Our elders are always optimistic in their views of the present, pessimistic in their views of the future; youth is pessimistic toward the present and gloriously hopeful for the future. And it is this hope which is the lever of progress—one might say, the only lever of progress.


Page 438. Quote republished in "Left and Right: The Prospects for Liberty," Left and Right: A Journal of Libertarian Thought 1, no. 1 (Spring, 1965), p. 22. - "Youth" (1912) - II

Randolph Bourne Quotes

Our elders are always optimistic in their views of the present, pessimistic in their views of the future; youth is pessimistic toward the present and ...

Our elders are always optimistic in their views of the present, pessimistic in their views of the future; youth is pessimistic toward the present and ...

Our elders are always optimistic in their views of the present, pessimistic in their views of the future; youth is pessimistic toward the present and ...

Our elders are always optimistic in their views of the present, pessimistic in their views of the future; youth is pessimistic toward the present and ...