There was a fantastic article written by Richard Glover in the Herald on Sunday, Cynicism being the focus. He crafted a witty and honest reflection on its place society.
With recent occasions such as the finale of Masterchef, the death of Michael Jackson and the rescue of British Backpacker Jamie Neale all dubbed set-ups, where is the place for blind trust in the facts.
Richard went on to touch on the things we base this cynicism on. He uses the example of the British couple who were holidaying in Portugal when their daughter went missing. The media attacking their suspicious approach to the situation as an admition to the crime. The media has, in this situation attacked the vulnerability of the couple and has doubted their hope for their daughters rescue.
It is much harder to argue with somebody who is cynical than naive. A person who is cynical has the last answer, "but how do you know?" There is no approach to this answer if you are of naive nature. Your answer mostly based on belief and trust, has no place in an argument of this type. You may have facts; however there is always doubt in all fact.
When did the world give up on optimism and doubt its surroundings? I blame the ability to know so much. We know everything about the world. We are exposed to its miracles and crimes however have we become its worst judge?
In the media the cynical approach relies on reaction. It wouldn’t have been effective to say hey, congratulations Julie, you did a great job. Instead rumours begin doubting the credibility of her win. She slept with him, she knows so and so ect.
As naivety’s best supporter, I challenge the world to believe in something. Without belief how can we stay sane? Knowledge is a damaging thing, so believing in something that is possibly not of proven facts is in my opinion beneficial.
The naivety of kids is remarkable. Their ability to believe that monsters sleep under their beds, witches really do eat naughty kids, and the core belief of everybody’s childhood, a belief in Santa.Belief is all that can truly give us hope in a world where cynics always win arguments, competitions on TV never result in the appropriate winner and the legendary king of pop could not have possibly died, it’s all for attention.
lara
