Yes the Saddam Hussein thread and this thread brought PC some hope... the fact that the mods let a "political thread" live is a good step towards the old days. And seeing that there are criticism that are flameless, PC is regaining its maturity. Hopefully as more news on terrorism come along, PC will keep up this mature look on these news, so that one day the political ban will be lifted.
This thread is very metacognitive as well. People posting here are showing their thoughts into this discussion. People are starting to "think first, post later" now. More thoughts into your posts mean more quality in posts as well. This all leads to rebuilding PC to its high quality posting age.
As for the pessimistic idea... you are half full Kairi, but I'm half empty. But that doesn't stop me from pumping PC full. There is a difference between despairity and being a pessmist. Being a pessmist simply means having a negative look on things, but that doesn't mean the pessmist is hopeless... by being a pessmist it prepares me for the worst to come so I can act in advance. But if you're hopeless, then life itself shall weep for you...