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> I can lament that my kids don't know how good they have it. They could counter by saying that 150mbps is a thing and it would enable them to do more. Are eith

• Brendinooo 9y ago
  There is a sense of entitlement that comes without context. If all anyone knows is the 40-hour work week, it'd be easy to think that we're entitled to it, or that we'd be better off with just 32. But when we learn of our grandfathers working 72-hour weeks (and maybe cleaning the foreman's house on Sunday) in extremely dangerous factories, that lets us appreciate both 1) the labor movement and 2) the status quo. Of course, our grandfather's grandfather probably worked the land for subsistence and had a much smaller say in his own destiny, so the fact that food is abundant and we can vote is really cool. If a music download goes slowly, would you rather be resentful and be look to spend more money on download speeds, and then you'll be really happy? Or would you rather appreciate that: - You didn't have to go to a live concert to hear the song - You didn't have to buy a vinyl that would wear out over time and skip during playback if you walked across the room too heavily - You didn't have to go out to the music store to buy a CD, or wait for a store to ship one to you - You didn't have to rip the song to your computer - You didn't have to buy the whole album to get the one song you wanted (if you're into that) - It cost less than a dollar - You had a broader selection of songs to choose from than any previous generation could have dreamed of I guess if your worldview is hedonistic this argument won't stick to you well. But, your reply doesn't give me confidence that you're able to find contentment in your life. Of course, that's assuming it's representative of your entire outlook on life! Trying to summarize my position better: Each piece of progress brings its own benefits and challenges. It can improve on what it replaces or not, but more likely it'll improve some things and hurt other things (cars come to mind!) There will be people who will benefit by the new thing and people who will be hurt or unaffected, but more likely it'll be a mix of both. If I had a clarity of mind before always-on Internet that I don't have now, and if I think that's a loss for myself, then it's my job to try and share or instill this perspective on a new generation that would have a very difficult time doing so on their own. Even if they reject me as a curmudgeon, maybe they gain and appreciation and thus contentment in what they now have.
  • Latty 9y ago
    You can enjoy what you have while still looking to improve it. I don't follow your argument that just because people want further improvement they are somehow "entitled". Just because something is better than the past doesn't mean we should be happy with it. I'm happy I'm not a slave, but that isn't my minimum bar for happiness just because it was for someone in the past. "Entitlement" seems to be the new way of telling our young people that they don't deserve to get anything better than (or even the same as) what their elders got. I don't buy that. I think my life is great, and I'm happy with what I have - that doesn't mean I'm going to stop trying to improve my life and the lives of others. Yes, knowing your history is important, for many reasons, but suggesting that we are "entitled" because we want to improve things further just sounds like trying to pull others down to your level out of jealousy.