Do you ever get sick of cynics/misanthropes?

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I'm not saying I've never felt cynical/misanthropic before, but isn't the attitude itself kind of just becoming a part of the problem? I don't feel most people are inherently self-serving, I actually think it's the perception that strangers are selfish that makes other people act more selfish. Sort of a self-fulfilling prophecy. I think people who are naturally selfish are a minority and mostly suffer from various psychological ailments and disorders.

People are self-serving. We all worry about our personal happiness and security first. If we didn't do this, we would die. Many people just so happen to gain personal joy from bringing joy to others. This applies to you and me and everyone else. It is not necessarily a bad thing.

Yes, I think the attitude is part of the problem. It's self-perpetuating. I like the old saying you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. If you act as if you don't like people, people will likely react in kind, and then you feel justified not liking them.

I've had plenty of bad results from attempts at friendship, problems with people, here and there all my life. Mostly by those who don't tolerate my being different very well. But I try to give people the benefit of the doubt, and I find that pays off in some truly memorable positives in my life - hopefully in others' lives as well.

That said, I'm not a cheerful, perky person. I don't smile that much - except my public persona has developed this pasted on smile look that I detest, but let's not get into that. This not being a cheer leader type can be taken as misanthropy by people who are rigid in their thinking. Being told to smile can get to you, or being told you're too quiet. It can lead to negative encounters. This might be how the attitude develops to begin with and then becomes a self-perpetuating, life-is-a-nightmare, let's-get-it-all-over-with experience. Once that's gone on for very long, it's not going to be easy to talk someone down from an attitude of misanthropy or cynicism. And frankly, I don't think it's my business to. But I do my best to not allow encounters with me to be too negative if I'm in a frame of mind where I can help it. :-/

Misanthropes wear on my patience, cynics on the other hand I prefer over foolish idealists.
Many here might consider me a cynic from my posts, they would be wrong.
I'm a realist, and reality is beautiful enough as it is without romanticism. Idealists are on a dead end road.

I can't help being cynical and I do catch myself being overly assuming but yeah the hardcore cynics get on my nerves. At some point you're gonna have to outgrow your teenage angst.

Nope. I find rational thought and reason quite enjoyable.

Some people just like to argue. I like to argue for the argument. I look for weird little holes in people's thought patterns that they never care to notice or acknowledge. I like to go on tangents like this one and I like to say things that others are too afraid to say. But I try not to be a jerk about it, although occasionally I cross the line.

I am a misanthrope.

I guess I hate what I don't understand -- which is other people!

I strongly dislike a certain type of cynic, which I might call the "George Carlin" type since they all seem to worship George Carlin. These people are just intellectually lazy. They have an unshakeable conviction that they can see through the lies and that everyone else is an ignorant sheep. But when you actually talk to them about the important questions, you discover that they are extremely misinformed about most topics.

Here's how I personally feel about the state of humanity: there are good aspects and there are bad aspects. A brave person accepts the bad aspects, but makes it their life's mission to nurture the good aspects, so that the good aspects will shine through when the moment requires it. A coward looks at the bad aspects and just gives up, never acknowledging the good aspects, because to acknowledge the good aspects would be to admit that they could be spending their time making the world a better place instead of spending their time feeling clever.

In the real world, most people are just lost and confused, often misguided, but most of us are trying. Most of us are satisfied to get through our lives without actually losing our minds and killing somebody. A few of us--and I wish I could say it was me--are out there busting their butts every day to try to make the world worth living in, which is a tall order. However, in a life where it's hard enough to keep your grip on reality, most of us are lucky enough just to remain sane.

So, want to know what I think of cynics and misanthropes? Hey, if it gets you through the day, go for it. Really, I've never had any trouble from them. I consider the outlook to be bankrupt, and I consider it to be emotionally selfish. However, I can't say that I can identify this cynical outlook with any real source of unhappiness in my life or that of anyone else.

Really, I tried. I tried looking for excuses to go into a self-righteous rant over it. I tried looking for reasons that cynical, misanthropic people are harmful or nasty. But it's really not the worst thing a person can be.

The worst outlook I think people can have is to go through life believing that the world owes them something, somehow. That, I think, is a truly destructive outlook. No, you don't inherently deserve to have a Hummer. You don't have time to do anything substantial with that gigantic back yard. And no, you don't deserve to have streets that are clear of bums and lowlifes: it was your congressman's brilliant idea to shut down public housing to get you that giant tax cut.

But, as far as cynicism is concerned, I can't think of any wrong a cynic or misanthrope has done to me, assuming that's the only identifiable fault in that person's character.