Where are you on the spectrum of hope?

brianlux

jeffbr said:

brianlux said:

"Lost causes are the only causes worth fighting for."
- Martin Sheen

I'm going to work harder than ever in 2016 to restore hope and life to our battered world. All the sorrowful and pitiful voices of gloom and despair will have no effect other than to encourage me to work even harder. Here's to a better world in 2016!

OK, Brian, now you've got me thinking. For quite some time I thought you were a card carrying member of Team Curmudgeon. I dont know if I've been reading you wrong or if you've changed your perspective but your posts this evening are encouraging and motivating. I can't commit tonight to following your lead but you've given me food for thought and perhaps a little more hope that we can each make a difference. I'll be kicking back this evening with a little green and some champagne, will flip 2015 the bird, and then figure out how to make 2016 a year of positive change. I can't commit to making a better world, and am not encouraged by the upcoming presidential election, but I can certainly work to better my own situation and better my community. Cheers!

Haha! (Just so's you'll know how much I value humor as well as curmudgeonliness!)

I admit to being part curmudgeon but only in the sense that I get angry quite often and mostly that anger is at what I see as injustice to both the planet and all of its inhabitants and that kind of anger coincides with the will to take action. In personal relationships, I much prefer cooperation, kindness, and respect. But I never back down from a firm belief and I particularly won't back down from my support of the health of the planet and the defense of biodiversity. As for optimism, I always go with the idea that hope is doing what makes sense no matter how hopeless the situation may be. Without hope and the willingness to work for what makes sense despite the seemingly overwhelming odds in favor of defeat, why even bother trying? Few of us will ever make great change. Few of us will rise to the level of Gandhi, or MLK or Nelson Mandela or Paul Watson but it also takes all of the rest of us doing our little part to make great things happen. It's all of us whom are unsung and unknown who can make change happen. Without us, the heroes we hold in esteem haven't a chance to make things happen. I'm happy to be one tiny cog in that system.

brianlux

brianlux said:

jeffbr said:

brianlux said:

"Lost causes are the only causes worth fighting for."
- Martin Sheen

I'm going to work harder than ever in 2016 to restore hope and life to our battered world. All the sorrowful and pitiful voices of gloom and despair will have no effect other than to encourage me to work even harder. Here's to a better world in 2016!

OK, Brian, now you've got me thinking. For quite some time I thought you were a card carrying member of Team Curmudgeon. I dont know if I've been reading you wrong or if you've changed your perspective but your posts this evening are encouraging and motivating. I can't commit tonight to following your lead but you've given me food for thought and perhaps a little more hope that we can each make a difference. I'll be kicking back this evening with a little green and some champagne, will flip 2015 the bird, and then figure out how to make 2016 a year of positive change. I can't commit to making a better world, and am not encouraged by the upcoming presidential election, but I can certainly work to better my own situation and better my community. Cheers!

Haha! (Just so's you'll know how much I value humor as well as curmudgeonliness!)

I admit to being part curmudgeon but only in the sense that I get angry quite often and mostly that anger is at what I see as injustice to both the planet and all of its inhabitants and that kind of anger coincides with the will to take action. In personal relationships, I much prefer cooperation, kindness, and respect. But I never back down from a firm belief and I particularly won't back down from my support of the health of the planet and the defense of biodiversity. As for optimism, I always go with the idea that hope is doing what makes sense no matter how hopeless the situation may be. Without hope and the willingness to work for what makes sense despite the seemingly overwhelming odds in favor of defeat, why even bother trying? Few of us will ever make great change. Few of us will rise to the level of Gandhi, or MLK or Nelson Mandela or Paul Watson but it also takes all of the rest of us doing our little part to make great things happen. It's all of us whom are unsung and unknown who can make change happen. Without us, the heroes we hold in esteem haven't a chance to make things happen. I'm happy to be one tiny cog in that system.

And Jeff, how cool and wise that you want to improve your own life and your community. Excellent! Cheers,

Brian

Go Beavers

I fall pretty high up on the hope spectrum. This comes from my general sense of contentedness and positivity, combined with a belief that everyone is good at their core. Also, most quality of life indicators for the world's population support the notion that things have been getting better over time. Really, the Earth is what's struggling more and more, and it just needs to hang on until the global population starts to decrease in about 50 - 70 years, and we start trending away from a consumer based economy as a result.

It's sad to see people get dragged down under the avalanche of negative stories that are always coming at us. The thing is, most of this stuff was happening before, and probably more often.

callen

Global population decrease in 50 years????

rgambs

EdsonNascimento said:

I am extremely hopeful...except we are headed for another Clinton-Bush face off. When will at least one party learn? Anyone voting for either of those choices is extremely stupid.

You can vote for someone else, or not vote at all. You won't make any difference in the outcome, so I don't see why the need to call someone stupid for wanting to be a part of the (bullshit) process.

Go Beavers

callen said:

Global population decrease in 50 years????

Of course it's a prediction, but there seems to be a lot of support of the shift happening. What's interesting is that it hasn't really entered into dialogue very much:

cnbc.com/id/101018722
theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1999/08/the-population-surprise-9908/377735/

Godfather.

hope and dreams....for me on a global scale as well as community I hope to see people understand each others differences and learn to accept each other without war's but that's a dream so I'll keep surviving day to day and hope for the best.
the reality of it all is so confusing because the human need for control and power too often crush the dream that could create a peaceful world and so too often we must make personal choices to ensure our own personal safety and well being.

Godfather

Annafalk

Well spoken Godfather !

callen

Go Beavers said:

callen said:

Global population decrease in 50 years????

Of course it's a prediction, but there seems to be a lot of support of the shift happening. What's interesting is that it hasn't really entered into dialogue very much:

cnbc.com/id/101018722
theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1999/08/the-population-surprise-9908/377735/

Thanks for providing links and information. Hope for planet.

Abe Froman

I have some hope Brian. Although I do find it tough sometimes. especially when I see things like the number of people that think Trump would be a good thing for our country.

PJ_Soul

Most of my lack of hope is a result of politicians and how most of them operate. I feel a slight reprieve after the last Canadian federal election... but then I see more coverage of the US candidates and the NRA and lobbyists, and then I see what the BC provincial government is up to, and hope fades again.

brianlux

2016 is going to kick ass and be great. It's going to be tough but good things will come from hard work and good times and good things are already happening. For starters, the west coast of North America is getting much needed rain. I don't say this from a personal or selfish perspective, but it is true because when the west is wet, the runoff flows far and wide. The best scenario would be for all regions to produce more food locally but for now at least, the west, particularly California provides food for much of the country and even much of the world. So there will be more nutrition. There will be better moods, better music, more resilience, more energy. Each person that feels better will add to creating a more positive outlook and that will spread it to others. 2016 will kick ass.

So does this song, by the way:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opGVdOIeuUQ

ldent42

brianlux said:

2016 is going to kick ass and be great. It's going to be tough but good things will come from hard work and good times and good things are already happening. For starters, the west coast of North America is getting much needed rain. I don't say this from a personal or selfish perspective, but it is true because when the west is wet, the runoff flows far and wide. The best scenario would be for all regions to produce more food locally but for now at least, the west, particularly California provides food for much of the country and even much of the world. So there will be more nutrition. There will be better moods, better music, more resilience, more energy. Each person that feels better will add to creating a more positive outlook and that will spread it to others. 2016 will kick ass.

So does this song, by the way:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opGVdOIeuUQ

Does that mean my vegetables will stop being so damn expensive?

brianlux

ldent42 said:

brianlux said:

2016 is going to kick ass and be great. It's going to be tough but good things will come from hard work and good times and good things are already happening. For starters, the west coast of North America is getting much needed rain. I don't say this from a personal or selfish perspective, but it is true because when the west is wet, the runoff flows far and wide. The best scenario would be for all regions to produce more food locally but for now at least, the west, particularly California provides food for much of the country and even much of the world. So there will be more nutrition. There will be better moods, better music, more resilience, more energy. Each person that feels better will add to creating a more positive outlook and that will spread it to others. 2016 will kick ass.

So does this song, by the way:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opGVdOIeuUQ

Does that mean my vegetables will stop being so damn expensive?

It should help. A pot or two in a sunny window with tomatoes helps too. We threw some compost around a little 5 by 8 for patch of dirt outside the kitchen window and some volunteer tomatoes and melon plants jumped up from the ground. The last tomatoes and a melon came on late and I picked them green around Halloween before the first heavy frost and put them in a sunny window to ripen slowly. We at the last red tomato between Christmas and New Years. Nearly effortless, good, cheap food!

Another easy one is growing parsley in a sunny window. Loads on vitamins and monerals in a few sprigs.

ldent42

Hm. I wonder if I'm allowed to have a window box in the kitchen window. It doesn't technically face the street, so I might be able to get away with it either way. Herb garden! No more .99¢ cilantro!