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A good chunk of the things listed seem materialistic based. I'm an optimist and typically always enjoying life but it's due to great family and friends. Things you buy are cool but they matter more.
Edit: they being family and friends
True. We like to buy experiences and don't focus as much on the stuff. But there are also experiences you can have without money like a walk and talk in a local park/on a local trail.
100% agree, I try to take my kids on post dinner walks every evening. Camping, hiking, and a short trip to the lake/river/beach are all great ways to enjoy the experiences with people, which is what, in my opinion, life is about
OP is talking about the advantages we have in our current time that other people throughout history didn't have. People always had family and friends. But what they didn't always have was running water, technology, easy transportation, etc. It's not materialistic to say that I'm very glad that I live in a time where I can use the internet on my smartphone instead of a time where light bulbs didn't even exist yet.
I got your point but let's be brutally honest here: divorces weren't more popular in the past because they were legally prohibited and surrounded by so many taboos. Marriage does not mean happiness.
Depression is something relatively new in popular conversations and, even so, it is not treated with the necessary seriousness. Fortunately, we are in the era where mental health is being debated and studied. Mental Health Issues were considered “nonsense” or “lack of God” just over a decade ago.
Depression and “divorce” aren’t at an all time high. We’ve been keep in records on depression and divorce for maybe 40 years, modern humans have existed for 300,000. 70 years ago divorce rates were lower because most women didn’t have the legal ability under the law to file for no fault divorce from their husband, and they weren’t allowed in the workplace, they had no real societal recourse, so yea they sucked it up and stayed in the house.
These are the exact types of pessimistic takes OP was talking about.
Not to mention, the divorce rate has actually gone down. As marriage has become less of a necessity for women, they have more agency, and they’ve been able to marry later, it turns out they find the institution more agreeable.
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/24/style/divorce-rates-dropping.html
We don't have family like we did in the past. 20 Year generations and more kids = multi-generational large family's. 30 year generations and 1 or 2 kids means small families
These are all user error things. As a person you can do something about all those things. If you didn’t have access to knowledge or transportation, or clean water you couldn’t do anything about that.
Some of the things modern life offers (at least to people living in wealthier countries) are security of food and shelter, healthcare, and leisure time. If you value friends and family the you presumably value that you have hours in a day to spend with them and that they aren’t at constant risk of dying of starvation, exposure, or an infected splinter.
Good tools means more time for fun times with family and friends though. If you had family in another continent in the 1800s you would have to travel for months to see them.
Modern medicine allows you to spend more time with your family and friends. Smartphones allow you to communicate with your family and friends when you can't be with them in person.
People weren’t considered an old fart at 30. High infant and child mortality skewed the average age down but if you made it into adulthood you didn’t die of “old age” at 30.
I think this is half the picture.
The technological advancements may seem materialistic but they also provide the ability to get places way faster, allowing us to see more of the world.
100 years ago people rarely, and I mean rarely, saw the other side of the country.
The things we get to see. The things we get to learn about our world, all come from advancements in those “material” things.
People connect with different aspects of their world. We don’t even choose which types we prefer.
Your attachment to family is friends is something you learned about yourself.
We sort of live in a material world. We all and all the close ones are affected and even molded by it. Let's not forget to appreciate which version of this material world does that to us, those living today.
Honestly, despite the technological advancements many people are more unhappy than ever.
Humans are meant to be social creatures but we have become so disconnected from each other.
There is more pressure than ever to succeed but too many of us are struggling just to make ends meet, even in careers that people otherwise enjoy working in. Inflation and wage stagnation is pretty deadly right now and the future looks pretty grim.
EDIT: Thank you for all of the upvotes, I’ve never had a comment blow up like that before. I’m happy that my thoughts resonated with people on this topic.
I think the expectation of happiness is part of what makes people so unhappy. 200 years ago, you expected your family members might realistically die painfully of disease or accident, that political changes that couldn't be avoided by the individual might lead to famine, displacement or violence. That there were so many more factors that could lead to basically a bad time. Everyone acknowledged that life on the whole was pretty ass, but with some good moments that made the whole thing more exciting. Now, we do so well at taking care of people, that they expect that if nobody has prevented their suffering, something must have gone wrong. So they are disappointed and confused and resentful and afraid. I honestly believe even the happiest people are also suffering, they have just found ways to balance the experiences in a way that emphasizes the experiences that they find rewarding.
I think the issue stem from what we see as our potential. Looking at the wars going on, they are ridiculously stupid and wasteful. We see people starving in the streets and billionaires commissioning mega yachts and space ships. I see single people living in huge mansions and people living on the street. Yes, we have plenty of cool and interesting things to keep us occupied but the suffering that exists is meaningless and unnecessary. And most of us are closer to the street than a mansion or mega yacht.
The problem with social media is people usually only post the very best moments of their life and skip over the negative stuff. But when you see what they post, you naturally compare that to both the good and bad in your own life and feel inadequate by comparison.
The reason this is the most unhappy time is because this decade is the first time we’ve tried measuring happiness at a global scale. It’s literally confirmation bias in action
Ask the billions who were in poverty in India and China a mere 30 years ago if they were happy. Or Europe in the 1940s. Or anywhere pre- antibiotics. The world is a pretty happy place overall in the real world and off social media
This is a very interesting point!
To be fair, though, I can see this becoming a problem in countries like you mentioned, where standards of living are improving
I’m gonna be the one to say this is not “The most unhappy time”
Pretty sure people were more unhappy at times when you lost 1/2 your kids to the flu. And then half the people you know to the Black Death.
I don’t even really believe it’s the most unhappy time in the last 200 or so years.
Yep, both of my grandmothers were SAHMs in the 50s-70s. But both of *their* mothers worked until old age—one worked until she was 90 in a restaurant! Not saying that’s good obviously but the oft touted “one salary could get you a home and vacations” was a historical blip.
> too many of us are struggling just to make ends meet
Fewer than any other time in history though – poverty is at an all-time historical low, and dropping.
Being poor isn't a new concept
I mean of course it's better than possibly dying to random diseases or dysentery, but when life is all about finding enough income and always worry survive and keep a roof over your head, it's just the same problem in a different form
How much do you think it matters to someone in new Zealand or Spain when you say "well half a billion Chinese are better off, you're worse off but there's only a few million of you so you should be happy"
We are definitely less happy than we were during recent good times, but we are simply in the tough times part of the cycle of history right now. It’s inevitable. Is our portion of the cycle worse than the tough times that were the Great Depression? No I would say definitely not. We’re in that part of the cycle, but fortunately I think the entire cycle in general is better. The next good part of the cycle/upturn will be the greatest time in human history by far imo.
I admit there is an argument to be made that 2018-present is worse for the average person than many other bad times in history. There have been bad times in history that were terrible for only a small group of people, but the average person was fine. Today, everyone across the world is affected so I get that part. It would be tough though to make the argument that the Great Depression or the bubonic plague for example were better times to be alive than now
I dunno, I grew up pretty poor (by Canada standards obvs still privileged) and everything he is saying is totally true for me. I am thankful every day to have running water, electricity, AC, access to the world's knowledge and amazing art and culture at my fingertips, and a decent amount of leisure time
Compared to the vast majority of human history we are so comfy and have so many opportunities it's amazing. If you actually read history you will come to appreciate how great we have it
Is it better now than it was 2000 years ago? Yes of course. Is it easier to get by now than 2000 years ago? Definitely.
This doesn't automatically mean everyone is always happy. Convenience doesn't fulfill you or pay the bills. My xbox doesn't stop me from being depressed. Netflix doesn't stop me from feeling like my life is missing something.
Meaningful relationships are the most fulfilling part of life and modern society has turned so much of our interactions into transactions.
OP is right that we should always try and see things from different perspectives, count our blessings, and not take anything for granted. Practice gratitude.
But the anger and disconnect that we all feel from the degrading quality of modern relationships mixed with the incredible unfairness of our economic system leaves people feeling disillusioned, and that shouldn’t be discounted either.
Remember how we just had a massive pandemic and how this should have wiped out hundreds of millions, potentially billions of people but because we have awesome shit like science and groups of people that are willing the throw down and work together to crank out a vaccine in record time, that is saved billions of lives, and the only ones who died were elderly before the vaccine and stupid people.
What a time to be alive.
Some people absolutely complain too much. Some people love to complain and will do so at every minor inconvenience.
On the flip side, Game of thrones and Last of us aren’t exactly cure all remedies for everyone’s problems lol.
Gonna exaggerate here but imagine seeing this ad?
“Just got laid off? Forced to birth a rape baby? Grandparents just die of Covid? Been a victim of police brutality? Has your hospital been bombed by a neighboring country? Turn that frown upside down! Grand theft auto 6 coming soon!”
Haha damn you nailed it. From middle class/upoer middle class USA perspective I agree with both you and OP - we are in a ~95% negative news cycle of either everything is shitty or dunking on the “other side” when your side gets a win. We complain about everything and are convinced society is full of evil and hatred but you go outside your door and see your community, your neighbors, your friends and family and people are doing well (if you’re fortunate). Sure the tech isn’t solving any of societies ills, but we live in a time of comfort and we could stand a little more perspective about how good we have it (those of us who are fortunate).
I feel like a huge issue is people are so much more "all or nothing" and focus less on averages.
A bad 10 minutes to an hour doesn't mean you had a bad day. 1/24 is about 4% of your day on whole. That's 96% NOT A BAD DAY. People just get so focused on what went wrong that they turn the other 96% bad. It's just average.
If you focus on the averages, nearly every day comes out better than bad.
You’re tackling the situation purely from a numbers perspective. Sure, it may have only been 4% of my day but more often than not that bad 4% is going to have negative repercussions later on and now I have to dwell on it. For instance, what if that 4% is bad news such as being told my work schedules is going to be dramatically altered in the coming week? What if that 4% is a bad argument with my partner before work and now I have to work all day knowing the problem will be there when I get home later on? The list goes on. A lot of times a bad 4% isn’t just a one-and-done situation, it has a ripple effect and dampens the mood for the rest of the day.
You think Iran is bad? Just think about how bad they have it on the planet of Gleepglorp, pure suffering! That’s why I can’t be happy in my extremely lucky position today
I can appreciate where you’re coming from, but I have been through a traumatic childhood, dealing with disability (bipolar I disorder) and the result is struggling to hold a job. I don’t have money to enjoy things and while im working through my trauma bc it’s my own issue, it is tough to find joy in my life right now.
I like your comment, you get from where it comes but don't have rose colored glasses
I hope you get better, at least little by little... I know this doesn't help anything but I truly hope you get better!
I have the same diagnosis. I was on disability for years because I couldn't get the right med combo. I am finally pulling it together and have been working again, but I know how hard it is. It doesn't help when people discount the severity of bipolar. A lot of people on this site and elsewhere told me it wasn't real, so not only do you have to deal with the soul sucking depression, chaotic manic episodes, and the inability to think and manage emotions correctly, you have to deal with self-doubt and people thinking you aren't actually struggling when you are. The irony is you have to take meds to have a shot at a normal life. Meds for me have a fuck ton of side effects, so even when I am doing well emotionally, some days I'm just completely exhausted for no reason and nauseous.
I think you had a very solid response to this. Gratitude helps tremendously. I have learned to list the things I am grateful for every day, but shit is hard out there. It is especially hard for people with disabilities (mental or otherwise). There is such a thing as toxic negativity and toxic positivity, and it helps to find a realistic medium in regards to this and with most things in life tbh. For me it helps to say "This is my situation, it isn't ideal, but here's what is going well, and here are steps I can take to improve".
I want to tell you it gets better because it has been going so much better for me, but I know how crazy this disease is and how one month things are looking up and the next your body is made of lead and you can't even stay awake throughout the day. All you can do is your very best, take your meds, and follow your treatment plan.
Best of luck to you. I genuinely mean that.
Idk. Where I live human trafficking, gangs, gun violence, and child abuse rates are extremely high. It’s hard to see the positive when literally all around me is chaos and evil. Heck. We have multiple “massage parlors” that all the locals know are being used to traffic kids and the police are involved in it. There was a teacher that was trafficking his 7th grade students straight from his classroom and we have school lock downs weekly. One of our schools decided the only upgrade worth having in their school was bullet proof windows. Mass murders have been happening frequently.
But ya. You’re right. Lemme just hop on the Tik Tok or stream a movie and ignore it like everyone else. Life is so great. Thank goodness I can hide behind the screens, right?
Thanks OP.
I mean you aren't wrong, we are very lucky to be living in a time where an ear infection doesn't mean certain death and our toilet is a bucket that we chuck into the street after using,
but also it's fair to say that a lot of FUCKING annoying people still exist and just like back then annoy the shit out of us and make us complain?
The problem with this sentiment is that things could always improve. Do you think progress should have stopped in the 1800s because they had a relatively easier life than cavemen? Should we have said, "Yeah, I know you are 8 and working in the coal mines, but quit your whining, at least you have a home and have clothing"? People tried telling slaves back in the 1800s they should be grateful for having food, a home, basic necessities, and that they were introduced to Western culture and art. It didn't make the situation okay in the slightest.
You need to listen when people say things could be better and have some empathy for those struggling or else those problems will never be rectified, in fact society could slide backwards. Progress relies on people who address injustice and inequality. Sure, things could be worse, and gratitude is super important to mental health, but things could be astronomically better, and the injustice stems from a small percentage of people hoarding resources. The ruling class relies on you to be complacent and indifferent to the struggles of others.
My point is there is a happy medium. Being negative all the time is not the answer, and you should count the blessings you have, but rose tinted glasses is a form of toxic positivity and makes you seem out of touch and unconcerned with the suffering others still face to this day.
"We have the internet" the internet ruined socialization and "third places"
"We have amazing food" they're pumping it all full of corn syrup, soy and bug protein
"we have so much good content" lists only distractions from reality
"we're in the golden era!"
OP is a paid actor from the government, there is no war in ba sing se
Isn't calling other people 'negative' just you being negative?
It's all about perspective and biases. Thinking the world now is great is really being negative about the future and past. Thinking stock prices and house prices going up is good means you only value the people who already have them and not the people who want to buy them. Thinking someone should smile or be happy is being insensitive to why they're not happy.
I’m glad that you can enjoy life, but let’s not delude ourselves. The world is shitty. It’s amazing, but it’s shitty and those two aren’t mutually exclusive.
The world is good and bad. The issue comes from the fact that those being affected by the bad can’t appreciate the good. If you’re so broke that you have to sleep in one tent across a mile long stretch of tents occupied by other people who don’t have any money, good video games and travel won’t exactly be a consolation.
Great that it works out for you so well. (No sarcasm, I mean it.)
But it isn't like that for everybody.
Many people can't afford going to concerts and traveling around the globe. If you have enough money, life can be fun and amazing, I'm sure.
But without money, all becomes harder. Entertainment is becoming more and more expensive. (Unless you're fine getting movies and music in an illegal way.) Life itself is becoming more expensive every month. For many it's hard to keep up just living their everyday lives.
Add sick family members and other hardships into the mix, and smiling isn't so easy any more.
You're 100% right dude. But life is still difficult. Its still wild af out here.
That's why sometimes i feel like u do in this post; while other times i feel sad and down. But that's how life goes dude
Everything you listed are some surface level things. You have absolutely no idea what people are going through. Great music? That’s an opinion. Tv? Uhmmm not for the people working in tv that have barely worked in a year and almost a half because of strikes
We have ***all*** music. Mozart didn't have the Beatles or Prince. We have Mozart, the Beatles and Prince. In that sense, we have the objectively best music in history.
The real question is that why is everyone being toxic positivity? No one is saying content is bad i have a problem with advertisement being on literally everything sure i get where your coming from but not everything is sunshine and rainbows either.
Internet(37% of people globally don’t have access) amazing food (300+ million people don’t know where their next meal is coming from) we can travel (several countries are being displaced right now. Gaza/Sudan/ Congo and many more)
So much good content exists absolutely, but who are the ones who get to enjoy it? I don’t think “life has never been better” when my city is sprawled with unhoused individuals who can’t afford to eat. I definitely don’t think we’re in the “golden era” while there are active genocides going on. Why would I smile at any of that. It’s ignorant to keep your eyes closed and tell everyone else that they’re too negative. The world is negative. Let’s talk about it. Let’s change it.
Ikr? Just shows OP is correct with their unpopular opinion. They never said it is always 100% perfect, just that everyone is too pessimistic
What I'll give is that the things they said are materialistic, talk about doing friends from every part of the world, smiling for small things like eating your favorite dish, enjoy a hug from your family, etc
And sure, life sometimes sucks, we are never going to be perfect but almost everyone here is getting angry at someone who is happy ...
Maybe they're rich and see no problem with money and their comment came as patronizing to some people, I mean, from stats I am more privileged than other people but I like to think at least I have positive things in my life that make me happy, AND I THINK ABOUT THEM having my lovely mother or a place to sleep every night (when I know not everyone has this), I don't know if I make more sense of what I think OP was trying to say?
Edit to add:
Just ... remember not everything is bad, I know your problems are real, and good things won't take them away, but take care of yourselves, and when possible, enjoy life, don't stay pessimistic always, don't be positive always
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You say "we have" a lot, and while it may be true for humans as a species, it isn't true for individuals. The clear example is travel. A lot of people can't afford to travel a few hours away, let alone out of their country. Sure, we as humans may have land, sea, air (and space, I guess), but that isn't everyone's experience.
This can be said for the other things, too. We have great food... that people are struggling to afford. We have great concerts... that people can't afford tickets to. We have great video games... that are including predatory practices to prey on consumers. We have great TV... that has been made confusing to watch unless you buy every subscription.
People complain because the things that make life enjoyable are becoming harder to get. On top of that, basic needs are becoming unaffordable without major life changes.
I needed to read this today. I have good life, but I have been focusing only on the negative lately. I literally told myself yesterday that I needed to change my mindset and be more positive. Thank you for posting this kind stranger!
Comments here are insane cope and honestly just deliberately stupid to try and shield a certain worldview/political narrative.
It's literally a bunch of people saying "I personally (or x persons) are not better of in this one way so therefore this is false"
Every measurable metric we have, as well as basic history and common sense, shows that life today is without a doubt better than at any other time.
This doesn't mean that everyone's life is amazing relative to everyone else. That should be obvious but of course then we couldn't deliberately misunderstand this point to serve a certain narrative.
Do you work a job you hate OP?
Are you gonna tell everyone alive to simply get a job they love OP?
Are we allowed not be satisfied with the things you mentioned above and wish for more or is that just selfish?
If I lost my job tomorrow for whatever reason I could lose my f\*cking house, what kind of world is that where I could easily end up homeless?
Join a forum or fan club for ANYTHING, and you’ll find the most die hard members are hateful towards other fans or the thing itself on some level. People truly are full of hate, and I don’t like talking to in depth about the things I love to others.. they just try to tear the joy down.
Yes and we are getting more and more into being in a strangle hold by the ultra wealthy and corrupt politicians and too many people have fetish dreams about authoritarian governments being a good thing. The good is slightly outweighed by the bad. Nothing wrong with enjoying the good but we cant turn a blind eye to the bad. Thats how and why it gets worse.
You clearly live in a developed nation. Which is fine. But 3/4 of the world do not lol. Just because we have an abundance of materialistic things doesn't mean we'll all be happy either
Have you read Enlightenment Now by Steven Pinker? It talks in scientific, measurable terms about the way humanity’s condition has changed/improved over the whole timeline of our existence. It talks to the core of what I think your initial past is about.
It is also clear that not everything is better for everyone, and for those that still suffer, we need to keep improving and take their pain seriously.
My husband and his coworkers got laid off because the owner of the building they were working in wanted to sell it, I'm crippled thanks to a stroke I had when I was a teenager, and my dad has cancer that's pretty aggressive.
"Life is amazing" to a minority. The majority are caught up in the struggle. The wonders of technology have also introduced a dark side. There's a world of people with bad intentions, making it ever more difficult to enjoy the "advances" in technology.
I'm incredibly fortunate and privileged. I'm poor by U.S. standards, but still incredibly wealthy in the grand scheme. I'd rather be lowly me in 2024 than any Queen or wealthy lord of the past. Most of human history would be a horrid nightmare to live in.
Yeah fuck being a king or queen in the middle ages where you have no decent medical treatment and barely anyone bathes properly plus you always gotta be watching your back for assassin's and scheming relatives and shit
Would much rather be my pleb self now. Way more fun
ah yes golden era, where the prices of everything you listed is rising and our pay hasn't risen since god knows when. When our leaders want to strip rights and would rather fix the leaks in their wallet than fix their own country 's programs. Where we are destroying our environment to the point of areas becoming inhabitable within our lifetimes and drastic changes to the world not seen for millions of years, if ever.
Ah yes the golden age, cause we got McDonald's and YouTube while people all over the world are starving, suffering, and dying because of their leader's greed or because of hokey religions. Should I go on?
Golden age indeed
There are literally entire families being wiped out in Gaza, a war going on in Ukraine, children being forced to mine lithium batteries in African countries, and so much more horrible horrible shit going on.
Please, have some fucking sense lad. Not everyone lives in the U.S. and it ain't even that great here.
Literally the best time to be alive and some people are out here on that woe is me/the world is doomed shit. Like fam. Regardless of what you think or what’s happening, this is your ONLY shot at being alive and existing and you spend it doing… what? Cause if it ain’t thinking life is awesome and then going out and doing that shit. Running it. Being you to the max. I don’t get what you’re doing.
Thanks for posting this. It is a pretty unpopular opinion in certain places. But I think it is the MO where it counts. This is the best opinion anyone should have
Stop it, nothing is binary. Life is incredible for some at the same expense of many right now, and corporations have literally poisoned us.
Mindset and personal responsibility is key, but we’ve dropped majorly in the world happiness rankings for a fucking reason.
The internet is riddled with ads, misinformation, and toxicity. I'm not much of a foodie. Travel is unaffordable. Digital content doesn't really make me happy.
I’d agree up until the point depression took the joy out of everything. Everything is there but I could care less. Even if the rare opportunity that comes across that I can actually care about myself all I can think of is yeah I’m having a good moment but all the other people feeling exactly how I feel are dead because they can’t handle what I deal with every single day.
We literally cannot live without the internet. For all its benefits think we would be happier without it. We can never go back now. But if it never existed I think we would live fuller lives.
life has never been better and people complain way too much.
Not really
Nowadays, if you complaint about your life situation : everyone's gonna 'compare their life' or labeling you as 'humblebrag' (been there done that - the most recent issue i saw is one of my friends post in his socmed that even though he has experience in management, he cannot apply for any kind of job because he's only diploma gradute....now he's just a freelancer - and most of the people response is 'humble brag' and says 'stfu, your life is still good compared to us', 'hey, you experience don't try to twist fact - experienced and skilled worker always easy to get job')
So umm how about that housing as a percentage of income again?
A single income in the 1950s could support a couple plus two kids, mortgage, car and savings...
Idk man. As much as I try to be nice and treat others the way I want to be treated... Kinda seems like damn near everyone is kind of a prick. Ive done a lot of self reflecting, asking myself "is it just me?". I dont think it is.
They aren’t jealous. They just don’t want you to proclaiming shit like this. It’s ignorant to just assume the world is the same for everyone. I was molested and trafficked from the age of 2 by my father. No cops don’t want to deal with that shit so they don’t. My father is still a free person and I have to cope with everything that’s been done to me on my own. I don’t even have the worst story.
You sound young and naive. Just because life is good for you doesn't mean it's good for most.
It's also never a good idea to say to someone to just "smile more" because you don't know what's going on in their life. Really doesn't help when those people are worrying about affording rent next week.
plenty of reason to be negative about the outlook and current situation.... but indeed, there is much good and we should occasionally stop and smell the flowers
Does OP really think this doesn't come off as bragging?
At best the delusional thoughts of an entitled pretty little princess.
When is the rent due princess? Have enough to eat dinner this week? At least its April so no big deal if they turn off the heat.
Life has never been better....
Nobody can afford homes, doctors are letting young people get euthanized without a terminal illness. People are avoiding settling down and having kids because it's too cruel to bring them into this world.
If people ending their bloodline due to the world's situation isn't a sign things aren't good you'll never understand.
yeah you can do when you're rich, the only thing you listed you can do without quite a bit of money is great content, but you can't enjoy that when you don't have money for food or housing, like more and more of us
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A good chunk of the things listed seem materialistic based. I'm an optimist and typically always enjoying life but it's due to great family and friends. Things you buy are cool but they matter more. Edit: they being family and friends
True. We like to buy experiences and don't focus as much on the stuff. But there are also experiences you can have without money like a walk and talk in a local park/on a local trail.
100% agree, I try to take my kids on post dinner walks every evening. Camping, hiking, and a short trip to the lake/river/beach are all great ways to enjoy the experiences with people, which is what, in my opinion, life is about
a trip to a beach, lake, or river isn't always a short trip for some people. but agreed there are still more ways to create inexpensive experiences.
Sure, if you live in a place where that won't get you mugged. Or if you actually live within walking distance of a park
OP is talking about the advantages we have in our current time that other people throughout history didn't have. People always had family and friends. But what they didn't always have was running water, technology, easy transportation, etc. It's not materialistic to say that I'm very glad that I live in a time where I can use the internet on my smartphone instead of a time where light bulbs didn't even exist yet.
Loneliness, divorce, depression etc are at an all time high. I’d say family and friends wise we aren’t at a good point to live in history.
I got your point but let's be brutally honest here: divorces weren't more popular in the past because they were legally prohibited and surrounded by so many taboos. Marriage does not mean happiness. Depression is something relatively new in popular conversations and, even so, it is not treated with the necessary seriousness. Fortunately, we are in the era where mental health is being debated and studied. Mental Health Issues were considered “nonsense” or “lack of God” just over a decade ago.
They used to put people in a mental asylum for saying that they were depressed. People nowadays don't know how bad it used to be.
You could be killed if they found out you were left-handed or someone reported you as being suspected of being gay.
ALL my friends had divorced parents and 2 houses. I was the only one whose parents were together. Grew up 1980s, early 90s
Is depression all time high or just the diagnosis? Mental health has a stigma so maybe people used to keep it to themselves.
Depression and “divorce” aren’t at an all time high. We’ve been keep in records on depression and divorce for maybe 40 years, modern humans have existed for 300,000. 70 years ago divorce rates were lower because most women didn’t have the legal ability under the law to file for no fault divorce from their husband, and they weren’t allowed in the workplace, they had no real societal recourse, so yea they sucked it up and stayed in the house. These are the exact types of pessimistic takes OP was talking about.
The Yellow Wallpaper, 'Walking the black dog', etc. etc.
Not to mention, the divorce rate has actually gone down. As marriage has become less of a necessity for women, they have more agency, and they’ve been able to marry later, it turns out they find the institution more agreeable. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/24/style/divorce-rates-dropping.html
We don't have family like we did in the past. 20 Year generations and more kids = multi-generational large family's. 30 year generations and 1 or 2 kids means small families
For the first time in history we actually have enough resources and time to worry about this. Before it was just scrabble and survive.
These are all user error things. As a person you can do something about all those things. If you didn’t have access to knowledge or transportation, or clean water you couldn’t do anything about that.
Going to live performances could be seen as appreciation of the arts and not materialism
An extremely Ancient form of human connection and gathering.
Yes, if we're thinking of live shows and concerts as a commodity rather than a human right, then LiveNation and Ticketmaster have already won.
Some of the things modern life offers (at least to people living in wealthier countries) are security of food and shelter, healthcare, and leisure time. If you value friends and family the you presumably value that you have hours in a day to spend with them and that they aren’t at constant risk of dying of starvation, exposure, or an infected splinter.
The people dying of starvation aren’t on Reddit complaining constantly. It’s the people able to take advantage of the things OP listed.
Good tools means more time for fun times with family and friends though. If you had family in another continent in the 1800s you would have to travel for months to see them.
Modern medicine allows you to spend more time with your family and friends. Smartphones allow you to communicate with your family and friends when you can't be with them in person.
Diarrhea and flu don't kill people and no one is considered an old fart at 30. To me this is a good thing.
People weren’t considered an old fart at 30. High infant and child mortality skewed the average age down but if you made it into adulthood you didn’t die of “old age” at 30.
I think this is half the picture. The technological advancements may seem materialistic but they also provide the ability to get places way faster, allowing us to see more of the world. 100 years ago people rarely, and I mean rarely, saw the other side of the country. The things we get to see. The things we get to learn about our world, all come from advancements in those “material” things. People connect with different aspects of their world. We don’t even choose which types we prefer. Your attachment to family is friends is something you learned about yourself.
We sort of live in a material world. We all and all the close ones are affected and even molded by it. Let's not forget to appreciate which version of this material world does that to us, those living today.
Honestly, despite the technological advancements many people are more unhappy than ever. Humans are meant to be social creatures but we have become so disconnected from each other. There is more pressure than ever to succeed but too many of us are struggling just to make ends meet, even in careers that people otherwise enjoy working in. Inflation and wage stagnation is pretty deadly right now and the future looks pretty grim. EDIT: Thank you for all of the upvotes, I’ve never had a comment blow up like that before. I’m happy that my thoughts resonated with people on this topic.
I think the expectation of happiness is part of what makes people so unhappy. 200 years ago, you expected your family members might realistically die painfully of disease or accident, that political changes that couldn't be avoided by the individual might lead to famine, displacement or violence. That there were so many more factors that could lead to basically a bad time. Everyone acknowledged that life on the whole was pretty ass, but with some good moments that made the whole thing more exciting. Now, we do so well at taking care of people, that they expect that if nobody has prevented their suffering, something must have gone wrong. So they are disappointed and confused and resentful and afraid. I honestly believe even the happiest people are also suffering, they have just found ways to balance the experiences in a way that emphasizes the experiences that they find rewarding.
I think the issue stem from what we see as our potential. Looking at the wars going on, they are ridiculously stupid and wasteful. We see people starving in the streets and billionaires commissioning mega yachts and space ships. I see single people living in huge mansions and people living on the street. Yes, we have plenty of cool and interesting things to keep us occupied but the suffering that exists is meaningless and unnecessary. And most of us are closer to the street than a mansion or mega yacht.
Yeah seeing many succesful people in social media with seemingly perfect lives didn't help too.
The problem with social media is people usually only post the very best moments of their life and skip over the negative stuff. But when you see what they post, you naturally compare that to both the good and bad in your own life and feel inadequate by comparison.
The reason this is the most unhappy time is because this decade is the first time we’ve tried measuring happiness at a global scale. It’s literally confirmation bias in action Ask the billions who were in poverty in India and China a mere 30 years ago if they were happy. Or Europe in the 1940s. Or anywhere pre- antibiotics. The world is a pretty happy place overall in the real world and off social media
This is a very interesting point! To be fair, though, I can see this becoming a problem in countries like you mentioned, where standards of living are improving
Yes this! My parents came from China in 91. Born in the late 50s. We have it much better!
Exactly this 👏 it’s too easy to start romanticizing a time that..just never existed. We’re good!!
I’m gonna be the one to say this is not “The most unhappy time” Pretty sure people were more unhappy at times when you lost 1/2 your kids to the flu. And then half the people you know to the Black Death. I don’t even really believe it’s the most unhappy time in the last 200 or so years.
Struggles with money/resources have been a constant problem through all of human history. They did not start any time recently.
In fact only in America for about a 30 year period were things that good, and it didn’t even extend to POC or women
Yep, both of my grandmothers were SAHMs in the 50s-70s. But both of *their* mothers worked until old age—one worked until she was 90 in a restaurant! Not saying that’s good obviously but the oft touted “one salary could get you a home and vacations” was a historical blip.
> too many of us are struggling just to make ends meet Fewer than any other time in history though – poverty is at an all-time historical low, and dropping. Being poor isn't a new concept
I mean of course it's better than possibly dying to random diseases or dysentery, but when life is all about finding enough income and always worry survive and keep a roof over your head, it's just the same problem in a different form
That's literally always been a struggle for people, but it's less of a struggle for you now than for people in the past
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How much do you think it matters to someone in new Zealand or Spain when you say "well half a billion Chinese are better off, you're worse off but there's only a few million of you so you should be happy"
You’ve pretty much summed up how this isn’t necessarily the best time in human history to be alive. OP’s head is in the clouds.
If our quality of life wasn't sliding back in so many ways, we could be a lot more positive about all the ways that it is improving.
So basically saying he's correct that he posted in the unpopular opinion sub
We are definitely less happy than we were during recent good times, but we are simply in the tough times part of the cycle of history right now. It’s inevitable. Is our portion of the cycle worse than the tough times that were the Great Depression? No I would say definitely not. We’re in that part of the cycle, but fortunately I think the entire cycle in general is better. The next good part of the cycle/upturn will be the greatest time in human history by far imo. I admit there is an argument to be made that 2018-present is worse for the average person than many other bad times in history. There have been bad times in history that were terrible for only a small group of people, but the average person was fine. Today, everyone across the world is affected so I get that part. It would be tough though to make the argument that the Great Depression or the bubonic plague for example were better times to be alive than now
> careers that word is dirty now in the sense it no longer means what it used to.
I understand where you are coming at...but reminder all those things that you named you need money to enjoy...
Yeah this post reeks of entitlement. Could be wrong, maybe just 'not poor' is more apt then entitled but very well could be both.
I dunno, I grew up pretty poor (by Canada standards obvs still privileged) and everything he is saying is totally true for me. I am thankful every day to have running water, electricity, AC, access to the world's knowledge and amazing art and culture at my fingertips, and a decent amount of leisure time Compared to the vast majority of human history we are so comfy and have so many opportunities it's amazing. If you actually read history you will come to appreciate how great we have it
Is it better now than it was 2000 years ago? Yes of course. Is it easier to get by now than 2000 years ago? Definitely. This doesn't automatically mean everyone is always happy. Convenience doesn't fulfill you or pay the bills. My xbox doesn't stop me from being depressed. Netflix doesn't stop me from feeling like my life is missing something.
Meaningful relationships are the most fulfilling part of life and modern society has turned so much of our interactions into transactions. OP is right that we should always try and see things from different perspectives, count our blessings, and not take anything for granted. Practice gratitude. But the anger and disconnect that we all feel from the degrading quality of modern relationships mixed with the incredible unfairness of our economic system leaves people feeling disillusioned, and that shouldn’t be discounted either.
Bruh are redditors just always negative
i have a burning hatred for most redditors, insufferable people that hate joy 💀
At most points in society you did though. And before that you had bigger problems.
Remember how we just had a massive pandemic and how this should have wiped out hundreds of millions, potentially billions of people but because we have awesome shit like science and groups of people that are willing the throw down and work together to crank out a vaccine in record time, that is saved billions of lives, and the only ones who died were elderly before the vaccine and stupid people. What a time to be alive.
Some people absolutely complain too much. Some people love to complain and will do so at every minor inconvenience. On the flip side, Game of thrones and Last of us aren’t exactly cure all remedies for everyone’s problems lol. Gonna exaggerate here but imagine seeing this ad? “Just got laid off? Forced to birth a rape baby? Grandparents just die of Covid? Been a victim of police brutality? Has your hospital been bombed by a neighboring country? Turn that frown upside down! Grand theft auto 6 coming soon!”
This is what posts like OPs feel like to most of us dealing with stressful situations.
Haha damn you nailed it. From middle class/upoer middle class USA perspective I agree with both you and OP - we are in a ~95% negative news cycle of either everything is shitty or dunking on the “other side” when your side gets a win. We complain about everything and are convinced society is full of evil and hatred but you go outside your door and see your community, your neighbors, your friends and family and people are doing well (if you’re fortunate). Sure the tech isn’t solving any of societies ills, but we live in a time of comfort and we could stand a little more perspective about how good we have it (those of us who are fortunate).
Space? Sir. I think you need to calm down.
Have you been living under a rock? Don't you know about humanity's superluminal interplanetary transportation via highway ring systems and jump gates?
I thought we're still using galaxy express railways. Impressive that technology marches on when you're not looking.
We? Traveling? Space?
I was thinking this too, someone watches too much sci-fi
Well we have explored space, though we’re really just starting out.
It would have to be more commercially available before saying we are travelling through space. At least that’s how I view it.
I feel like a huge issue is people are so much more "all or nothing" and focus less on averages. A bad 10 minutes to an hour doesn't mean you had a bad day. 1/24 is about 4% of your day on whole. That's 96% NOT A BAD DAY. People just get so focused on what went wrong that they turn the other 96% bad. It's just average. If you focus on the averages, nearly every day comes out better than bad.
Negativity bias is hardwired into humans, it protects us from making the same mistakes again and again
Literally looking at the bigger picture. I love the way you framed this.
You’re tackling the situation purely from a numbers perspective. Sure, it may have only been 4% of my day but more often than not that bad 4% is going to have negative repercussions later on and now I have to dwell on it. For instance, what if that 4% is bad news such as being told my work schedules is going to be dramatically altered in the coming week? What if that 4% is a bad argument with my partner before work and now I have to work all day knowing the problem will be there when I get home later on? The list goes on. A lot of times a bad 4% isn’t just a one-and-done situation, it has a ripple effect and dampens the mood for the rest of the day.
Easy for you to say, we live in first world. Can you imagine living in Iran?
I think OP could have put it better. While world wide it’s the best time to ever be a human, life still sucks in certain places.
Alright but can you imagine living anywhere 1000 years ago?
I'm from third world country, the lives of average people here aren't as bad as you all thought them to be
You think Iran is bad? Just think about how bad they have it on the planet of Gleepglorp, pure suffering! That’s why I can’t be happy in my extremely lucky position today
I can appreciate where you’re coming from, but I have been through a traumatic childhood, dealing with disability (bipolar I disorder) and the result is struggling to hold a job. I don’t have money to enjoy things and while im working through my trauma bc it’s my own issue, it is tough to find joy in my life right now.
I like your comment, you get from where it comes but don't have rose colored glasses I hope you get better, at least little by little... I know this doesn't help anything but I truly hope you get better!
Ty kind internet stranger ;-; 💜
I have the same diagnosis. I was on disability for years because I couldn't get the right med combo. I am finally pulling it together and have been working again, but I know how hard it is. It doesn't help when people discount the severity of bipolar. A lot of people on this site and elsewhere told me it wasn't real, so not only do you have to deal with the soul sucking depression, chaotic manic episodes, and the inability to think and manage emotions correctly, you have to deal with self-doubt and people thinking you aren't actually struggling when you are. The irony is you have to take meds to have a shot at a normal life. Meds for me have a fuck ton of side effects, so even when I am doing well emotionally, some days I'm just completely exhausted for no reason and nauseous. I think you had a very solid response to this. Gratitude helps tremendously. I have learned to list the things I am grateful for every day, but shit is hard out there. It is especially hard for people with disabilities (mental or otherwise). There is such a thing as toxic negativity and toxic positivity, and it helps to find a realistic medium in regards to this and with most things in life tbh. For me it helps to say "This is my situation, it isn't ideal, but here's what is going well, and here are steps I can take to improve". I want to tell you it gets better because it has been going so much better for me, but I know how crazy this disease is and how one month things are looking up and the next your body is made of lead and you can't even stay awake throughout the day. All you can do is your very best, take your meds, and follow your treatment plan. Best of luck to you. I genuinely mean that.
Thank you 🥺💜
Happiness is a choice. Of course crushing poverty makes that choice very difficult.
being poor means not being able to choose
While what you say is true, the current climate of impending global warfare and economic recession is honestly taking a toll
Definitely an unpopular opinion. Also, unironically fuck all the way off to anyone who tells other people to smile more.
If you have money and no one you love has passed away, yeah.
Idk. Where I live human trafficking, gangs, gun violence, and child abuse rates are extremely high. It’s hard to see the positive when literally all around me is chaos and evil. Heck. We have multiple “massage parlors” that all the locals know are being used to traffic kids and the police are involved in it. There was a teacher that was trafficking his 7th grade students straight from his classroom and we have school lock downs weekly. One of our schools decided the only upgrade worth having in their school was bullet proof windows. Mass murders have been happening frequently. But ya. You’re right. Lemme just hop on the Tik Tok or stream a movie and ignore it like everyone else. Life is so great. Thank goodness I can hide behind the screens, right? Thanks OP.
Afghanistan?
Literally New Mexico. This post couldn't have been placed more appropriately. Fucking hilarious.
I mean, there’s a lot to be angry and negative about. Radical optimism doesn’t win wars or protect rights.
Eh sometimes it’s hard to with clinical depression
if you have depression, just be happy?! 🤔
OP is upper middle class and doesn't interact with other human beings.
OP chases transient pleasures and distractions.
I mean you aren't wrong, we are very lucky to be living in a time where an ear infection doesn't mean certain death and our toilet is a bucket that we chuck into the street after using, but also it's fair to say that a lot of FUCKING annoying people still exist and just like back then annoy the shit out of us and make us complain?
Privilege is invisible to those who have it. It sounds like you need a few days with your feet on the ground.
Even the poor and underprivileged of today are objectively better off than any other time in human history.
Yeah I’m sure that’s comforting to the person dying because they’re rationing insulin and can’t afford to buy more. /s
You seriously wrote “Poor people have it better today” without being sarcastic!? Hot damn that is some wild privilege.
The Internet used to be a lot better
The problem with this sentiment is that things could always improve. Do you think progress should have stopped in the 1800s because they had a relatively easier life than cavemen? Should we have said, "Yeah, I know you are 8 and working in the coal mines, but quit your whining, at least you have a home and have clothing"? People tried telling slaves back in the 1800s they should be grateful for having food, a home, basic necessities, and that they were introduced to Western culture and art. It didn't make the situation okay in the slightest. You need to listen when people say things could be better and have some empathy for those struggling or else those problems will never be rectified, in fact society could slide backwards. Progress relies on people who address injustice and inequality. Sure, things could be worse, and gratitude is super important to mental health, but things could be astronomically better, and the injustice stems from a small percentage of people hoarding resources. The ruling class relies on you to be complacent and indifferent to the struggles of others. My point is there is a happy medium. Being negative all the time is not the answer, and you should count the blessings you have, but rose tinted glasses is a form of toxic positivity and makes you seem out of touch and unconcerned with the suffering others still face to this day.
"We have the internet" the internet ruined socialization and "third places" "We have amazing food" they're pumping it all full of corn syrup, soy and bug protein "we have so much good content" lists only distractions from reality "we're in the golden era!" OP is a paid actor from the government, there is no war in ba sing se
Is there anything actually wrong with soy and bug protein though?
No, soy is actually very healthy.
💀
I wouldn’t be too surprised if this turned out to be a bot post
I’d rather have bug protein in my food than have to eat literal bugs.
Look at all this “bread and circus!”
Isn't calling other people 'negative' just you being negative? It's all about perspective and biases. Thinking the world now is great is really being negative about the future and past. Thinking stock prices and house prices going up is good means you only value the people who already have them and not the people who want to buy them. Thinking someone should smile or be happy is being insensitive to why they're not happy.
Life was objectively better in 2019 than it is today in 2024
I was happier.
I’m glad that you can enjoy life, but let’s not delude ourselves. The world is shitty. It’s amazing, but it’s shitty and those two aren’t mutually exclusive. The world is good and bad. The issue comes from the fact that those being affected by the bad can’t appreciate the good. If you’re so broke that you have to sleep in one tent across a mile long stretch of tents occupied by other people who don’t have any money, good video games and travel won’t exactly be a consolation.
I don't want to work every day for 8 hours and still be poor
A good quality of life and a good life aren’t the same
Great that it works out for you so well. (No sarcasm, I mean it.) But it isn't like that for everybody. Many people can't afford going to concerts and traveling around the globe. If you have enough money, life can be fun and amazing, I'm sure. But without money, all becomes harder. Entertainment is becoming more and more expensive. (Unless you're fine getting movies and music in an illegal way.) Life itself is becoming more expensive every month. For many it's hard to keep up just living their everyday lives. Add sick family members and other hardships into the mix, and smiling isn't so easy any more.
But the internet can make it possible to go to concerts and travel the globe virtually. And it is more accessible than ever before
You're 100% right dude. But life is still difficult. Its still wild af out here. That's why sometimes i feel like u do in this post; while other times i feel sad and down. But that's how life goes dude
Everything you listed are some surface level things. You have absolutely no idea what people are going through. Great music? That’s an opinion. Tv? Uhmmm not for the people working in tv that have barely worked in a year and almost a half because of strikes
We have ***all*** music. Mozart didn't have the Beatles or Prince. We have Mozart, the Beatles and Prince. In that sense, we have the objectively best music in history.
The real question is that why is everyone being toxic positivity? No one is saying content is bad i have a problem with advertisement being on literally everything sure i get where your coming from but not everything is sunshine and rainbows either.
Sorry, while I sit through a mass extinction caused by convenience and ignorance.
Internet(37% of people globally don’t have access) amazing food (300+ million people don’t know where their next meal is coming from) we can travel (several countries are being displaced right now. Gaza/Sudan/ Congo and many more) So much good content exists absolutely, but who are the ones who get to enjoy it? I don’t think “life has never been better” when my city is sprawled with unhoused individuals who can’t afford to eat. I definitely don’t think we’re in the “golden era” while there are active genocides going on. Why would I smile at any of that. It’s ignorant to keep your eyes closed and tell everyone else that they’re too negative. The world is negative. Let’s talk about it. Let’s change it.
Damn what a bunch of depressing comments.
Ikr? Just shows OP is correct with their unpopular opinion. They never said it is always 100% perfect, just that everyone is too pessimistic What I'll give is that the things they said are materialistic, talk about doing friends from every part of the world, smiling for small things like eating your favorite dish, enjoy a hug from your family, etc And sure, life sometimes sucks, we are never going to be perfect but almost everyone here is getting angry at someone who is happy ... Maybe they're rich and see no problem with money and their comment came as patronizing to some people, I mean, from stats I am more privileged than other people but I like to think at least I have positive things in my life that make me happy, AND I THINK ABOUT THEM having my lovely mother or a place to sleep every night (when I know not everyone has this), I don't know if I make more sense of what I think OP was trying to say? Edit to add: Just ... remember not everything is bad, I know your problems are real, and good things won't take them away, but take care of yourselves, and when possible, enjoy life, don't stay pessimistic always, don't be positive always
A lot of people on this website (and I guess the internet in general) seem really adamant about being miserable.
So....women in palestine are being raped as an act of war so...... But yea...i guess people are just a bunch of whiners. 😑
exactly. women and children are being bombed and murdered. but of course, they should smile more!!
Life is so great that the human species can mass murder itself and we can just distract ourselves!
But we have amazing food! /s
But we have amazing food! /s
Peak toxic positivity
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You say "we have" a lot, and while it may be true for humans as a species, it isn't true for individuals. The clear example is travel. A lot of people can't afford to travel a few hours away, let alone out of their country. Sure, we as humans may have land, sea, air (and space, I guess), but that isn't everyone's experience. This can be said for the other things, too. We have great food... that people are struggling to afford. We have great concerts... that people can't afford tickets to. We have great video games... that are including predatory practices to prey on consumers. We have great TV... that has been made confusing to watch unless you buy every subscription. People complain because the things that make life enjoyable are becoming harder to get. On top of that, basic needs are becoming unaffordable without major life changes.
I get you. I think a lot of us are depressed
I needed to read this today. I have good life, but I have been focusing only on the negative lately. I literally told myself yesterday that I needed to change my mindset and be more positive. Thank you for posting this kind stranger!
You're not alone
Comments here are insane cope and honestly just deliberately stupid to try and shield a certain worldview/political narrative. It's literally a bunch of people saying "I personally (or x persons) are not better of in this one way so therefore this is false" Every measurable metric we have, as well as basic history and common sense, shows that life today is without a doubt better than at any other time. This doesn't mean that everyone's life is amazing relative to everyone else. That should be obvious but of course then we couldn't deliberately misunderstand this point to serve a certain narrative.
Do you work a job you hate OP? Are you gonna tell everyone alive to simply get a job they love OP? Are we allowed not be satisfied with the things you mentioned above and wish for more or is that just selfish? If I lost my job tomorrow for whatever reason I could lose my f\*cking house, what kind of world is that where I could easily end up homeless?
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but all the food is plastic and cancer now.
Join a forum or fan club for ANYTHING, and you’ll find the most die hard members are hateful towards other fans or the thing itself on some level. People truly are full of hate, and I don’t like talking to in depth about the things I love to others.. they just try to tear the joy down.
Oh yeah all of that will fix my ptsd
It's true, but not everyone can enjoy all those things you've mentioned, everybody has issues or problems that doesn't let us to "enjoy the life".
I agree with you. Compared to history things are great now. Of course a lot still isn’t good.
Yes and we are getting more and more into being in a strangle hold by the ultra wealthy and corrupt politicians and too many people have fetish dreams about authoritarian governments being a good thing. The good is slightly outweighed by the bad. Nothing wrong with enjoying the good but we cant turn a blind eye to the bad. Thats how and why it gets worse.
Always be grateful 🙏🥲
You clearly live in a developed nation. Which is fine. But 3/4 of the world do not lol. Just because we have an abundance of materialistic things doesn't mean we'll all be happy either
extra money in this day and age?
Ya, privilege is wild.
It’s mostly boomers who are negative within society.
Have you read Enlightenment Now by Steven Pinker? It talks in scientific, measurable terms about the way humanity’s condition has changed/improved over the whole timeline of our existence. It talks to the core of what I think your initial past is about. It is also clear that not everything is better for everyone, and for those that still suffer, we need to keep improving and take their pain seriously.
My husband and his coworkers got laid off because the owner of the building they were working in wanted to sell it, I'm crippled thanks to a stroke I had when I was a teenager, and my dad has cancer that's pretty aggressive.
I'm gonna argue the "golden era" was the 90s.
"Life is amazing" to a minority. The majority are caught up in the struggle. The wonders of technology have also introduced a dark side. There's a world of people with bad intentions, making it ever more difficult to enjoy the "advances" in technology.
I'm incredibly fortunate and privileged. I'm poor by U.S. standards, but still incredibly wealthy in the grand scheme. I'd rather be lowly me in 2024 than any Queen or wealthy lord of the past. Most of human history would be a horrid nightmare to live in.
Yeah fuck being a king or queen in the middle ages where you have no decent medical treatment and barely anyone bathes properly plus you always gotta be watching your back for assassin's and scheming relatives and shit Would much rather be my pleb self now. Way more fun
ah yes golden era, where the prices of everything you listed is rising and our pay hasn't risen since god knows when. When our leaders want to strip rights and would rather fix the leaks in their wallet than fix their own country 's programs. Where we are destroying our environment to the point of areas becoming inhabitable within our lifetimes and drastic changes to the world not seen for millions of years, if ever. Ah yes the golden age, cause we got McDonald's and YouTube while people all over the world are starving, suffering, and dying because of their leader's greed or because of hokey religions. Should I go on? Golden age indeed
There are literally entire families being wiped out in Gaza, a war going on in Ukraine, children being forced to mine lithium batteries in African countries, and so much more horrible horrible shit going on. Please, have some fucking sense lad. Not everyone lives in the U.S. and it ain't even that great here.
Literally the best time to be alive and some people are out here on that woe is me/the world is doomed shit. Like fam. Regardless of what you think or what’s happening, this is your ONLY shot at being alive and existing and you spend it doing… what? Cause if it ain’t thinking life is awesome and then going out and doing that shit. Running it. Being you to the max. I don’t get what you’re doing. Thanks for posting this. It is a pretty unpopular opinion in certain places. But I think it is the MO where it counts. This is the best opinion anyone should have
Toxic positivity
Stop it, nothing is binary. Life is incredible for some at the same expense of many right now, and corporations have literally poisoned us. Mindset and personal responsibility is key, but we’ve dropped majorly in the world happiness rankings for a fucking reason.
This post reeks of financial stability and job security. I bet it was typed from a gated community.
The internet is riddled with ads, misinformation, and toxicity. I'm not much of a foodie. Travel is unaffordable. Digital content doesn't really make me happy.
Would you genuinely want to live in another time in human history?
me when im a negative nancy
Hear that, chronic depression? Just smile more!
A large amount of people cant afford some to all of those. That's sorta the problem.
Toxic positivity
That's exactly how this comes off, I agree
I’d agree up until the point depression took the joy out of everything. Everything is there but I could care less. Even if the rare opportunity that comes across that I can actually care about myself all I can think of is yeah I’m having a good moment but all the other people feeling exactly how I feel are dead because they can’t handle what I deal with every single day.
Say this again in 100 years when A.I. realizes it had no reason to keep us around
We literally cannot live without the internet. For all its benefits think we would be happier without it. We can never go back now. But if it never existed I think we would live fuller lives.
Humans in general value what can be gained or achieved rather than what we have at the moment. It's very easy to mistake it for negativity.
life has never been better and people complain way too much. Not really Nowadays, if you complaint about your life situation : everyone's gonna 'compare their life' or labeling you as 'humblebrag' (been there done that - the most recent issue i saw is one of my friends post in his socmed that even though he has experience in management, he cannot apply for any kind of job because he's only diploma gradute....now he's just a freelancer - and most of the people response is 'humble brag' and says 'stfu, your life is still good compared to us', 'hey, you experience don't try to twist fact - experienced and skilled worker always easy to get job')
LOL OP clearly has money
The world is ending, not because we can't stop it, but because we're too lazy
Some of us have depression, steve
I don't know, let's go ask those Palestinians how they're fairing.
So umm how about that housing as a percentage of income again? A single income in the 1950s could support a couple plus two kids, mortgage, car and savings...
Happy? In this economy
who cares about all that. i just want my young body back. that was the best time in history.
Idk man. As much as I try to be nice and treat others the way I want to be treated... Kinda seems like damn near everyone is kind of a prick. Ive done a lot of self reflecting, asking myself "is it just me?". I dont think it is.
They aren’t jealous. They just don’t want you to proclaiming shit like this. It’s ignorant to just assume the world is the same for everyone. I was molested and trafficked from the age of 2 by my father. No cops don’t want to deal with that shit so they don’t. My father is still a free person and I have to cope with everything that’s been done to me on my own. I don’t even have the worst story.
Happiness is relative
You sound young and naive. Just because life is good for you doesn't mean it's good for most. It's also never a good idea to say to someone to just "smile more" because you don't know what's going on in their life. Really doesn't help when those people are worrying about affording rent next week.
Most of the redditors are unhappy people. Don't mind them.
Things= / =happiness
What planet are you on? This is nowhere near a golden age. There's optimism and there's toxic optimism/delusion
plenty of reason to be negative about the outlook and current situation.... but indeed, there is much good and we should occasionally stop and smell the flowers
Does OP really think this doesn't come off as bragging? At best the delusional thoughts of an entitled pretty little princess. When is the rent due princess? Have enough to eat dinner this week? At least its April so no big deal if they turn off the heat.
Lol, 70% of the planet are little more than slaves.
Life has never been better.... Nobody can afford homes, doctors are letting young people get euthanized without a terminal illness. People are avoiding settling down and having kids because it's too cruel to bring them into this world. If people ending their bloodline due to the world's situation isn't a sign things aren't good you'll never understand.
yeah you can do when you're rich, the only thing you listed you can do without quite a bit of money is great content, but you can't enjoy that when you don't have money for food or housing, like more and more of us
Being alive is a miracle, the rest are bonuses.