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I feel generally that everything is falling apart. I also have an article still pulled up from earlier this week titled Why Pessimism Sounds Smart. It seems p
by trey-jones 4y ago
I feel generally that everything is falling apart. I also have an article still pulled up from earlier this week titled Why Pessimism Sounds Smart. It seems pessimists are sometimes wrong! But sometimes they are right too - especially in the last couple of years I have observed incompetence seemingly everywhere I go. But is this the changing world, or my changing perspective? It's really difficult to pin down. At the same time, I read books that were published before I was born that allude to many of the same problems that seem so prominent in our society today, reinforcing the idea that We Didn't Start the Fire.
Still, the decline in quality of goods and services seems to be backed up by data as well as anecdote. I go to schools, churches, businesses. I see lightbulbs out. Things that are broken that could be repaired if only someone would put in 10 minutes of effort. My opinion: Everything is maybe falling apart in America specifically. I hope I'm wrong, for my childrens' sake.
- nikanj 4y agoUnfortunately said someone has been made redundant, and the parts wouldn’t be available anyway because all of the planets microchip factories are building bitcoin rigs
- 4ggr0 4y agoI think the question shouldn't necessarily be who started the fire, but if it is a good idea to just let the fire burn, even though you weren't the one igniting it.
- trey-jones 4y agoYes, that is how I think about it. Billy Joel's generation didn't start the fire, but they also sure as hell didn't put it out. Don't get me wrong. Some people are carrying buckets of water towards the fire, but there are other people poking holes in the buckets, or shoving them so that they spill the water, or whatever other metaphor you would like to use here. And also some people standing around and telling the people carrying the water that it's not the correct way to put out fires.
- 4ggr0 4y agoYes, exactly. And to add to your list, there are also people who are not carrying buckets, because "I didn't start the fire, others are making it worse, so what's the point in even trying to carry a bucket." The worst thing is feeling defeated, even though you could actually be helping. Doesn't even matter if you're carrying a shot glass or a whole barrel full of water, at least you're doing the best you can.
- notpachet 4y ago> whatever other metaphor you would like to use here Selling NFT's of the buckets.
- thaway2839 4y agoThe incompetence could also be a result of the fact that a lot of shit is happening at the same time. I suspect that the world after WW1, where they also faced many similar situations at the same time (pandemic, financial crash, etc), also looked pretty incompetent to everyone.
- TheOtherHobbes 4y agoThe US is a culture of authoritarian narcissism, and while it feels good - to some people - it's simply not sustainable. In the US it's more important to be rich than to be moral or right. But you can't deny mutuality, interdependence, and rational modelling of collective consequences without getting into some very broken places and bad outcomes.
- NoGravitas 4y agoI like the cut of your jib. Do you have a newsletter?
- msla 4y agoYou think Native Americans are inherently lesser than Europeans? I did not think I'd see such blatant racism on this website.
- asdff 4y agoMaintenance worker can't just pull over on a lark with a screwdriver and fix a wobbly thing anymore. someone needs to submit a ticket. we've processified everything to the point where it stops making sense.