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I think there was just much less "keeping up with the Jones" mentality then. Sure, people could see houses and cars, but they didn't have a real time feed of ev

I think there was just much less "keeping up with the Jones" mentality then. Sure, people could see houses and cars, but they didn't have a real time feed of everyone's "happy" moments on social media. No one felt bad that they weren't doing x y or z that their "friends" were doing because they never saw it. They had the people they were close with and not some massive cadre of people they've met throughout their entire lifespan that are in their social media feeds. Also, social media rarely portrays someone's real life. It's their highlight reel and the younger generations don't necessarily know that there's a difference I'd think.

steveBK123 4y ago
Yup someone had commented about social media FOMO that 1) you only see the good stuff and 2) class divisions are more apparent when your friend's friend who had a trust fund or struck it big posts stuff you wouldn't have been exposed to directly & locally pre-social media.
- steveBK123 4y ago
  Social media more directly exposes you to your friend-of-a-friend networks inner lives, through a glossy filter, that you'd never ever have imagined 10-20 years ago. The people who boomeranged back to their parents basement after college (or after dropping out) are not posting as much as the guy who made $10M on his startup at 25. Further, especially in HCOL areas, you are often adjacent to exponentially more wealth than you have.. which social media now shows. Pre social media I wouldn't have known much about my neighbors who are friends with a billionaire family / famous musician / etc and go to various exclusive resorts on their dime a few times a year... So for some, their basis for comparison becomes too wide and they end up always feeling "behind" when they baseline against infinite wealth.