In response to a comment

Before I get into writing more blog posts, I would like to address a comment, by "Rainbow Addict" that was left on my post "Optimism and realism, working hand in hand!". The reason why I am addressing it on a post, and not just by comment, is just because others may have similar thoughts. Here is the comment:

"Good and bad are relative to your own perspective, culture and your genetics. Humans are born with a basic feeling of empathy, so it is bad to hurt others. However, the python that you've lovingly raised to seven feet long is thinking how good it will be when he finally eats you. Is he evil? I think not. We only have good and evil because we are social animals (a dog feels pain if he/she hurts the pack or does something the alpha decides is 'bad' and feels good when the pack is happy) however a snake or a reptile would only feel pleasant vs. unpleasant. It would be very pleasant he thinks, to eat your chihuahua, even if it is an unusually sweet and obedient one. The world isn't harsh, it just is."

Thanks for your input, as this is a good point. I am very aware of the point you are stating, actually. In fact, many of the themes I have studied in my literature classes revolve around this very point (good wouldn't exist without evil and vice versa). However, I'm not 100% sure if this is trying to work against my post, or with it, or if it's just a neutral statement. As you said, "good and bad are relative to your own perspective...", so saying "the world isn't harsh, it just is" is simply your perspective. So, thanks for adding your perspective after I gave mine. That adds for the readers to put in some extra thought, which I like. My perspective is stemming from Optimism vs. Reality, which was the theme of my post. In my mind, someone who is purely an optimist, who does not have a good sense of reality, would see the world as a flawlessly beautiful place, with people that are all "good", nothing can possibly lead to disappointment, and there is no such thing as an obstacle. I'm not sure if there are people like that out there, but that's where my word choice came in. From my perspective, the world is "harsh" because of the fact that "not everyone in is good" and " not every situation can or will lead to a happy ending" (as mentioned in my post), as well as the fact that the stronger people (intellectually, physically, etc.) will have a greater chance at succeeding in life than the weak (the whole Natural Selection/survival of the fittest argument). My choice of using the word "harsh" comes from the large contrast between pure optimism and that of "harsh reality". Thank you for taking time to comment, though. I will admit that my posts are not thought out well in advance or anything. I just sit down and type, so it's more like typed out pondering, or whatever else is going around in my head that I feel like sharing! I hope this all makes sense to everyone!

I will be adding another post of a different topic shortly.