"Success is only in the grasp of those who refuse to give up." Nice statement Fred, and very true. Of course, I hope I'm wrong in my pessimistic and dire assessment of things. And my pessimism doesn't mean I've given up. I now just focus my energies more on a micro level, as well as macro issues that I care passionately about and think I can help (specifically, animal welfare and rights).
On the point about "extremists," I think people need to be careful even there. I am no historian, but I would venture a guess that many important changes and advancements in human knowledge occured because of the bravery of what were considered exremists. I feel like I read all the time about people who were shunned in their days but history has shown to be exceptional people. A position can be "extreme" and right at the same time. I would venture a guess, based on previous posts, that I think this can occur a lot more often than others do. As those brilliant philosphers Rage Against the Machine have stated: "f the norm"!
