Life is good. Pessimism is for the rich.

The Oscars are just a few hours away, and I confess I don't have the energy to stay up late. Luiz Inácio's top teeth are growing in, and he's going through a sleepless phase that's draining my energy. But life is good. I've already mentioned in another article that I'm always paying attention to the chat... good night 247And once, a superchat made me burst out laughing: "Pessimism is for the rich." The phrase became an embroidery, which became a gift that made another person laugh and reflect. The phrase, uttered in the heat of discussions, illustrates a profound truth about political discourse in Brazil. The pessimism surrounding Lula's governments is not merely a reaction to political difficulties. There is an illusory lightness in this pessimism, which allows the elite to distance themselves from the concrete responsibilities of the present, while the weight of real decisions falls on those who cannot afford the luxury of disbelief. It is, to a large extent, a privilege of those who can afford not to see the concrete changes that are occurring. While part of the intellectual and economic elite predicts chaos every new day, reality imposes itself very differently on those who have less.

The script of pessimism repeats itself, functioning as a self-fulfilling prophecy: by insisting on the narrative that everything will go wrong, political and economic agents act in a way that makes this prediction more likely, fueling a cycle of distrust and sabotage. Against Lula, there is always the conviction that the worst will happen: the coup is imminent, the economy will sink, Congress will swallow him up, his allies will betray him, his base will crumble. When these events do not materialize, there is no relief, only a new gloomy prediction, a new argument to sustain skepticism.

The deconstruction of this pessimism can be illustrated by the Bolsonaro case. Initially, the belief was that the former president would never even be mentioned in the investigations of January 8th. Then, that the military would be untouchable. One by one, these predictions crumbled. Bolsonaro was investigated, then mentioned, then indicted. Objections arose: the Supreme Court lacks jurisdiction, Alexandre de Moraes is biased, the plea bargain needs to be annulled. But the process moved forward, and the indictments accumulated. Now, despair turns to the final phase: they shouldn't be judged in the Chamber, but in the Plenary; there are procedural flaws, there is curtailment of the right to defense. Each advancing stage demands a new argument to justify the previous incredulity. In this narrative, Gonet was also a coup plotter, no more or less than Vice President Geraldo Alckmin, whose jovial charm cast by Lula would break at any moment.

The truth is that Bolsonaro's lawyers don't need solid legal arguments. They need media attention. Their goal is not to convince the courts, but rather to influence public opinion, to create a mantle of legitimacy over their theses. This is the opposite of what happened in the Republic of Curitiba, where the Lava Jato theses were accepted without popular contestation, whereas today there is constant attention to due process.

Meanwhile, life goes on for those who don't have time to dwell on catastrophic predictions. Pessimism is a luxury for those who don't need to worry about the basics, an unsustainable lightness for those who carry the weight of daily reality. The expression "Life is worthwhile", popularized by Fernanda Torres during her journey to the Oscars for the film The In BetweenIt has become a symbol of possible optimism—not because life is wonderful, beautiful, or easy, but because, despite everything, it's worthwhile. Because that's what it is: life is worthwhile. Not because it's easy, but because there are moments when it's just wonderful. Like when I see a toothless smile with two and a half teeth, or when I realize that, amidst so many gloomy predictions, the real world has its glimmers of hope. And, in the midst of all this, we move forward—with new teeth, with new struggles, and with the certainty that there is much more to build than to fear.