Rational Pessimism and the Expectation Elimination Strategy

This paper proposes a strategic framework for managing affective-cognitive investments in future states through the systematic elimination of metaphysically grounded hopes. I argue that certain forms of hope structurally embed despair, and that rational agents operating under epistemic limitations should adopt an Expectation Elimination Strategy (EES) that removes despair-generating hopes while preserving performative agency. The proposed framework distinguishes three types of hope and demonstrates that infinite deferral of despair-inducing evaluation constitutes a practically viable approach, though not a terminal solution.