The danger, though, is that at least for some of us, disillusionment can easily give way to cynicism. The cynicism of our moment comes in at least two forms. One is an opportunistic kind of cynicism. This is the kind that determines that no one is really sincere and that the whole world is divided into two simple categories: hucksters and marks. The opportunistic cynic decides, then, to learn how to be a huckster. Anyone who doesn\u2019t is a sucker or a loser, in this view.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That makes things much easier for the opportunistic cynic because, among other things, it gives an immediate intellectual shortcut. One need not actually think about what\u2019s true and what\u2019s false, what\u2019s real and what\u2019s fake, what\u2019s right and what\u2019s wrong. All the opportunistic cynic has to think about is what works. Once the cynic knows who the \u201cfriends\u201d and who the \u201cenemies\u201d are, he or she has the template needed to cheer on the right side and to denounce the wrong one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The other kind of cynicism is instead despairing. If opportunistic cynicism is self-advancing, despairing cynicism is self-protecting. Once I stop expecting actual goodness or sincerity in other people or in institutions, I feel like I can\u2019t be hurt anymore, or at least not hurt as much.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Read it all<\/a>.<\/p> Cynicism protects us from some initial hurt, writes @drmoore<\/a>.
But in the end, \u201cit filters out not only the genuine danger and fakeness we rightly want to avoid\u2014it filters out everything and everyone.\u201dhttps:\/\/t.co\/Rx4z2A8JJc<\/a><\/p>— Christianity Today (@CTmagazine) January 23, 2025<\/a><\/blockquote>