The lower classes are better off than today than they were in the past, despite the disparity. So yeah the world is still better off. Not to mention horrible diseases we have found treatment for : malaria, polio, Black Death. Maybe you want to talk to a mother? Ask them if they’d rather have a child now or 100 years ago.

Yeah we can compare absolute numbers if you want, but when the global population is 10 times the size it was 150 years ago, it doesn’t make sense. Especially considering slavery has become a regional issue instead of a global one. Roll the dice today and you’re way better off.

Besides every generation from every era in human history thought the world was going to end lol

Your perspective is a result of the fatalist 24 hour news cycle. I saw the slavery headline too..

And that criticism is a result of viewing the world for what it is - bleak. Those that represented God - even the Pope himself - were taking advantage of the common man. The Church, in its stark irony, made it harder for people to go to Heaven. That’s a pessimistic, yet grounded, perspective. It’s not sugar coated.

The author of the article does not divorce optimism and pessimism. Nor do they marry pessimism with fatalism - quite the opposite. They describe hopeful pessimism, which faces the negativity of the world head on while acknowledging things might get worse. I think Martins Luthers actions fit that description.

Martin Luther, I’d argue. The article argues that pessimism is often caricatured, but in reality it represents the ability to face the negative things in life.

Luther held a very bleak view of the Catholic Church. He challenged common opinions and brought the Church’s intentions and behaviors to light.

Optimists have ground to stand on, considering this is most peaceful, progressive time in human history.

Set boundaries

There’s a distinction here. There are the toxic positivity people. Then there are the always-negative do-nothing people. Two sides of the same coin and both are unbecoming attitudes. I think the post is addressing only the one extreme

Toxic positivity is a real thing. Negative emotions are a real thing. There are people out there that use positivity as a means of denial. “My life is great and there is nothing I need to change or work towards.” Versus “This sucks, but now that I acknowledge it, I can change it.”

There are also those that use positivity as a means to make oneself emotionally unavailable. If you’re 100% averse to any negativity and never want to sit in it with a friend, I think that’s a problem.