I've been reading lately that optimism may not be the best attitude for this country.
Here,
here, here, and also
here.
In short:
"Optimism has always been the enduring spirit that made us a great nation, brought us back from overwhelming challenges and impossible odds -- WW II, the Civil War, the 1776 Revolution. Yes, that spirit still burns in our soul, says the poll.
But we also know, as we said earlier in "The Death of the Soul of Capitalism," that over the long-term, through many centuries, historians give nations an average of about 200 years before they burn out. Why? Because the "blind optimism" that makes a nation great in the early years of its rise to power and glory becomes, paradoxically, its worst enemy in the end-days.
Their arrogance traps them in a self-sabotaging cycle that weakens their resolve, makes them vulnerable to new, unpredictable challenges, ultimately destroying them from within. That happens over and over throughout history, even as their optimistic brains tell them they're still the greatest."
Wow. I'll agree with that. But what do we do? Clearly depression and pessimism are not the answers either. But I think that any optimistic solution for this country has to involve sacrifice in the present term. And if they do not then I believe they are the sort of 'blind optimism' spoken of above. None of the serious pieces of legislation in Congress have had anything like that in them, probably since WWII. When we will have the courage to realize that is what is required?
