Where did the absurd meme begin that recognition of a problem = cheering it on?

When did it become fashionable to suggest that awareness or recognition of a potential problem equals essentially cheering for it? Whether "it" is Peak Oil, economic collapse, or war for oil, I simply haven't seen anyone here dancing with glee over the possibility of disaster. There have been a few who claim to welcome high gas prices, but who do so with the hope or expectation of alternative fuels and/or climate change relief.

To suggest that people actually welcome any kind of planetary or societal breakdown frankly smells of misanthropism. The recognition of a problem, along with warning others and discussing the issue(s) frankly, are the signs that one cares about the actual course of human events. It doesn't mean you bear ill will towards Humanity if you voice genuine concern over the issues.

/rant

Pick your disaster. Economic collapse, peak oil, whatever. As if this society is so far gone it'd be better wiped out than allowed to continue. I've seen people say that almost verbatim.

Hate to say it, but the society that followed such a collapse would make this one look like fucking paradise. And anyone who doesn't realize that is an idiot.

It might, on the other hand, be very good for the planet. But VERY bad for humanity.

Again, vigorous discussion of an issue does not equal "cheering on" the problem. It means you are not willing to settle for the easy answers or outs if none exist.

But if the words "well, we're a disease on this planet and it would be better off without us" or "hopefully the next species to gain intelligence doesn't repeat our mistakes" don't ring a bell, you haven't been paying attention.

When no such attempt at 'cheering on' was made by the offending post.

like the ones I describe. Not much room for interpretation.

But the stamp of cheerfulness is being wrongly applied to many posts (or blog postings, or news stories) where no such sentiment is displayed.

Having the willingness to address the issues facing our immediate and longterm future, and doing so with open eyes, can be difficult. But it's a mistake to brand such attempts as 'cheerful fatalism' merely because they have the temerity to acknowledge that some problems may have severe consequences, or that they might not have an easy fix.

But we shouldn't ignore that some people ARE a bit too happy about the potential outcome. Not many, thankfully, but a few.

THOSE people are creepy.

People who are genuinely concerned and expressing that concern are okay...without concern, nothing will ever get done.

On the other hand, I think we DO have the capability to rise above the problems, IF we have the will and the mental resources.

How many posts on this "inevitable" economic collapse are there pointing fingers and criticizing "consumerism" and encouraging everyone to not spend anything at all (which is not just cheering on economic collapse but actively seeking to cause it - 70% of our GDP is the C sector). The irony is that goods of most any kind will be worth more than dollars in the event of such a collapse, so people who spend especially on durable items are actually doing the smart thing when faced with massive currency devaluation etc - even when it incurs fixed-rate debt.

Genuine concern would say "Gosh I'm worried about the dollar dropping - what can we do to make sure we weather the storm?" not "the day of reckoning is coming for the hog-fat American consumer lapdog of their corporatist masters!". I see about equal measures of both.

Arguing rock stupid ideas with no real attempt to win an argument, but to merely argue ad infinatum.

for the whole society. He'd just graduated from Cal at Berkeley and was having trouble finding a job and with life in general. I thought its roots were in his view that going to college was an end in its self. I believe we are so caught up in earning a decent living that our self confidence can be shattered by not being able to be get and hold a job. He's over 50 now and IMO he's still struggling with this. It appears to me that college's tend to indoctrinate students that the pride of graduation will carry you through a lifetime, which is frequently not true.

Many people who never go to college are happy with their lives and feel successful. Others may not see them as being successful, but so what?

just like pointing out the illegality of the invasion of Iraq is somehow providing comfort to the enemy.

Who borrowed it from the Nazis.