Why ‘Hopeful Skepticism’ Is the Antidote to Cynicism

The cultural mood right now is, to sum it up, cynical. Not just exhausted or overwhelmed, but suspicious at the root. Public scandals keep coming. Institutions keep failing. People who were supposed to be trustworthy keep proving otherwise. After a while, cynicism starts to feel less like a temptation and more like common sense. Jamil…