On Cynicism and Hope

[naamah_darling]

In light of the great light bulb of "Goddamn, I wish I'd thought to say that!" which is currently blinking over my head, I would like to direct you to two posts that make a point I have been inarticulately trying articulate for a really long time.

First, coffeeem leads off with this entry, which explains that cynicism is not the same as wisdom or

Comments

[mayara13]

Hear, hear

[lots42]

But on the other paw, people who don't get outraged are not automatically jerkfaced idiots. Some just don't have the capacity for it, like me. I have to deploy the Denial Tarp of Justice once in a while, or it messes with my brain something fierce.

Personally, I try and concentrate on -some- things [1]. I do what I can. Like those who devote their lives to raising orphaned wild animals (which I would do if I can).

[1] Like emailing the governor when an old guy got arrested for a crappy lawn. The reply indicates the guy knows of the situation.

[naamah_darling]

There's a difference between just not getting outraged and being a cynical prick who sneers at people who do get pissed off. I know people who don't tend to get mad about certain things, just as there are things that I hate but which don't outrage me. I can't afford to get pissed about all the things that upset me, so I pick a few, and I focus on that, and things get done. You choose your battles. You don't just sit back and laugh at those who fight.

Maaaan, I read about the lawn thing. What the FUCK? I was really pissed about that too, but by the time I heard about it, it had been resolved. Pigfuckers, OMG.

[lots42]

Please tell me the details of the resolving

[omimouse]

The rest of the area found out about it, and about a dozen or more people descended on his lawn and landscaped it for him.

[phoenixprime]

Well said. Very well said.

[rapier]

The attitude you describe above gets summed up pretty neatly in a phrase that's made its way into common usage in the last few years: "It is what it is." Three perfectly serviceable English words strung into a five-word phrase that says nothing at all and accomplishes nothing but to piss me off.

I'll admit to having that attitude, though. When my coworkers want to talk about politics, I will, in fact, shrug and say "what can you do?" Oddly enough, it's the people who are voting for the same guy I am who constantly bother me. People voting for the other guy tend to keep pretty quiet about it. But yeah, I'll shrug and affect powerlessness mostly because I just don't want to talk about it. I'm sick to death of this election cycle. People are going to vote for whomever they've chosen. There's no convincing the other side, and those who haven't decided yet aren't going to be convinced by zealotry and impassioned words.

[naamah_darling]

Discounting online interactions, I tend to avoid talking about politics for exactly that reason. The average person I run into in real life doesn't need to have that discussion with me. I'm doing what I can re: politics. Doing what I can, for me, does not encompass talking about it all that much. It involves voting, and hauling everyone else I know out to vote, too.

[erikthedane]

I have to say I fall in line with you. I wave off political discussions at the office. Politics makes the Dane cranky, and as my co-workers can attest, that can be bad. I usually wind up getting pissed off any way.

"It is what it is" is a cop-out. Those who use it cannot be counted on to man the barricades.

And BTW, Naamah, this post is eloquent and made of awesome.

[deire]

The weird thing is, the answer to those two last questions are the same for me. I'd be creating and doing my best to help. Thing is, I'm not sure when I stopped believing I'd do anything but fail. I don't mean that as an excuse. I'm not happy with realizing that one, and the failure gives me anxiety attacks, not apathy.