightened than other countries, there is an astounding number of people who do not engage in any recycling practices whatsoever, which I think should be punishable by at least a fine in this day and age. There shouldn't be any excuse for that kind of negligence.

Okay, that was awfully preachy of me and I'm sorry. Just had to get it out there.


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## Marvin (Aug 14, 2014)

wheat pasta said:


> I know this is an old post of yours so apologies for that, but my theory is that humanity _is_ the mass extinction event. Sure, some people are treating the planet better but there's so many hundreds of thousands of millions of people who are not. Many species in the ocean are dying out due either to pollution or overfishing, our rainforests are being destroyed and the animals within are running out of habitat and poaching is still a huge thing in a lot of places. For instance, we'll probably lose tigers soon as well as tuna fish and some species of crab.
> Even just in America where we're supposedly more enlightened than other countries, there is an astounding number of people who do not engage in any recycling practices whatsoever, which I think should be punishable by at least a fine in this day and age. There shouldn't be any excuse for that kind of negligence.
> 
> Okay, that was awfully preachy of me and I'm sorry. Just had to get it out there.


But... there's not any inherent value in the selection of species we have. I mean, maybe they're nice to go look at in zoos, but just out in the wild? They're unnecessary if they can't survive. That's evolution and it happens constantly. Humanity is just a branch of our evolutionary tree that hasn't died out yet.


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## Burned Man (Aug 14, 2014)

I find it interesting that humanity can be such a catalyst for survival of the fittest while at the same time refusing that concept within humanity. I mean, human presence can have such adverse effect on wild life and cause their destruction and that's nature. And at the same time humans do what they can to prevent anyone dying if they can help it. Humans continue to pass harmful genetics because of medical care and the less harsh nature of existence these days allows a wider group to survive. Also the future of Human evolution seems to be in human hands baring some kind of global catastrophe. The future for humanity seems to be pretty bright.


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## wheat pasta (Aug 14, 2014)

Marvin said:


> But... there's not any inherent value in the selection of species we have. I mean, maybe they're nice to go look at in zoos, but just out in the wild? They're unnecessary if they can't survive. That's evolution and it happens constantly. Humanity is just a branch of our evolutionary tree that hasn't died out yet.



There's some truth in that, I was mostly speaking about humanity as an extinction event. We're causing a lot of species to die out just by existing, expanding and so on. I dunno, it's something I ruminate on a lot but I'm just a dumb kid who hasn't gone out into the world yet, so there's that also


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## Marvin (Aug 14, 2014)

wheat pasta said:


> There's some truth in that, I was mostly speaking about humanity as an extinction event. We're causing a lot of species to die out just by existing, expanding and so on. I dunno, it's something I ruminate on a lot but I'm just a dumb kid who hasn't gone out into the world yet, so there's that also


We're a species too. The intelligence that we've developed helps the human species survive and beat out other species. Intelligence is just like claws or sharp teeth or anything else that helps you win against competing groups.


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## BT 075 (Aug 14, 2014)

There's a reason to stay optimistic, always! No one likes a Negative Nancy or a Pessimistic Peter. Sobbing about how we're all going to die isn't helping anyone. Sure we'll die, sure we'll see our fair share of natural disasters and wars. Sure there's misery ahead, but there's also joy to be had. 

For the past month-and-a-half I have lived in a third world country. I have seen poverty, hunger. An elderly relative crying when I bought him a new pair of glasses allowing him to see. They have it much worse then I ever did and yet they keep their heads up and make the most of it. I'll die a happy man knowing I have been able to help at least a few of them. The world will still suck balls for far too many people, but that's just the way the world works. 

You don't have to carry the weight of the whole world on your shoulders. Just, do what Michael Jackson did (besides the fiddling) and look at the man or woman in the mirror. Be excellent to each other, have fun, and don't always be so damn gloomy. Won't do anyone any good, least of all yourselves.


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## exball (Aug 15, 2014)

Satan said:


> There's a reason to stay optimistic, always! No one likes a Negative Nancy or a Pessimistic Peter. Sobbing about how we're all going to die isn't helping anyone. Sure we'll die, sure we'll see our fair share of natural disasters and wars. Sure there's misery ahead, but there's also joy to be had.
> 
> For the past month-and-a-half I have lived in a third world country. I have seen poverty, hunger. An elderly relative crying when I bought him a new pair of glasses allowing him to see. They have it much worse then I ever did and yet they keep their heads up and make the most of it. I'll die a happy man knowing I have been able to help at least a few of them. The world will still suck balls for far too many people, but that's just the way the world works.
> 
> You don't have to carry the weight of the whole world on your shoulders. Just, do what Michael Jackson did (besides the fiddling) and look at the man or woman in the mirror. Be excellent to each other, have fun, and don't always be so damn gloomy. Won't do anyone any good, least of all yourselves.


Good guy Lucifer.


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## citizenoftheinternet (Aug 15, 2014)

Satan said:


> There's a reason to stay optimistic, always! No one likes a Negative Nancy or a Pessimistic Peter. Sobbing about how we're all going to die isn't helping anyone. Sure we'll die, sure we'll see our fair share of natural disasters and wars. Sure there's misery ahead, but there's also joy to be had.
> 
> For the past month-and-a-half I have lived in a third world country. I have seen poverty, hunger. An elderly relative crying when I bought him a new pair of glasses allowing him to see. They have it much worse then I ever did and yet they keep their heads up and make the most of it. I'll die a happy man knowing I have been able to help at least a few of them. The world will still suck balls for far too many people, but that's just the way the world works.
> 
> You don't have to carry the weight of the whole world on your shoulders. Just, do what Michael Jackson did (besides the fiddling) and look at the man or woman in the mirror. Be excellent to each other, have fun, and don't always be so damn gloomy. Won't do anyone any good, least of all yourselves.



I recall reading an article (I forget when/where) that stated the citizens of poorer countries tend to be happier than those of more prosperous. I think what it boils down to is perspective; people living in poverty look at little improvements to their quality of life as blessings.

Your story about the glasses reminded me of a picture of a guy using plastic bottles for shoes-- and he couldn't have looked happier if he tried.


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## Holdek (Aug 19, 2014)

citizenoftheinternet said:


> I recall reading an article (I forget when/where) that stated the citizens of poorer countries tend to be happier than those of more prosperous. I think what it boils down to is perspective; people living in poverty look at little improvements to their quality of life as blessings.


From what I've read, money has a positive relationship to happiness, but only up to the point where security and needs are met.  Then it plateaus.  

Bhutan, of all places, has pioneered a Gross Domestic Happiness index or somesuch.  Bhutan is a happy country even though it's "poor," but it also is stable and the citizens mostly have what they need.  They don't have much luxury but they have good family lives and other intangibles.


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## Grand Number of Pounds (Aug 19, 2014)

They say earning about $75,000 a year in the US is what you need to be happy. I don't remember who said that or how they came to that conclusion, but that's what I heard.


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## Holdek (Aug 20, 2014)

Marvin said:


> But... there's not any inherent value in the selection of species we have. I mean, maybe they're nice to go look at in zoos, but just out in the wild? They're unnecessary if they can't survive. That's evolution and it happens constantly. Humanity is just a branch of our evolutionary tree that hasn't died out yet.


I posted "disagree" on this.  However, I believe an explanation is in order:



Spoiler: TL;DR



I agree with you fundamentally that there is no inherent value to the species we have (actually, I don't believe that is an inherent value to _anything_, but I digress), but, the  value of the selection of species we have _to us as humans _can  be calculated in terms of what they provide us as people.

Overfishing, for example, means eating sushi will likely become a thing of the past at some point, and will result massive economic losses for industries based around it, from fishing to restaurants.  And, many people enjoy seeing animals in their native habitat in addition to, or rather than, in zoos.  They enjoy birding, or seeing animals when they are out camping and such.

And, most importantly, while you are correct that extinction is, and always has been, happening, the _rate _of extinction has gone up dramatically since the Agricultural Revolution.  That has caused problems for humans.  The Nazca civilization collapsed after they made virtually extinct a particular species of tree in order to make room for cropland, not realizing, or not sufficiently appreciating, that that tree created and preserved the water table that the population depended on for irrigation and drinking, and also prevented the soil erosion that ironically ultimately caused massive crop failure.  So, my primary worry is that when you pluck one species that seems relatively unimportant from an ecosystem, it turns out to be a lynchpin that holds together the means for humans to survive.  Colony collapse disorder is scary as shit to me for this reason.



I don't really get the attachment to preserving the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge from oil drilling, because who the hell goes on vacation to northeast Alaska?  But when animal extinction portends human extinction (or, at least, the extinction of a particular civilization), I do Not care for it.  Basically we need to be careful and not dismiss out of hand as "tree hugging" or "snail darter hysteria" alarms about plant and animal extinction.


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## Marvin (Aug 20, 2014)

Holdek said:


> I posted "disagree" on this.  However, I believe an explanation is in order:
> 
> 
> 
> ...


People are using emotional triggers to get people to support their cause. And on a large scale, that's exactly what they should be doing to achieve their goals. It's definitely an effective way to go about it.

But when I'm talking to people personally, like I'm doing here, I've gotta point out that the emotional stuff doesn't make a good argument. If you can't point to a specific benefit or detriment to people, it's not a good argument.

So, yeah, I got an email about CCD and insecticides, asking me to sign a petition or donate or something. And I did sign the petition (or whatever they were asking for). I did it because bees are extremely important to agriculture (and thus humans), and it would be worthwhile to postpone approving the insecticide until we can get a better idea of its effects. But I felt kind of annoyed by this email, because while I agreed with their underlying premise, the email was full of things like "IT'S A LETHAL INSECTICIDE" and similar bullshit. But, like... it's lethal _to insects_, which is exactly its purpose.

As far as destroying ourselves by killing our environment... I'm not terribly worried about that. Like, if the environment is fragile enough to fall like that, then that might just be what ends us. We'd be just another extinct civilization (or species). Just like the Nazca, we don't have infinite knowledge. We are always at the current limit of our knowledge in keeping ourselves alive.

(Also, CCD isn't really an environmental issue. It's more related to farmed bees.)


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## geronimo_smith (Aug 20, 2014)

What we've got going for us:

We haven't completely fucked ourselves so far.

We're living better lives than ever before due to the industrial revolution and there's no sign of that slowing down.
American hegemony is relatively benevolent and has generally been pretty good at promoting economic grown and discouraging armed conflict.
What we've got going against us:

We've never had the ability to completely fuck ourselves until now. How do we know we won't now that we do?

The Industrial Revolution only happened 200 years ago -- that's only a blip in the grand scheme of things. There's no reason why it would continue indefinitely.
America won't last forever and there's no guarantee that it won't be replaced by savages. The Roman empire only lasted 500-600 years before being replaced by hoards of barbarians and Arabians. (Imagine what those people could have done with nuclear weapons.)
So overall I'm going with a major societal collapse. Maybe not for another 500 years, but things can't stay this way forever.


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## exball (Aug 21, 2014)

Best case scenario Star Trek. Worst case scenario Fallout.


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## IwegalBadnik (Aug 22, 2014)

Holdek said:


> I don't really get the attachment to preserving the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge from *oil drilling*, because who the hell goes on vacation to northeast Alaska?  But when animal *extinction* portends human extinction (or, at least, the extinction of a particular civilization), I do Not care for it.  Basically we need to be careful and not dismiss out of hand as "tree hugging" or "snail darter hysteria" alarms about plant and animal extinction.



There is great irony in the discussion of oil drilling and extinction of animals--in that extinction is a common theme. The fact that many people still cling to that obsolete technology at the expense of creatures' existences is something that can really dampen optimism. 

We can only hope there is new reason for hope and optimism brought by other means and developments.


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## Holdek (Aug 22, 2014)

IwegalBadnik said:


> There is great irony in the discussion of oil drilling and extinction of animals


Heh, and also, massive extinction events caused the oil to form in the first place.


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## The Dude (Sep 13, 2014)

Honestly, I'm not optimistic about humanity. The world is a mad, fucked up place. There is beauty in the madness, but it's still mad. I fully expect for most societies to collapse and everything to extend into chaos. Don't forget, there are still 16,500+ nuclear weapons in the world. Despite the face that the Cold War is over and the Soviet Union is dead (longer than some forum members have even been alive) a thermonuclear war can still happen in a number of ways. The super volcano under Yellowstone could erupt at any time, sending our world into a new ice age. We could be hit by an asteroid or rogue pulsar star at any time. So many things can, and will, eventually happen to destroy our race...it's all a matter of "when". But, I don't let that get me down. I'll live my life the best I can until the day I (or we all) die. That's all any of us can do.


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## Johnny Bravo (Sep 13, 2014)

My philosophy is hope for the best but prepare for the worst. Take time out to appreciate the little things that make you happy.


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## Jaimas (Nov 29, 2014)

*Humanity as a whole is fucking awesome.*

Yeah, we've fucked up a lot. Yeah, we've made constant mis-steps, we've screwed things up, we've done bad, and we've suffered for it, but through it, our best traits shine through. There's a common thread people are starting to recognize. There's better things out there, and people are learning from one another, growing. Political parties are becoming less important, and common humanity in spite of disagreements is starting to reign. We're leaving behind stupider ideologies, and we're improving ourselves.

We have a lot to fight through, a lot of stupid we have to face, and a lot of bad shit to come in our path, but through that, we'll trudge, because we're fucking humanity and we fucking _rule_ at that shit. We're getting better. We're getting stronger. 

There's a lot out there to look forward to, so take a sip and let's enjoy that shit.


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## exball (Nov 29, 2014)




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## Olhelm (Dec 10, 2014)

*Dude, what?*

Of _course_ you should be optimistic. In the great scheme of things you may be tiny, but here, and now? You're massive. On your fingertips right now is the largest compilation of knowledge we've ever created. In your home you have warmth, food, and a life. You have friends that are willing to lend an ear for any problem you may have.

Do you mess up? Yes. Do you destroy? Occasionally, even if it is unintentional. But that's the glory of being human. *Mistakes lead to success.* This is true for almost anything, from evolution to a video game (or video games about evolution). You hold the potential for greatness in your each and every cell. Your brain, the most complex piece of machinery in the world, can compute at such a rapid pace minute information, that you have the capacity to learn and benefit your fellow man. The world itself is bent to serve you, and all one needs to do is reach out and grab the fruits.

*Humanity is only decades away from solar travel.  Humanity is only years from an efficient hydrogen engine.  And you, one of the many members of humanity, are only seconds away from doing something amazing.*


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## Rammspieler (Dec 23, 2014)

I dunno. Maybe we won't cause our own extinction right away. But there may always be prejudice, inequality, ignorance and all around nastiness towards others. That's why I've been thinking about asking within my atheist group about how realistically possible would it be to kickstart the construction of our own little interstellar ark. I think it would be awesome to think of the possibilities of building a new civilization from scratch and away from the negative influences of the old one. Project Ascension, anyone?


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## Pine Tar (Jan 2, 2015)

Why the hell shouldn't we be optimistic? All these problems? We're on the verge of solving them or at least beginning to understand them. The ozone hole is closing, but you don't hear anyone talk about that. You don't hear a lot about all the species that humanity has brought back from extinction either.
All those deer that get hit by cars? 100 years ago, deer almost went the way of the Carolina parakeet, but hunters and conservationists brought them back. And as the world overall gets more prosperous, the desire for war goes down. I mean, you don't exactly see a huge anti-war movement in Congo, right? And the biggest threat to immediate world security is CWCville with nukes.

I believe in humanity because I'm a human. We ought to give ourselves more credit.


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## AppleChrisp (Jan 4, 2015)

Yes.  Optimism --> wellbeing --> increased quality of life --> human flourishing.


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## Konstantinos (Jan 6, 2015)

I'm generally torn between being a bitter cynicist and a determined optimist. On one hand, the world has always been batshit and war-torn and there have always been horrible people. On the other hand, there's art and philosophy and great architectural works and other meaningful things that humanity has produced that almost validate its existence. There have also been lots of people that are pretty cool too.

I don't know really. I can't say. We ought to get an outside opinion on whether humanity has any worth or not.


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## Jomadre (Feb 4, 2015)

With the exception of pollution, the human condition is literally better than it's ever been worldwide.  Poverty and hunger rates worldwide have been dropping like a paralyzed falcon worldwide.  We are more peaceful and less warlike than we ever have been.  (The pockets of radical islam?  Irrelevant.  Go read up about the Seljuk Turks and you'll see how far the muslims have fallen exactly, both in military might and warlike tendencies).  People are smarter and healthier than ever worldwide.  We are literally having a golden age.

Don't believe me?  Turn off the news and live your life for a while.  The news is paid for by people that want you to be scared.  Some is liberally biased, some is conservatively biased, but all of them want you scared of the world.


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## WhoWantsStancakes (Feb 16, 2015)

I might be biased since I tend to be paranoid, but the only real things that worry me are pollution and the threat of Nuclear attacks, but the latter seems very unlikely.


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## YI 457 (Feb 16, 2015)

We're closer to world peace. We have better and better technology and shit every day. People are more educated. And I can learn/read/watch/listen to whatever shit exist just because of the internets. There are major problems, moral dilemmas and challenges. But we come from the 20th century. We fucked up badly, but we are here to stay. The end.


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## geewizz (Feb 17, 2015)

My girlfriend likes to note sometimes how optimistic I am, even when shit is tumbling down. I think it's all a matter of perspective. I like to think of it like this.

- We have the greatest feat humanity is likely to ever achieve in the next few hundred years or so whirring away in front of us. Ignorance in the first world is truly a choice now thanks to the beautiful marriage of the internet and the PC, both of which are improving every single day. Faster, bigger and more capable. Nothing I can think of in the last 100 years has been more important to humanities progress. We can use it to open up the world to ourselves, or use it to laugh about the antics of an Autistic man living 3400 miles away!
- Food has never been more widely available, safe, cheap or interesting in the western world.
- Medical technology is advancing faster than ever before. My baby niece is alive and well today thanks to recent medical advances allowing surgeons to repair a valve in her heart at just 3 weeks old.
- Energy production technology now means that even the most basic of bitches can generate power anywhere in the world, in the UK scientists have developed solar sheeting that actually works better in cloudy weather that can be produced faster than cheaper than conventional solar arrays.

Technology has the power to save us from ourselves before it's too late. If ignorance, greed and fear are the true enemies of humanity then technology is our redemption. The future's bright motherfucker.  We're always going to have problems, overpopulation and resource scarcity are just around the corner, but seeing as only 100 years ago they were still treating patients with leeches and 200 years ago burning people for witchcraft I think we're going to be ok.

and hey if none of that floats your boat, just remember we'll soon have the spray on condom. We can fuck like George and Jane Jetson! How cool is that?


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## Holdek (Apr 25, 2015)

Interesting story I heard today about insecticides and wild bees: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/20...alth-new-pesticide-studies-rev-up-controversy



Rammspieler said:


> I dunno. Maybe we won't cause our own extinction right away. But there may always be prejudice, inequality, ignorance and all around nastiness towards others. That's why I've been thinking about asking within my atheist group about how realistically possible would it be to kickstart the construction of our own little interstellar ark. I think it would be awesome to think of the possibilities of building a new civilization from scratch and away from the negative influences of the old one. Project Ascension, anyone?


You would just take with you those negative influences and they would flourish anew in that civilization.  To use the ark metaphor, after the flood waters receded humans turned just as shitty as they were before.

Your efforts would be better spent contributing to a Secular Humanist project that can help change things on Earth, IMO.



Pine Tar said:


> Why the hell shouldn't we be optimistic? All these problems? We're on the verge of solving them or at least beginning to understand them. The ozone hole is closing, but you don't hear anyone talk about that. You don't hear a lot about all the species that humanity has brought back from extinction either.
> All those deer that get hit by cars? 100 years ago, deer almost went the way of the Carolina parakeet, but hunters and conservationists brought them back. And as the world overall gets more prosperous, the desire for war goes down. I mean, you don't exactly see a huge anti-war movement in Congo, right? And the biggest threat to immediate world security is CWCville with nukes.
> 
> I believe in humanity because I'm a human. We ought to give ourselves more credit.


Humans are by nature negative creatures.  We probably evolved that mentality as a survival mechanism.


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## ASoulMan (Apr 25, 2015)

While we are and will be facing issues such as climate change, overpopulation, terrorism, and political corruption, if you look back in the past, we've been through much worse. Today is a much brighter world compared to the old days. People are living longer, there are better living conditions, we are thriving in a global economy, and technology has done wonders in the past decades. We have also become more conscious about animal species that are endangered or are in danger of becoming extinct within the next 20 years or so.  We are looking for better ways to gather fuel in a way that we don't hurt the environment so much.

Compare the world as it is now to the world back during a time such as the 1800's, the Great Depression, and WWII, we've came so far as a species. The difference is literally night and day.


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## autisticdragonkin (Dec 6, 2015)

The future isn't made by those who complain about the way things are but rather by those who see a way to make things better and act upon it
Optimism or pessimism is irrelevant, what's relevant is determination to follow through on one's aspirations


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## Cave (Dec 10, 2015)

Yes. If we lose optimism and hope, then we're doomed. 

"Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul - and sings the tunes without the words - and never stops at all." - Emily Dickinson.


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## ChuckSlaughter (Dec 14, 2015)

Picklepower said:


> Just that, America is full of unrest, shit is still going on within the Middle East etc. the government spies on us to "keep us safe", and everyday in my class someone brings up how bad everyone's financial shit is. Is there any reason, at all, for anyone to be optimistic, about the future of the world? or are we all just screwed?


People just want you to believe that shit in order to control you.  In reality the world is peachy keen compared to where humanity has spent most of it's existence.    The only thing to be afraid of is pussies and their puppetmasters.


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## systemlord_baal (Jan 6, 2016)

Life expectancy and  quality goes up, technology grows more and more advanced, so yeah, doesn't look that bad to me.


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## The Fool (Jan 6, 2016)

Well I was literally going to say what AppleChrisp said. Humans function better when they're happy, optimism is self-optimizing behavior.

I've always practiced and believed in being optimistically realistic. People like hearing and talking about the negative, and some people dismiss that and choose to only see the positive. Being realistic, and viewing a subject from all points of view, is the best method for preparing for the future and making decisions. Pessimism throws off judgement a lot worse than optimism does, since it causes one to focus on a single issue more than optimism, so I prefer to be optimistically realistic. Plus, it's just better for my heart.

As sad as pessimism is, it forces people to do things. People don't invent or move because they think it would be nice, they do it because they believe it has to happen or they'll die (physically, socially, spiritually, metaphysically, whatever). It always has been and still is a critical element of our species. We're designed to look at a problem right in our face and fix it. Which is probably why there's so many whiny people today, the only problems left for the average joe are superficial ones. Well okay, I know people have always been like that, but I just like complaining.

And here's a quote from George Shaw because I was reading some of his quotes the other day:

“Both optimists and pessimists contribute to society. The optimist invents the aeroplane, the pessimist the parachute.” ― George Bernard Shaw


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## AnOminous (Jan 7, 2016)

The Fool said:


> Well I was literally going to say what AppleChrisp said. Humans function better when they're happy, optimism is self-optimizing behavior.



My personal opinion is if the majority of people want to do something, it is probably stupid and self-destructive.

And I say let them do it anyway because lol.


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## Oglooger (Jan 7, 2016)

autisticdragonkin said:


> The future isn't made by those who complain


/thread


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## Cave (Jan 7, 2016)

Cynicism is a useless emotion.

Optimism can make change.


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## Segue (Jan 8, 2016)

Cave said:


> Cynicism is a useless emotion.
> 
> Optimism can make change.



There is such a thing as healthy skepticism, which can often be attributed to general cynicism. If we were optimistic about everything all the time then nobody would see any reason for anything to change.


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## Mecha-Lenin (Jan 8, 2016)

I am not in the mood to get on with the details of this, admittedly, complex and _important _topic. But I will say this:

There is a difference between *optimism *and *hope*. The Italian writer, activist, and Marxist, Antonio Gramsci, is said to have coined to term "Pessimism of the intellect, optimism of the will." This is a saying I hold very close to my heart. It means that you must always understand_ just how incredibly difficult_ the challenges ahead are.... _without falling into a fatalism. _

I think that attitude is pertinent here, regardless of your politics. In my personal opinion, I _think _our failure as a species is likely. That said, I strive and fight every day, in conversation with others, in my workplace, on the streets, in the polls... to work towards a vision for a better world. It is with an anger for the injustices of the current world, and a love and respect for humanity, that pushes me to fight against what I, personally, see as a slide into doom.

I humbly submit that such an attitude is the only rational and viable way to move forward. Judge that as you will.


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## JU 199 (Jan 9, 2016)

It's an interesting thought. A cynical mentality tends to leave people without the means to make positive change or enjoy life. BUT there's an opposite to cynicism and I believe it's just as corrosive: Blind, stupid optimism- the kind not really founded in reality and felt as a way of ignoring serious issues. 

We can say we've faced wars that's were worse and terrible disasters (natural and man-made). Innovations providing a life a relative comfort and technology our ancestors would consider magic in their day are now common place. While this is all true, it doesn't do anything to minimize the problems that we'll face as a species soon, they are an order of magnitude larger than most people realize. 


Our flavor of capitalism is beginning to fall apart under it's own contradictions. Structures ranging from the financial system to global trade and wage allocation are deeply broken and the political establishment doesn't seem to notice or care. Resesions will become more commonplace and growth deeply unbalanced, uneven and short lived.


Middle East Islam will not drop Wahhabism any time soon, nor we get better at containing it. The slow drip of Islamic terrorism will not cease for the foreseeable future. 


The environment will not be favorable to us soon. Something that I've always found curious is how protecting the climate is framed. It doesn't matter if a poor, sweet polar bear dies. It's about our ability to grow food easily and predictably. All it takes to damage those efforts is small changes to the overall climate. Suddenly places that received predictable rainfall don't get any, or suddenly dry area's become flooded. This is quite dangerous and has the potential to cause catastrophic food shortages.  


Overpopulation exacerbating all of the above


Government corruption (Far worse in america than on my side of the water)


Worst of all, our complacency towards these problems. There are no quick fixes or easy answers. They require thought and effort.

It's the general population's ignorance on these issues that worries me. Optimism is ok, even necessary to be a healthy person. In my eyes it's becoming a way to ignore large structural problems that are very hard to fix and carry massive negative consequences. With more public scrutiny of these issues they would be addressed much quicker.


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## nad7155 (Jan 9, 2016)

Ass Manager 3000 said:


> It's the general population's ignorance on these issues that worries me. Optimism is ok, even necessary to be a healthy person. In my eyes it's becoming a way to ignore large structural problems that are very hard to fix and carry massive negative consequences.



Human nature.

Deal with it.


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## UselessRubberKeyboard (Jan 10, 2016)

Humanity is just another form of life on a planet that's seen millions of them come and go.  It's difficult when you're part of a species to see outside of this and recognise just how small and temporary we are.  The history of this little rock we live on is enormous compared to our species.  Whether we have hope for our future or not means sod all, really.

But then again, we still have to get by as we're here, so I'm with what @Mecha-Lenin said on this one.


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## Asandy31 (Jan 10, 2016)

Not for the next 360 years, but as soon as the Vernal point enters into Aquarius things should start to get better


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## ActualKiwi (Jan 10, 2016)

Given that there's a chan sub called /deadchild/ where pedoforks get off to dead children, I think all hope is lost.


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## UselessRubberKeyboard (Jan 11, 2016)

ActualKiwi said:


> Given that there's a chan sub called /deadchild/ where pedoforks get off to dead children, I think all hope is lost.



I really don't want this to be true, but, yeah.  It is, isn't it?

Sod everything.


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## ActualKiwi (Jan 11, 2016)

UselessRubberKeyboard said:


> I really don't want this to be true, but, yeah.  It is, isn't it?
> 
> Sod everything.


I would link to it, but I hate that I've seen some of the contents myself (thanks to our 8chan pedo thread) and wouldn't wish reading it on anyone else.


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## The Fool (Jan 11, 2016)

Pardon me if this sounds a little atsimu but I always got a little upset when people discount the countless works from charities, doctors, firemen, nurses, and every little hero who saved a kitten or put a bandaid on a wounded child, all because there's a few creepy people on the internet. It's very disheartening. I really don't care if there's one guy who jerks it to dead kids if there's 100 people who spend 23 hours a day in a hospital keeping old people company.


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## Connor Bible (Feb 21, 2016)

The Fool said:


> Pardon me if this sounds a little atsimu but I always got a little upset when people discount the countless works from charities, doctors, firemen, nurses, and every little hero who saved a kitten or put a bandaid on a wounded child, all because there's a few creepy people on the internet. It's very disheartening. I really don't care if there's one guy who jerks it to dead kids if there's 100 people who spend 23 hours a day in a hospital keeping old people company.


I agree. It's easy to see the negatives amongst the countless positives. There are fucked up people in this world, but for every 8chan denizen there are at least a handful of decent police officers, nurses, and so on that legitimately want to do good and help others. I believe Mr. Rogers said to look for those who are helping, not hurting. You'd be surprised.


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## Dr. Boe Jangles Esq. (Feb 21, 2016)

I think that the world might be 100% fucked, but that's no reason not to be optimistic. 
No part of what's affecting the country is in any way under your control. You couldn't influence or change any part of it if you tried. In the face of that, what use is pessimism? If it really all is completely fucked, why concern yourself with it? 
I think that one of the best parts of the world is that it's enormous and you're incredibly insignificant in the face of it all, so you don't really have to worry about it. The world isn't going to get any better or worse if I just kick back, relax, have a barbecue and enjoy life.
So yeah, things have kinda gone to hell, but I'm anticipating a nice lunch, and the latter is more interesting to me at the moment.


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## nad7155 (Feb 21, 2016)

Connor Bible said:


> I believe Mr. Rogers said to look for those who are helping, not hurting. You'd be surprised.




Life is not a classic PBS children's show with finger puppets.

BTW, I am proud of you staying out of your thread.  Keep it up!


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## Kazami Yuuka (Feb 21, 2016)

Well, I've a couple of reasons why optimism will trump pessimism:

Petroleum production is beginning to level out, while alternative energy sectors are soaring
Rural populations are declining, and urban populations are increasing, and the former ruralmen (ideally) are able to pursue jobs in growing sectors
Food production continues to increase, and the efficiency and sustainability of agriculture also are increasing
They aren't _perfect_ reasons for optimism (and maybe somewhat inaccurate), but they do show that there is _security_ in the future.


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## Joan Nyan (Mar 8, 2016)

Donald Trump is my reason to be optimistic.


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## ActualKiwi (Mar 9, 2016)

Jon-Kacho said:


> Donald Trump is my reason to be optimistic.


You poor, deluded soul..


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## autisticdragonkin (Mar 12, 2016)

I cannot say that there is a reason for humanity to be optimistic but I can say that I see reason to continue onwards myself simply because I know that I have nothing to lose at this point in my life by taking such risks


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## Ariel (Jun 12, 2016)

Kind of OT, but I was 16 when 9/11 happened so I was aware of the world enough to remember what it was like. 
Most people weren't really sure what Islam was at that time, you couldn't just look up the wikipedia page to find out. I remember minor mentions of fears over people attacking muslims in retaliation. In general people just wanted to see Osama Bin Laden blown to pieces and the Taliban wiped out. If twitter had existed then the people trying to pretend it wasn't connected to religion would have been squashed and ridiculed off the internet.


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## AnOminous (Jun 13, 2016)

Ariel said:


> Kind of OT, but I was 16 when 9/11 happened so I was aware of the world enough to remember what it was like.
> Most people weren't really sure what Islam was at that time, you couldn't just look up the wikipedia page to find out. I remember minor mentions of fears over people attacking muslims in retaliation.



The kind of people who would do that shit were generally so fucking dumb they attacked Sikhs instead.


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## Ariel (Jun 13, 2016)

AnOminous said:


> The kind of people who would do that shit were generally so fucking dumb they attacked Sikhs instead.


Oh yeah thats true. 
We weren't used to this kind of thing happening then. The 90s were really peaceful after 1991 when you think about it. We had one big massacre in Australia, USA had Waco and OKC, Japan had the sarin attacks. A war in the Balkans and an attack on an embassy in Africa from memory.


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## Skeletor (Jun 13, 2016)

Ariel said:


> Kind of OT, but I was 16 when 9/11 happened so I was aware of the world enough to remember what it was like.
> Most people weren't really sure what Islam was at that time, you couldn't just look up the wikipedia page to find out.



Sorry, but as an oldfag, I gotta say that everyone knew what Islam was at the time. Like, every other movie had Islamic terrorists trying to nuke America, only to be stopped by Steven Segal. Like, the Islams tried to bomb WTC back in 1993 with a Ryder truck.


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## *Asterisk* (Jun 13, 2016)

Ariel said:


> Oh yeah thats true.
> We weren't used to this kind of thing happening then. The 90s were really peaceful after 1991 when you think about it. We had one big massacre in Australia, USA had Waco and OKC, Japan had the sarin attacks. A war in the Balkans and an attack on an embassy in Africa from memory.


This isn't true at all.

The 90s were a hideously violent decade. It was inevitable due to the power vacuum and weapons proliferation that resulted from the fall of the USSR, as well as several other brutal governments whose terror both held back and instigated future violence. But it ought not to be forgotten that behind the glitz of the web boom lay an awful lot of corpses.

Russia was engulfed by the Bratva, and crime topped even the horrors of the US in the 70s. The US itself was still under the thrall of the crack crisis, which we resolved with the same brutal policing and chilling prison sentences which now leave us with entirely new problems we're nowhere close to resolving. Worst of all, North Korea deliberately went through a famine that topped even the Great Leap Forward and Ethiopia in devestation all so the cockroaches who run the Hermit Kingdom could retain their absolute power.

Wars in Africa caused the sort of suffering the planet hadn't seen since the 40s: including the Algerian Civil War Osama and his buddies played a part in; the Liberian Civil War which had Syria-level casualties; the Rwandan War and Genocide, and the Congo Wars it helped exacerbate. The Second Congo War was so expansive in scope, it attracted involvement from countries all over the continent and left between two and five million dead. More than any war since the Fall of the Axis.

Islamofascism wasn't as poisonous as it is in modern times, I'll grant. But the 90s had a lot more ghild and a lot less gold than people like to remember.


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## DuskEngine (Jun 13, 2016)

*Asterisk* said:


> This isn't true at all.
> 
> The 90s were a hideously violent decade. It was inevitable due to the power vacuum and weapons proliferation that resulted from the fall of the USSR, as well as several other brutal governments whose terror both held back and instigated future violence. But it ought not to be forgotten that behind the glitz of the web boom lay an awful lot of corpses.
> 
> ...



There was also the Ayodhya bombing and the subsequent communal violence, the Rodney King riots, the intensification of the FARC/ELN conflict, the Sierra Leone civil war. I have no idea what @Ariel is talking about tbh


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## *Asterisk* (Jun 13, 2016)

DuskEngine said:


> There was also the Ayodhya bombing and the subsequent communal violence, the Rodney King riots, the intensification of the FARC/ELN conflict, the Sierra Leone civil war. I have no idea what @Ariel is talking about tbh


There was a substantial degree of relief provided by the end of the Cold War, the fall of the USSR, and the boom of easy dotcom money. Especially for those of us in NATO and the Anglosphere, it was easy to ignore the underbelly with how good the times were rolling in our favor. 

Hell, I was born in '92, and I didn't even know the Cold War was a thing until after 9/11, let alone the grizzly specifics. I know I'm far from the only one who remembers things as brighter before the Twin Towers fell.


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## DuskEngine (Jun 13, 2016)

*Asterisk* said:


> I know I'm far from the only one who remembers things as brighter before the Twin Towers fell.



That's true for everyone. Even the people who celebrate it, I'd wager.


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## Ariel (Jun 13, 2016)

*Asterisk* said:


> There was a substantial degree of relief provided by the end of the Cold War, the fall of the USSR, and the boom of easy dotcom money. Especially for those of us in NATO and the Anglosphere, it was easy to ignore the underbelly with how good the times were rolling in our favor.
> 
> Hell, I was born in '92, and I didn't even know the Cold War was a thing until after 9/11, let alone the grizzly specifics. I know I'm far from the only one who remembers things as brighter before the Twin Towers fell.


It should be clear that I meant it in terms of things that had an effect on the west and japan.


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## Ntwadumela (Jun 13, 2016)

Bullshit happens everywhere. This however does not mean we don't have good in the world. The media preys upon catastrophic events like a rabid pack of dogs, and this leads to people having this perspective on the world. Good things will always come in the end, and it'll be even better if you chip-in on them to make the world a better place. That way we can make a difference.


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## QI 541 (Jun 13, 2016)

Humanity fucked up hard enough to cause two world wars.  It's only a matter of time until the third, and this time everyone has nukes.


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## darkstar0854 (Jun 13, 2016)

The following is my (rather optimistic) opinion:

If you look hard enough, you can see many genuinely nice people who want the best for everybody. If anything, we should be optimistic for those people, to make sure they do not become disillusioned with humanity, as that is one of the saddest things of all.

If you do feel like you have no friends, only enemies, live to spite them until you find a better reason to live.


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## autisticdragonkin (Jun 13, 2016)

I see no reason to think that humanity will die out in the next few centuries


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## feedtheoctopus (Aug 20, 2016)

"We Are not afraid of ruins. We who ploughed the prairies and built the cities can build again, only better next time. We carry a new world in our hearts. That world is growing this minute." - Buenaventura Durruti.


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## Ebola (Aug 20, 2016)

Has anyone ever wondered why they were born and are alive now, or why humanity even exists right now, when the odds of such an event occurring are not even possible to calculate? If you are reading this, you beat all the odds and you will continue to do so. The only reason why we exist right now is because we were forged with the potential to overcome all limitations. If we lacked this potential, we wouldn't be here discussing anything. Evolution would have culled us long before we gained our current level of self-awareness.

I would not worry excessively about the future of humanity. To overcome every perceptible problem and limitation, we have all the time in the multiverse.


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## Generic_username (Aug 20, 2016)

Picklepower said:


> Is there any reason, at all, for anyone to be optimistic


Don't worry lad the world has it ups and downs. Just remember we survived all this years without any technology until recently. The human race is made to last.


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## DoctorJimmyRay (Aug 30, 2016)

Given that we haven't extincted ourselves thru nuclear, biological, or chemical warfare yet, I think we have a good shot at surviving until we can colonize other planets.  As good a shot that any sapient species like us has when it comes to all the dangers every scientific advance brings.  Let's just hope that this "great filter" doesn't off us just yet.


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## Jan_Hus (Aug 30, 2016)

Yeah, I'd say we have cause to be optimistic. I want to point to two very destructive wars, The Thirty Years War and WWI. The catalyst for the Thirty Years War was a man getting tossed out of a window a high window and landing in manure. The assassination of the Archduke kicked off WWI. Fast forward to the modern era. There's a nasty civil war brewing in Syria and other parts of the Middle East. There's also two rather trigger happy countries with their hands in the mess. Both of these countries have strongman leaders with a cult of "machismo" surrounding them. I'm speaking of Turkey and Russia. Around a year ago, (I think, not sure on the specifics) Turkey downed a Russian jet for violating its airspace. One pilot was killed, and the world held their breath... The Russians responded with sanctions and sternly worded letters. That's staggering frankly. Less than a century ago, this would have resulted in both sides firing up their alliances and warring with each other. So, I'd say we have good reason to be optimistic!


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## Innocuous (Aug 30, 2016)

I can think of more reasons for people to be optimistic rather than pessimistic.


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## Mexican_Wizard_711 (May 29, 2022)

Nope


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## Angry Alt Right Nerd (May 29, 2022)

This thread aged well


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## LocalAnimeTard (Jun 4, 2022)

_I'm going to update OP's post for 2022, it's extremely in need of an update being around 9 years old_

Just that, America is full of unrest, shit is still going on within the Middle East etc. the government spies on us to "keep us safe", and everyday in my class someone brings up how bad everyone's financial shit is. Is there any reason, at all, for anyone to be optimistic, about the future of the world? or are we all just screwed?


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## Don't Tread on Me (Jun 4, 2022)

teheviltwin said:


> *Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*
> 
> We're overdue for an influenza pandemic. If it's a highly pathogenic one it could kill off a billion or two. This will mean a sudden abundance of housing, jerbs and resources for a few generations. So you never know what the world will be like in a few years.


This comment hits different in 2022


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## Skitarii (Jun 4, 2022)

God loves you OP, don't worry about the pedos who run society, they'll have eternity to pay


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## JokahBaybee (Jun 7, 2022)

teheviltwin said:


> *Re: Is there any reason for humanity to be optimistic at all*
> 
> We're overdue for an influenza pandemic. If it's a highly pathogenic one it could kill off a billion or two. This will mean a sudden abundance of housing, jerbs and resources for a few generations. So you never know what the world will be like in a few years.


>2013


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## bot_for_hire (Nov 13, 2022)

I enjoy watching the world burn and this is all I have to say.


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## MachoMan (Nov 13, 2022)

We survived the Coof pandemic only to get hit harder with the troon pandemic which so far has shown to be far more virulent.


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## Wesley Willis (Nov 13, 2022)

The global population is about peak so we can stop scurrying like rats for simple resources.


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## CAPTAIN MATI (Nov 13, 2022)

Imagine living in modern day and being depressed.
Pure loserism.


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## urr13 account (Nov 13, 2022)

It's not all bad we can still take some joy in vaxxfags whining about all the health problems they are getting from the jab, laugh at goofy maskfags and their retarded face diapers. 

And we aren't too far from people bragging about how they eat bugs to "own the chuds". Planet of the Lolcows incoming.


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## wtfNeedSignUp (Nov 13, 2022)

Humanity evolved by getting his ass genocided repeatedly and learning a tiny bit each time. Anyone looking at simple economic and social turmoil and thinking that's the end is a massive faggot


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## Boyd McVoid (Nov 20, 2022)

Maybe not optimistic, but grateful. The fact we live is already a miracle in some way, who needs optimism when we have a present.


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## Secret Messages (Dec 9, 2022)

No, on a long enough timescale all matter will be reduced to the basic parts it is built from and there will be no trace that anything ever existed at all. Therefore, all endeavors are ultimately meaningless. Nigger.


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## Angry Alt Right Nerd (Dec 10, 2022)

Of course, you need to look at the big picture, our lives are much better compared to people who were born in the 1500s, you should stop complaining and be grateful with what you have, at least you're not a starving child in Africa.


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## Apex Ralphamale (Dec 10, 2022)

No, there is no reason to be optimistic. Nothing matters anymore. What you're describing is people finding themselves in the margins of the shift, but none of it matters because the trajectory of said shift is nigh-impossible to reverse. 

The decay of civilization as a whole - not just western civilization - is for all intents solidified. Too many jobs - too many people's livelihoods depend on the machine. The meatgrinder needs to be kept running at all costs and making that happen will require feeding one race into it after the other until all sentient life on earth has come to an end. What's coming is idiocracy and hyperinflation. Companies failing to produce anything and kept alive only on paper through increasingly colossal issuance of fiat currency. 
You want to know what the future looks like? It's not the centralized cyberpunk shit most people imagine, that will come to exist but it will only last for like 20 years, at most 30 years and that's a very generous estimate. It's trillionaires with an average IQ of 50 living in huts built from scrap metal salvaged from old world ruins, who can't use their trillions of dollars or euros to buy anything, not even basic stable foods for lack of anyone producing such staple foods. The factories processing the bugs people are so afraid of eating will long have collapsed due to the people operating them making retarded mistakes and the personnel qualified to repair them or build new ones won't exist. 
The only way for the trillionaire savages to feed themselves is to go to war with neighbouring communities, slaughtering their inhabitants and cannibalizing them. 

Barren wastelands inhabited by pitch-black savages who do nothing all day except kill and eat each other. This is the future we're moving towards, slowly but steadily. And short of a miracle of the "spontaneous global nazi takeover" variety, I don't see anything steering things away from that.


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## Biden's Chosen (Dec 10, 2022)

Grade A+++ necroposting


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## AMHOLIO (Dec 10, 2022)

Being pessimistic is boring.  Risking some hope is how we grow and have excitement.




Apex Ralphamale said:


> No, there is no reason to be optimistic. Nothing matters anymore.


Seek therapy.


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## draggs (Dec 10, 2022)

AMHOLIO said:


> Being pessimistic is boring.  Risking some hope is how we grow and have excitement.
> 
> 
> 
> Seek therapy.


What's interesting is these people who say no hope for humanity usually have no hope of getting laid

I wonder if there's a connection


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## Angry Alt Right Nerd (Dec 10, 2022)

Apex Ralphamale said:


> Barren wastelands inhabited by pitch-black savages who do nothing all day except kill and eat each other. This is the future we're moving towards, slowly but steadily. And short of a miracle of the "spontaneous global nazi takeover" variety, I don't see anything steering things away from that.


Sorry to disappoint you, but the spontaneous global nazi takeover isn't going to solve all your problems.  Neo-nazis are not the super-efficient management and economic gurus that you think they are.


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## Tsukasa Kayoda (Dec 10, 2022)

I try to be optimistic but consider the following: everything has been done to lead up to humanity becoming slaves to a handful of oligarchs. Our futures are limited to 3 outcomes. 
1- the Reset happens and every single thing humanity has achieved is for nothing. We become slaves who cannot carve out our own future and destiny. while rich wannabe gods do all manner of horrors against the people they've enslaved. In their eyes we would no longer be human, and progression would only serve to assist those with power. 
2-Somehow the WEF and their satan worshipping goons fail, but as a result society collapses and we end up living in a dark age technologically and socially. Sure we will not have worry about being slaves, but every comfort we've grown to love (CONSOOM) is gone and every day is one of terror and survival. Because the only way to fight back would be to completely destroy the current infostructure and system of governments, as well as discarding the internet and the things we use and take for granted. We'll be free, but also at the mercy of warlords. 
3-Some absolute madlad presses the button and we end up getting nuked to hell and back. Society is dead and humanity is now an endangered species, with radiation quickly killing most of the vegetation and population. This is the most unlikely outcome since all the world leaders have no interest in ruling over a radioactive wasteland, but perhaps a general with nothing to lose, or a glitch causes this outcome. 

I know you all are tired of my doomposting, but these are the only outcomes I can see: Slavery, freedom in constant terror, or death by nukes. 


Apex Ralphamale said:


> Barren wastelands inhabited by pitch-black savages who do nothing all day except kill and eat each other.


So Detroit/Chicago?


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## Apex Ralphamale (Dec 10, 2022)

Angry Alt Right Nerd said:


> Sorry to disappoint you, but the spontaneous global nazi takeover isn't going to solve all your problems.  Neo-nazis are not the super-efficient management and economic gurus that you think they are.


A below-third-world-tier poor country with a non-existent economy and swamped in growing debt turned into a powerhouse that it took the combined armies of 3 global empires to overcome. And said armies of 3  global empires would have lost if a fourth up-and-coming one hadn't pitched in. All it took to accomplish this was 6 years of nazism constrained to that one single country. Imagine what 60 years could do, applied to an entire planet instead of one country. Forget AI or small electronics, we'd be going interstellar within 20 years.


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## White_N (Dec 10, 2022)

Tsukasa Kayoda said:


> I try to be optimistic but consider the following: everything has been done to lead up to humanity becoming slaves to a handful of oligarchs. Our futures are limited to 3 outcomes.
> 1- the Reset happens and every single thing humanity has achieved is for nothing. We become slaves who cannot carve out our own future and destiny. while rich wannabe gods do all manner of horrors against the people they've enslaved. In their eyes we would no longer be human, and progression would only serve to assist those with power.
> 2-Somehow the WEF and their satan worshipping goons fail, but as a result society collapses and we end up living in a dark age technologically and socially. Sure we will not have worry about being slaves, but every comfort we've grown to love (CONSOOM) is gone and every day is one of terror and survival. Because the only way to fight back would be to completely destroy the current infostructure and system of governments, as well as discarding the internet and the things we use and take for granted. We'll be free, but also at the mercy of warlords.
> 3-Some absolute madlad presses the button and we end up getting nuked to hell and back. Society is dead and humanity is now an endangered species, with radiation quickly killing most of the vegetation and population. This is the most unlikely outcome since all the world leaders have no interest in ruling over a radioactive wasteland, but perhaps a general with nothing to lose, or a glitch causes this outcome.
> ...


My nigga, have we been through all this before, a Bronze Age catastrophe? the fall of the Roman Empire?pfft, it's much nicer to read about a historical event than to be a part of it.

How many of your ancestors died to get you here? How many potential siblings died before reaching your mother's egg, and you were the lucky one? We are surrounded by pain and death constantly, which is why we are not pussies.

depression is for losers



become masochistic, and I revel in it all.
You really need to bulk up; this stone is sure handy.


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## timewave0 (Dec 10, 2022)

No, it’s over.
Turn the page.


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## 习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想 (Dec 10, 2022)

There is: Kiwifarms still exists. There's no better time to shitpost than an era of brewing calamities.


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## Ughubughughughughughghlug (Dec 12, 2022)

No, we should all KYS, starting with OP.


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## Rome's rightful successor (Dec 14, 2022)

We may live in horrible hard times today with everything aligned against us but we must be strong. They want us demoralized self defeating and weak. We must be optimistic and have an enduring vigilance out of both spite and to push ourselves out of our hell holes.
The ability to be resilient and resistant from the effects of demoralization whether it be personal or from our enemies and the world around us is one of the greatest abilities any human being can ever have.


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## Rome's rightful successor (Jan 1, 2023)

I wish you all a happy new years, I understand that this year may of not been the best for some, but I wish for the best for you. You, who is reading this very message. I hope the best for you and your family, may you find plenty this year, for not only you but also those who you love.


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## starborn427614 (Jan 1, 2023)

Hope can be a hard emotion to maintain during hard times, but it's worth it in the end I think.


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## ToroidalBoat (Jan 1, 2023)

The species is a very flawed one.

But hopefully the world can be not so crappy one day.


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## William Tyndale (Jan 1, 2023)

Mexican_Wizard_711 said:


> Nope


This was quite the resurrection of a dead thread. Still very, how do you say, apropos.


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## Dr. Crittershawn (Jan 1, 2023)

There's no reason to be pessimistic about your life. Self determinism is a powerful tool.

Now for humanity? Well maybe in 400ish years we can commit genocide against aliens or something.


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