Optimism?

It's no secret that I'm quite cynical on various topics revolving the human condition. That's not to say, contrary to what many will believe of me, that this is a general rule when it comes to my thoughts on humanity.

There is, for instance, the fact that our social norms, traditions, and knowledge of the universe has been increasing since the dawn of civilization.

Back in the olden days... and I mean, the OLDEN days, when we were nomadic hunter gathers with no concept of civilization in mind, our way of thinking and empathy was based on what our leaders would do. Their authority was often assigned via their brawn rather than their wisdom or intelligence. Murder often went unpunished, as were most things that are now consider criminal acts.

Sure, we were less destructive of the environment then. But that didn't stop us from driving other species into extinction, including other human species. Hell, even thinking about the latter makes me a bit cynical. We're quite a destructive force when you think about it.

Things went into overdrive once we established our first civilizations. The death toll on other living creatures increased, including other humans (via war, etc), while our fertility increased. Back then, being an intellectual or empathetic was still something to be weary about. You couldn't criticize "god", or it's speaker. Doing so would often result in death.

From there, we were expected not to hurt our fellow man within our society. The enemy was often beyond the walls of our fortress.

From there, our empathy was reserved for those in our society, and those who chose to call themselves our allies. Eventually, I'm assuming after the Industrial Revolution, our empathy was expected to be given to those of other "clans", as anyone could be a potential customer or partner.

At some point within our history, we began to be empathetic towards nature. We began to condemn the murder of animals when it was unnecessary. We began to condemn deforestation, and started to push for the rights of animals.

It is our social evolution that gives me a bit of hope for humanity. It's our success stories that bring a smile to my face.