Is this the politics of hope?

Everyone knows that I am rather relentless in my push for spaceflight, and space development.  And, yea, you could say that I am something of a true believer.  But, I always feel the need to try and stay grounded, with what I feel is moderate to good success (although I am sure there are people who'd disagree with me).  

But I am also a liberal/progressive.  And to me, part of that is a belief in the potential of Humanity, and the hope for a better future.  I make that point, because, I've always felt that is part of what distinguishes us from Conservatives - a belief that humanity can do better, and that we need not fear the other, and, above all, that human life is important, and worth saving.  

And that is why I am always troubled by some recent comments.  This election season, there has been a lot of talk about hope.  But this isn't about a particular candidate - this is about us, progressives/liberals/Democrats.  Join me over the fold

I admit, they aren't front pagers, or anything like that, but I see it far more than I like, and far more than I think it should be seen.  Before I actually get to the comments, I'd like to take a side trip, to talk about my dad.

My dad loves to rant - when he gets started, he can go for a while, if you're not careful.  And one of his favorite rants involves the comment "[The Bush administration and their cohorts] want poor people and black people to just die - if poor people, and blacks, and gays would just all die, or at least go away, they would view that as a damn good thing!!"  I cite this, because, its part of the reason I am a liberal - the belief, as I said in the intro, in the good of humanity, and a hope for the future.

Which is why I am bother by attitudes that promote the idea that humanity should become extinct, or at the very least, deserves to be stuck with a bare minimum to survive.   Its an attitude that says that humanity is either inherently bad, or inherently screwed.  And I am also bothered by attitudes, espcially among people talking about peak oil, that the best that we can hope for is the constant struggle of agrarian life that we saw in the middle-ages?  Or that 4 billion people have to die, so that a few of us can live?  To quote Stormbear

When I consulted for the Greens in 2002 there were majorities in the party who were for for FORCED SELECTIVE STARVATION as a method of population control.

Am I the only one who feels like saying "wait a minute - this isn't progressive, or about hope."  Yes, the problems we face are vast, (especially when it comes to things like energy, and global climate change).  But even an advocate like Al Gore still believes there is hope for the future, and if we don't, then what the hell are we doing here, trying to affect politics?  And, yes, if we look, there are arguably solutions, and solutions that don't involve mass human extinctions.

This isn't a call-out diary to just the people I've linked to, or even really a call-out diary to a specific group of people - this is a callout diary to the idea that humanity needs at least 4 billion people to die (why do you think you will be one of the few remaining survivors), or that humanity deserves to die.  

Is this really hope?  Is this really progressive?  

This may seem like a good link into about talking about space, and yes, it is partly about space, but to borrow a quote from Bartlett from West Wing

Today its about me, but tomorrow it will be about someone else, and the next day

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As I said, is this really hope?  Is this really progress