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>Looking at the past few decades […] the world only got stupider, childish and lazier. insert obligatory throwback quote from some antique dude complaining abo

>Looking at the past few decades […] the world only got stupider, childish and lazier. insert obligatory throwback quote from some antique dude complaining about the youth This has been a trope since literally the beginning of civilisation. I don’t think it’s any more true or insightful in the modern era

paddleon 10mo ago
> I don’t think it’s any more true or insightful in the modern era hmm, based on what evidence? Or, if you prefer, based on what appeal to authority? Did you actually quote that authority properly or did you just wing it? Can you properly quote many authorities? If you don't have good answers to those, then perhaps you have just proved the your opponents point? Maybe there is a reason people need more compute in their key fob than what our parents/grandparents needed to pilot their ship to the moon?
- sallveburrpi 10mo ago
  “Our sires’ age was worse than our grandsires’. We, their sons, are more worthless than they; so in our turn we shall give the world a progeny yet more corrupt.” Horace, Book III of Odes, circa 20 BCE “Youth were never more sawcie, yea never more savagely saucie . . . the ancient are scorned, the honourable are contemned, the magistrate is not dreaded.” The Wise-Man’s Forecast against the Evill Time, Thomas Barnes 1624 Some more here https://historyhustle.com/2500-years-of-people-complaining-about-the-younger-generation/ https://historyhustle.com/2500-years-of-people-complaining-a... Either things have gotten continually worse for the last 3000 years or it’s just a tired trope from old men.
- handoflixue 10mo ago
  The onus of evidence is generally on the one making the initial claim: what evidence do you have that the modern world is actually getting worse? But if you want evidence that we're improving, I'd point out that 20 years ago, the mainstream US position was that gay people were evil, 60 years ago they thought black people shouldn't be allowed to vote, and 100 years ago they thought women were also inferior and shouldn't be allowed to vote. We can keep going back to when people thought "slavery" and "the divine right of kings" were solid ideas. So... if people were so much smarter in the past, why did they believe all these obviously-dumb ideas?
wiseowise 10mo ago
We have a generation which doesn’t know how to use computers anymore, thinks that floppy disk is an emoji and is literally addicted to virtual drugs.
- jason_oster 10mo ago
  When was the last time you watched Idiocracy?
- handoflixue 10mo ago
  Oh boy, let me tell you about people 60 years ago - almost none of them knew about floppy disks and they were all busy doing physical drugs at Woodstock.
miltonlost 10mo ago
It's not just the youth who are lazy and stupid and childish though. (you added in the youth portion.) Do you know who the American President is and how old he is and who then voted for him?
- sallveburrpi 10mo ago
  US America is not the focal point of the world, and it’s working hard to become less and less relevant. Also I think less than half of citizens voted for Comrade Krasnov. In any case I was looking at a longer view - maybe we have been getting more stupid in the last decade or so but who can say for sure?

paddleon 10mo ago

> I don’t think it’s any more true or insightful in the modern era hmm, based on what evidence? Or, if you prefer, based on what appeal to authority? Did you actually quote that authority properly or did you just wing it? Can you properly quote many authorities? If you don't have good answers to those, then perhaps you have just proved the your opponents point? Maybe there is a reason people need more compute in their key fob than what our parents/grandparents needed to pilot their ship to the moon?

sallveburrpi 10mo ago
“Our sires’ age was worse than our grandsires’. We, their sons, are more worthless than they; so in our turn we shall give the world a progeny yet more corrupt.” Horace, Book III of Odes, circa 20 BCE “Youth were never more sawcie, yea never more savagely saucie . . . the ancient are scorned, the honourable are contemned, the magistrate is not dreaded.” The Wise-Man’s Forecast against the Evill Time, Thomas Barnes 1624 Some more here https://historyhustle.com/2500-years-of-people-complaining-about-the-younger-generation/ https://historyhustle.com/2500-years-of-people-complaining-a... Either things have gotten continually worse for the last 3000 years or it’s just a tired trope from old men.
handoflixue 10mo ago
The onus of evidence is generally on the one making the initial claim: what evidence do you have that the modern world is actually getting worse? But if you want evidence that we're improving, I'd point out that 20 years ago, the mainstream US position was that gay people were evil, 60 years ago they thought black people shouldn't be allowed to vote, and 100 years ago they thought women were also inferior and shouldn't be allowed to vote. We can keep going back to when people thought "slavery" and "the divine right of kings" were solid ideas. So... if people were so much smarter in the past, why did they believe all these obviously-dumb ideas?

wiseowise 10mo ago

We have a generation which doesn’t know how to use computers anymore, thinks that floppy disk is an emoji and is literally addicted to virtual drugs.

jason_oster 10mo ago
When was the last time you watched Idiocracy?
handoflixue 10mo ago
Oh boy, let me tell you about people 60 years ago - almost none of them knew about floppy disks and they were all busy doing physical drugs at Woodstock.

miltonlost 10mo ago

It's not just the youth who are lazy and stupid and childish though. (you added in the youth portion.) Do you know who the American President is and how old he is and who then voted for him?

sallveburrpi 10mo ago
US America is not the focal point of the world, and it’s working hard to become less and less relevant. Also I think less than half of citizens voted for Comrade Krasnov. In any case I was looking at a longer view - maybe we have been getting more stupid in the last decade or so but who can say for sure?