Optimism

The Guardian ran a wonderful article in which it invited two people who didn’t know each other to have a conversation, the premise being that social media has undermined our ability to focus and have a meaningful exchange.

One of the pairs was Greek economist Yanis Varoufakis and British musician and producer Brian Eno. I’m offering up two excerpts from their chat because I think they are important for anyone working on climate change or refugee resettlement or any other issue that seems vital and overwhelming. They are both optimists--something I hear over and over from people who are doing the most difficult work in the most hopeless places.

Eno: I am (an optimist) because I think what you believe is what you make happen. That’s a fundamental aspect of one’s life philosophy. You either believe you stand outside life and watch it, or else you believe you’re engaged and the set of beliefs you take to it forms part of the future. If you take a set of beliefs that is pessimistic and paranoid and defensive--maybe the set of political beliefs North America now has, for example--then you end up with a different future. We are constantly writing our future ourselves. It sounds as if I’m talking about faith, but I’m not because I’m an atheist.

Varoufakis: I have no empirical data that makes me optimistic about the world or human nature. If I was a pure empiricist all the evidence is that we’re a very nasty lot, but I”m not allowing that to come in the way of my faith, which is in humanity. So I’m completely optimistic through my heart, and I do not allow my brain to rule over my heart.

Back to me, Casey. When I asked my friend Ann, who has worked extensively in Africa, if she is ever discouraged by, for instance, ISIS, rising income inequality, or the role of China in propping up corrupt governments in exchange for raw materials, she responded in a way similar to Varoufakis and Eno. She chooses optimism because the alternative is despair.

So very important to remember that we have a choice and that the choice may not be rational but it is the best alternative.
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