Question Author
The hope that reason will prevail is not borne of faith but of necessity. It is a recognition that faith has put us in the precarious condition you describe and that only reason can save us from the consequences of those whose choices are guided not by reason but by faith.
While the consequences of allowing the products of science and technology (which you appear to agree are products of reason) fall into the hands of those without the wisdom and therefore the will to use them wisely, has become startlingly obvious with recent events, it is equal folly to presume that we can rely on God to keep them apart when He has failed to do so at any point in history.
The belief in God is not only illogical and without merit but is an abdication of the responsibility to see that the produces of reason serve only the interest of those who practice reason and so are the only rightful beneficiaries of the products of reason.
If I have any faith at all it is in the knowledge that faith has always and if continued to be practiced will continue to take us down the wrong path. Am I optimistic? Why shouldn�t I be? Once humanity has felt the consequences of a belief and policy that has failed us we invariably seek out the cause and reap the further benefits of new found knowledge. This brings new meaning to our lives and further drives the desire to engage in the process that has not only allowed us to survive but flourish, a process that can, should and so long as reason prevails will renew our dedication to reason.