Technology used to be a thing to be optimistic about. The past 10-15 years or so has been a bit of a let down with capitalism fucking everything up.
Is this some sort of trick question
Pessimism of the intellect, optimism of the will, etc
Optimistic, because, why not?
Because capitalism.
Pessimistic.
The more times I see people not fighting for the rights and benefits that they deserve, the more I am shying away in disappointment. We continually allow defeatism to cloud us to where it’s no wonder why governments, corporations and other filth have such a field day with us.
I’m just waiting for something, anything, to put all of us out of our misery.
My internal legal counsel has advised me not to discuss the topic with myself
Pretty pessimistic, short term (the next decade or two.)
I am optimistic about socialism and anarchism very long term (the next 100-1000 years,) maybe just because I try to remain hopeful on stuff like this.
Humanity has created some incredible things, we have so much potential to be a boon for the planet, for the animals, and for each other. But we must oust Capitalism, corporatism, statism, and fascism to even have a chance.
Nuclear annihilation is the least painful route we can take.
I think that the first 20 to 30 years will be very difficult for humanity. There is a distinct reactionionary movement that is blocking or even reversing progress needed to fix various problems (including, but not limited to climate change, destruction of ecosystems, housing problems and the world population aging beyond sustainablitiy). It will get very messy.
After the boomer generation has died out as well as my own (GenX-er here), humanity can hopefully look forward again. As I age, I really think that it is our two generations that are blocking progress. As millennials and Gen Z ages, they will hopefully learn from us how not to do things.
I just don’t see how. They are equally indoctrinated into the societal constructs that are creating the problems. The “boomers” were equally and imperfectly against the negative operating principles of their society when they were younger. They got played. Now we are faced with even more powerful special interest group (the ultra rich), with even less checks and balances than during the past 80 years. And now we’re getting played too
I assume you mean in the long term, like looking centuries or more out. If the scope is different my answer might be different.
It’s a total unknown to me. The biggest question is where the Enlightenment came from after millennia of producing the same system over and over again, and if it’s here to stay. MAD and GAI are the other two big existential threats. Other problems can all be recovered from in the long arc of history. (Yes, even climate change)
Both. Barbarism then socialism, either voluntarily or become socialism is the only system that can reliably sustain humanity.
Pessimistic/realistic. There’s lots of pollution, most food is low quality because it’s cheaper to manufacture and aiming for looks rather than increasing quality raises profits. Technology is specifically made to be hard to repair and has set lifespan plus all the licensing and subscriptions. No privacy. Everything moving to cloud for even more control. Corporations have way too much power and can get away with almost anything. Supermarkets can be more and more expensive without signing up for their loyalty programs. Education is stuck in the past. …
I see the near future/current world as basically RoboCop but more gore and less funny. and also without RoboCop.
Instead of RoboCop we’re gonna get those robot killer dogs from Black Mirror
middle
Realistic. The world will be fine, not so much for most of the lifeforms that currently populate it. Earth has gone through evolutionary resets before. The existence of deep sea hydrothermal vents with methane loving organisms means that Earth will most likely NOT become like Venus, even when all feedback loops run their course. The carbon released and washed into the oceans will feed the species that produce oxygen, just as it has before.
Humans have become their own asteroid.
