Reality Check: Things Aren’t So Bad
Three Articles on Why We Should Feel More Optimistic About Society and Ourselves
In today’s negatively biased media environment, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by the constant stream of news suggesting we’re on a downward spiral. But the truth is, 👏 things 👏 aren’t 👏 that 👏 bad. In this edition of TL;dr, we’re sharing the good news from three articles that remind us things aren’t as dire as they seem.
First, we explore how our perceptions of moral decline are often more illusion than reality, revealing that human kindness and decency are as strong as ever. Next, we highlight the enduring success of liberalism, a framework that continues to foster freedom, prosperity, and peace. Finally, we consider how our growing focus on mental health might inadvertently be contributing to our anxieties. While challenges exist, our society and individual lives are defined more by resilience, progress, and hope than by despair.
The World Isn’t Actually Going to Hell in a Handbasket
Elizabeth Bernstein of the Wall Street Journal challenges the widespread belief in a moral decline, arguing that humans have long perceived society as deteriorating morally, despite evidence to the contrary. In other words, rumors of our demise have been greatly exaggerated. Here are the takeaways:
Perception vs. Reality: Despite a prevalent belief in moral decline, research indicates that people’s behavior hasn’t changed significantly. A study titled “The Illusion of Moral Decline” found that people are just as good as they’ve ever been. Adam Mastroianni, an experimental psychologist and lead author of the study, says, “People think the world has gone to hell in a handbasket... but as far as we can tell, it’s just the same as it always was.”
Cognitive Biases Influence Our Perceptions: Our brains are wired to pay more attention to negative events, distorting our perception of societal trends. We also tend to remember the past more fondly than it deserves. Psychologists call this the Fading Affect Bias, which helps us soften bad experiences over time and cherish the good ones.
Impact of Believing in the Worst: Believing in moral decline can lead to negative consequences, making us vulnerable to manipulation and preventing meaningful connections. Psychology professor Jamil Zaki warns, “If we believe the worst in people, we treat them in terrible ways, and then we bring out the worst in them.” This highlights the importance of challenging negative assumptions and fostering more positive interactions with others.
Moral of the story: Step away from social media and go touch grass.
Why You Should Feel Good About Liberalism
Jonathan Rauch, writing for the Persuasion Substack, argues that we need to better defend the greatest social technology ever devised: liberalism. Despite criticisms from both the right and left, Rauch maintains that liberalism — not progressivism or moderate leftism, as the term has come to mean in postwar U.S. discourse — remains unparalleled in its ability to produce prosperity, freedom, and peace. My takeaways:
What Is Liberalism: Rauch defines liberalism as a philosophy where all persons are born free and equal. Its principles include the rule of law, pluralism, tolerance, minority rights, limited government, and democratic decision-making.
The Criticisms: Critics argue that liberalism has been undone by its amorality (says the right) and its injustice (says the left). Yet, Rauch notes that liberalism’s philosophy and operations should give people hope.
Liberalism’s Ability to Self-Correct: One of liberalism’s key strengths is its built-in mechanisms for self-correction. Rauch writes, “Liberal democracies, liberal markets, and liberal science all make mistakes, but they have built-in mechanisms for identifying and rectifying them.”
The Role of Liberalism in Moral and Spiritual Life: While liberalism does not directly fulfill moral and spiritual needs, it creates the space for individuals and communities to pursue these ends. Rauch notes, “Liberalism promises the pursuit of happiness, not the actual thing.”
Are We Thinking Ourselves Sick?
In the last of our trifecta of “don’t believe the vibes you’re being told are reality” articles, The Free Press reporter River Page explores the unexpected impact of our growing focus on mental health in the documentary Thank You for Sharing. The film highlights the rise in mental health issues, noting that 43 percent of American adults reported feeling more anxious than the previous year, up from 37 percent in 2023, and that 42 percent of Gen Z has a diagnosed mental health condition. My takeaways:
The Impact of Self-Diagnosis and Online Information: Page shares a personal story about how a roommate suggested he might be on the autism spectrum, leading him to anxiety and self-diagnosis. This highlights how easy access to information can sometimes do more harm than good.
The Role of Diagnostic Criteria in Mental Health Perceptions: The article points out how changes in diagnostic criteria have led to an increase in mental health diagnoses, with normal behaviors increasingly labeled as disorders. Dr. Allen Frances, who helped revise the DSM-IV, regrets how his changes have contributed to overdiagnosis.
Economic Incentives in the Mental Health Industry: Page discusses how economic incentives can drive the mental health industry to favor diagnoses and treatments, sometimes leading to unnecessary medicalization of normal behavior.
In Other’s Words
Stay Grounded: Be careful of getting too caught up in a single event, says economist Larry Summers. “Events tend to be bad. Trends tend to be good.”
Marcus Aurelius on Worrying About Others’ Opinions: “Do not waste the remainder of your life in thoughts about others... for you lose the opportunity of doing something else when you have such thoughts as these.”
James Clear on Procrastination: “The first minute of action is worth more than a year of perfect planning.”
Onward and Upward.