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Keywords: Pessimism

  • INTERNATIONAL

    Anxious and depressed about the state of the world? Good for you

    • Mark Beeson
    • 04 November 2024

    The Doomsday Clock remains at 90 seconds to midnight, the closest it’s ever been to calamity. In addition to the atomic scientists’ original concern about nuclear war, now climate change and the possible dangers of AI are parts of a potentially combustible mix. In short, there is much to fret about for anyone paying attention. 

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  • ARTS AND CULTURE

    TV cops and cop-outs

    • Juliette Hughes
    • 29 August 2024

    With contemporary crime dramas increasingly suffused with a sense of grim fatalism, The Rookie stands out for its optimism, a refreshing throwback to the days when crime series used to be about the mostly goodies chasing the mostly baddies.

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  • ENVIRONMENT

    Raining on Environment Day

    • Andrew Hamilton
    • 05 June 2024

    Days like World Environment Day aim to combat apathy, urging action against the grim realities of climate change. Despite dire headlines, there are grounds for hope, if not for optimism. Any change in environment for the better must be grounded in a change of heart.

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  • RELIGION

    Painful times for Church reformers

    • John Warhurst
    • 29 May 2024

    We are now witnessing a changed dynamic within the movement for church reform. The balance within its component parts has changed towards a more pessimistic view. A minority is still hopeful; a few even remain optimistic, but most are struggling.

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  • ARTS AND CULTURE

    The strange case of Australian noir

    • Gillian Bouras
    • 24 May 2024

    What's the appeal in Australian noir crime fiction? The genre has always been popular in Australia, and Australian writers of crime fiction have always had plenty of material to draw on. Led by authors like Garry Disher and Jane Harper, it has experienced something of a renaissance during the last decade.

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  • ENVIRONMENT

    A rogues gallery of casual climate denial

    • Vivienne Cowburn
    • 16 September 2019
    7 Comments

    From overly sheltered baby boomers to millennials too fatigued with the state of the world to care, the reality of climate change can be a lot to handle. Here's a snapshot of the people living with their heads in the sand, employing tactics including pessimism, cognitive dissonance and deflections to stay where they are.

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  • ECONOMICS

    What it will take to redeem the banks

    • Andrew Hamilton
    • 05 December 2018
    8 Comments

    Now that the royal commission hearings have finished, people are asking whether things will change. There are grounds for both cautious hope and pessimism. Hope is based on the expectation that the exposure of greed, complacency and lassitude in institutions, boards and regulators will lead them to hunger for a better reputation.

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  • ARTS AND CULTURE

    Inside the student politics bughouse

    • Ellena Savage
    • 10 September 2010
    1 Comment

    University student unions are cesspools of toxicity, sociopathy and tedium. I should know — I'm a student politician. In his latest novel, Chaser alumnus Dominic Knight strikes a balance between sardonic parody and genuine reverence for those whose political conviction outweighs their pessimism.

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