While an as-of-yet-unidentified stench stings our nostrils here at CP, two things have kept my spirits up: the Campus Progress Back to School Party tonight in DC (RSVP here) and the pleasing smell of young idealism in the morning (I'm racking up the film references). The Chicago Tribune has an article and a video about two teenagers who decided to dump the cynicism of our times and walk across the country for peace. At first they walked alone, but starting in the Midwest, as news of their journey spread, they have been met by more and more people. My favorite quote is from a 62-year-old man, who said he had to meet these kids because "I don't want them to lose their hope and idealism." These two are showing that even the most bright-eyed schemes are worth trying, that this country that is crying out for some sort of positive example for these times. While eternal optimism may sometimes miss the problem, we've had far too much of the opposite about government, for obvious reasons, and bringing back that optimism has to be important to progressives. After all, progressives generally believe in using government to solve problems, and no one will vote for a government solution if he or she does not believe in the government.