On False Hope and Optimism

"Optimists generally believe that people and events are inherently good, so that most situations work out in the end for the best."


A dog is hungry and wants food. Now.
A man waves a dog biscuit in front of the dog.
The dog believes that he can now have food.

Instead of what was hoped, the man eats the biscuit.

The dog is still hungry.

Should it care about the man?
The man made no difference to the dog's situation, other than waste his own time creating a show for the dog.

Thus, should the dog give a hoot?



-Zan