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Why are all these comments so grumpy? “People are happy? What on earth is wrong with them?” The awful political situation right now has encouraged me to spend

Why are all these comments so grumpy? “People are happy? What on earth is wrong with them?” The awful political situation right now has encouraged me to spend less time keeping up with news, and to spend more time reading classic literature. So, thanks to Boris Johnson and Donald Trump, I am feeling more satisfied with life - just not in the way you’d assume if I just said “I’m happy in my personal life”.

happytoexplain 7y ago
This is dismissive and insulting. Justified or not, the people you're referring to are clearly incredulous that the poll accurately measures happiness, not that they think there is something wrong with being happy.
- SpicyLemonZest 7y ago
  I don't agree. It seems very much like they're saying people couldn't be happy; that given the current state of the country it would be wrong to be satisfied.
- blowski 7y ago
  I agree with you that the poll is probably poorly measured. However, there seems to be a lot of confirmation bias going on in this thread - “This surprises me, therefore it must be wrong”. They’re not point to any more reliable evidence that suggests the poll is wrong, just giving anecdotal opinions.
  - guidance 7y ago
    > 'I agree with you that the poll is probably poorly measured.' In point of fact, it's a blatant lie. Not a shred of truth to it. 90% of Americans happy with their lives? LOL. "Step away from the crack pipe." People are so happy to be alive they are at each other's throats daily over any one of millions of political disagreements. People are so happy they are checking out by the millions via drug overdoses and suicide. Close to 10% of the entire nation is in prison. Most of those work in sweat shops for big corporations at 50 cents an hour. I bet they're thrilled to be alive also. We're told unemployment is 2.7%, but when we calculate the numbers ourselves using the exact same methodology as the U.S. government used during the previous Great Depression, we find they have somehow misplaced a decimal point--and that unemployment now is in fact worse than it was in the 1930s. Which is obvious, to those of us who have eyes to see and ears to hear of all the "I hurt muh back" types roaming about the land, "getting a check", with no gainful employment to speak of. Anyone who doesn't believe me can go calculate the numbers themselves; but most won't. What about all of those people screaming about lack of health care, racism, etc; all roses and butterflies in the USA, amirite? Definitely no major shootouts going on between gangs in Baltimore and Detroit right now. No mile after mile of economic devastation, bombed out neighborhoods as far as the eye can see. Yet another example of the zen garden of bliss that is the USA, with 90% of everyone happy as can be. Tent cities full of homeless, as far as the eye can see, in major and increasingly even minor cities across the land? Must I really continue??? The USA, much like the rest of the entire world, is controlled by lying psychopaths. And you're complicit.

happytoexplain 7y ago

This is dismissive and insulting. Justified or not, the people you're referring to are clearly incredulous that the poll accurately measures happiness, not that they think there is something wrong with being happy.

SpicyLemonZest 7y ago
I don't agree. It seems very much like they're saying people couldn't be happy; that given the current state of the country it would be wrong to be satisfied.
blowski 7y ago
I agree with you that the poll is probably poorly measured. However, there seems to be a lot of confirmation bias going on in this thread - “This surprises me, therefore it must be wrong”. They’re not point to any more reliable evidence that suggests the poll is wrong, just giving anecdotal opinions.
- guidance 7y ago
  > 'I agree with you that the poll is probably poorly measured.' In point of fact, it's a blatant lie. Not a shred of truth to it. 90% of Americans happy with their lives? LOL. "Step away from the crack pipe." People are so happy to be alive they are at each other's throats daily over any one of millions of political disagreements. People are so happy they are checking out by the millions via drug overdoses and suicide. Close to 10% of the entire nation is in prison. Most of those work in sweat shops for big corporations at 50 cents an hour. I bet they're thrilled to be alive also. We're told unemployment is 2.7%, but when we calculate the numbers ourselves using the exact same methodology as the U.S. government used during the previous Great Depression, we find they have somehow misplaced a decimal point--and that unemployment now is in fact worse than it was in the 1930s. Which is obvious, to those of us who have eyes to see and ears to hear of all the "I hurt muh back" types roaming about the land, "getting a check", with no gainful employment to speak of. Anyone who doesn't believe me can go calculate the numbers themselves; but most won't. What about all of those people screaming about lack of health care, racism, etc; all roses and butterflies in the USA, amirite? Definitely no major shootouts going on between gangs in Baltimore and Detroit right now. No mile after mile of economic devastation, bombed out neighborhoods as far as the eye can see. Yet another example of the zen garden of bliss that is the USA, with 90% of everyone happy as can be. Tent cities full of homeless, as far as the eye can see, in major and increasingly even minor cities across the land? Must I really continue??? The USA, much like the rest of the entire world, is controlled by lying psychopaths. And you're complicit.