The Toxicity of “Positive Thinking”

“Things have a way of working themselves out if we just remain positive.”
— Lou Holtz

Norman Vincent Peale’s The Power of Positive Thinking influenced a lot of people when it came out, and it had a particular effect on Fred Trump, Sr. and his son, Donald Trump. While I cannot argue that a sunnier disposition is often more effective than a morose one, the idea that you can force the world into conformity just by having a positive attitude is a gross oversimplification of an idea that cannot be applied in black-and-white terms. The world is a complex place, and it is filled with many complex human beings, many of whom want many different things. But Donald Trump is not the only person to decide that he can simply will things into being if he wishes for it hard enough. This kind of magical thinking is everywhere in our society, and it comes from many seemingly different places.

“I don’t think anything is unrealistic if you believe you can do it.”
— Mike Ditka

Believing in yourself and in your dreams is powerful, no question, but we do not control any outcome in this chaotic universe. My wife spent the first part of her life on crutches and is now in a power chair. She may believe that she will stand up and walk any day now, but that doesn’t mean it will be so. A number of conservative Christians have morphed this sort of positive thinking into what Chris Hedges calls “Magic Jesus,” and many adherents don’t worry about getting or dying from covid-19 because they are certain that Jesus simply won’t…