Rags to riches stories why they tick me off.

[AFTT47]

I don't know, Brian. I can't argue that we can all be Bill Gates or Barack Obama. We obviously can't. We can all rise to our best potential though. I see nothing wrong with encouraging us all to give it our best shot. Where's the value in telling people that they may as well forget it, that they're fucked? Seems to me like that's a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you tell yourself you don't have a chance, that's not much of a motivation to try, is it?

I hate it when even atheists get stuck in either/or propositions.

Am I doing that?
I acknowledge that things could be better. Hell, that will always be true no matter how rosy things get. I agree that it's always good to work to make things better.
I think it is you who are stuck in either/or propositions. Why not egg young people on at the same time we are working to make things better for them? Even if we are stagnated, there is nothing to be gained from projecting doom and gloom. Project that to the people who are responsible for making things better, sure. It's counter-productive to project that to the people who have to work with what they have.