The Ingrate's Prayer

I'm so exhausted, y'all.

Progress never occurs.

And if it does, it’s inconsequential.

And if it isn't, it’s too late.

And if it’s not, there are still other problems.

No holiday is more at odds with the modern world than Thanksgiving. It’s the only holiday universally celebrated by a populace whose every expression repudiates its core message. What could be more passé than appreciating what we have and giving thanks? Take a stroll through public discourse, and you’ll walk away convinced that we’re living through the worst of times. The planet is on fire, our institutions are failing, the economy is tanking, crime is surging, politics are a shit show, our kids are being brainwashed, hate crimes are on the rise, there’s violence in the streets, and a new billionaire now runs Twitter. But there is another world — a world beyond the cacophonous hyperbole of the terminally online outrage merchants. It’s called the real world. Legacy reality, if you prefer. And out here on planet Earth, the sky isn’t falling. In fact, this is the best time to ever be alive, and it ain’t even close.

In the past generation alone, we have seen a profound sea change around LGBT rights, sexism, and attitudes about neurodivergence. More than a billion people have been lifted out of extreme poverty since 2000, which went from 60 percent of the world in 1900 to 10 percent today. Each and every one of us can look up virtually anything in seconds, without the need to visit libraries and pore through reference books. We have the world’s music, art, films, and literature at our fingertips. We have medicines, medical procedures, and dentistry that no money could buy a century ago. More broadly, we enjoy labor-saving appliances, comforts, and luxuries ranging from culinary delicacies and treats to indoor plumbing, public sanitation, air conditioning, and entertainment consoles that would have been the envy of any king or emperor. Then there’s the rise of life expectancy, quality of life, and infant, maternal, and childhood mortality. How about the unprecedented period of comparative prosperity, stability, and peace the world has enjoyed for nearly 80 years? Nothing?

You know what else we should be thankful for? Our democracy and the politicians who run it. Sure, there’s nothing trendier than trashing the political system. “Everything sucks” is the Bud Lite of politics — inoffensive, substance-free swill that everyone can drink down. How could you possibly be thankful for these bloodsucking parasites who shift their positions in whichever way the wind blows?

Usually, a politician changing their mind is regarded as a flip-flopping fraud. But politicians evolving to better reflect the will of their constituents is a good thing. That’s what democracy is — it’s exactly how we should want the system to function. Should President Obama never have supported same-sex marriage, a position now endorsed by over 70 percent of society, simply because he initially opposed it? 

We observe politicians, and we see the polish, the pandering, the well-rehearsed lines, the theater of it all, and we feel in our gut that these people are all dishonest, self-serving scoundrels. Unlike us, of course — we’re better than that. But a little time spent studying the history of political and ideological revolutions gives some perspective. Our predecessors sacrificed, bled, and sometimes even died fighting for just a sliver of the representation, rights, opportunities, and liberties we enjoy. They would be shocked to see the freedoms we now take for granted. Universal enfranchisement? Equality under the law? Civil rights? Labor laws? The ability for anyone to run for political office?

The next time you see a politician do an about-face in the wake of some unpopular policy, think twice before dismissing them as a spineless hack. A politician who fears backlashes, who is concerned about public opinion, and who looks ahead to the next election is a sign that democracy is working. Consider the alternative. Imagine a society where your leaders don’t give a shit what the public thinks. We ran that experiment for millennia. It sucked. 

The ingrate’s constant refrain in the face of even the most fantastic progress is to instead harp only on the problems that still remain. If one is determined to be a malcontent, they will always find refuge in humanity’s eternal imperfection. But what a dismal way to go through life; refusing to acknowledge progress, always seeing the worst in everything, always perseverating within the gloom like some ethics-based version of the “god of the gaps.”

An inescapable truth remains, however. You, reading these words, are among the most privileged humans to ever live. You live in an era of unprecedented prosperity and peace. You have access to goods and services that would have been unbelievable 200 years ago. You have rights beyond the wildest dreams of the serfs who cowered under their lords only centuries ago. There has never been a better time to be alive, especially in the developed world. You can doom-scroll yourself into a spiral of pessimism and talk yourself into misery if you want. Or you can open your eyes, taking a look around, touch some fucking grass, and give thanks.

See also: “A Better World Is Worth Fighting For”

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