why is it that our times are like the worst ever ;?

Question

insecurity, emotional problems, lack of values, stupidity, unemployment, hatred, fear, wars, wars, wars.......

Answer 1

I don't think they are.

Look at history from the beginning of most of time. It was horrible, horrible when it came to values, lack of violence, understanding human nature, hatred, wars, fears, and even emotional problems. On top of that as recently as the 1700's it took three months to cross the ocean by ship, there were no telephones for families to keep in touch, there was no air conditioning or any of the personal niceties we have today. Education wasn't what it is today. In the 1600's people were burned to death because it was believed they were witches who were possessed by demons when in reality they were poisoned by a rye crop in the area. There was the horrendous sin of slavery as recently as less than 200 year ago. There was a time when people's homes routinely burned down because they used gas lights or because lightning hit them (before lightning rods). There have been times when new babies born had to get through the risks of diptheria and other diseases that are now controlled by immunization.

In the U.S. even when industrialization came around life wasn't easy because of all kinds of mistreatment of people who worked at very hard jobs. The Great Depression made people who lived at that time believe they lived in the worst times ever, and World War II generation Americans either fought in terrible battles, worked in factories to make defense-related products, lost loved ones, got them back injured, or lived through black outs.

Children and women were often seen as having no rights. Women didn't vote until 1920. It wasn't until the 1970's when it was declared "The Year of the Child" and a set of rights that children should have against abuse were laid out in writing.

The 1950's created the impression of happiness because of the housing boom and the Baby Boom, but there was still horrible treatment of Black people in the South (and at times elsewhere). In many ways, parents didn't always understand child development well and made some unintentional mistakes with their children. In the 1960's there was social upheaval, people wanting to undo much of what had been believed in until then. There were riots. Drugs became something that wasn't just for derelicts anymore. Even with all that, life in the U.S. was seen as so much more polished and educated and sensitive and superior to the way life had ever been in any time in history. (If you want to see problems in life read "The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire").

I see the U.S. (which so often is followed by some other nations when it comes to social trends) as if it were a human child. Before its independence it was an embronic group of colonies. After it was "born" in 1776 it was an infant. For quite a while the nation was like a child - exploring, learning, growing, messing up, not quite grown. After childhood comes adolescence, and the nation, too, went through a period of adolescence. It was young, new, sometimes a little lost or a little immature. In its "teen years" its identity became stronger, and it may have become a little more rebelious in terms of its place among other nations. Eventually, though, the new nation grew into an adult, but a young adult. It was often accused of not having culture or much history. It still had some maturing to do, some philosophies to put some finishing touches on, and some higher education to get.

It was probably around the 1950's and 60's when the nation had reached more maturity; but it was still young. With the ushering in of the technology age came a new level of sophistication and a new set of challenges. With a better understanding of things like psychology, medicine, nutrition, general wellbeing, educational issues and other things that have seen tremendous strides over the last 40 or so years has come a new sense of "learning things you never knew you never knew" (a modified line from the song, Colors of the Wind, I know; but it fits here). With the new awareness of all the things nobody ever knew they never knew came mistakes, over-reactions, a pendulum that swung farther in one direction or another, and a society that was left feeling as if it was in complete upheaval. With the smaller world created by technology came not only more enlightenment and understanding, but also new threats.

People in the past sometimes didn't have the luxury of worrying about insecurity or emotional problems because they had to use washboards to do the family laundry and could sometimes treat illness with little more than a mustard plaster. In spite of some well publicized hatred, there is probably less now in the world than there has ever been before. It may be more concentrated now, so it may appear worse; but there was a time when hatred ran through a whole lot of people's veins and homes and it wasn't even considered wrong.

What looks today like lack of values is a matter of the pendulum swinging far away from previous "morality" that dictated that 19-year-old girls who got pregnant leave their towns in shame and secretly put their babies up for adoption. Today's apparent lack of values comes from the backlash from an earlier time when sex was seen as evil rather than something that's just a part of life. Maybe things have swung too far one way or another, but it may more be a matter of miscalculating rather than lack of values.

We are at a time when our lives are more complicated. Just as the high-tech electronics that replaced low-tech mechanical things require more understanding and care; our more complicated lives, too, require more understanding and care.
It has all happened so fast that I think our society hasn't really had time to catch up when it comes to meeting the requirements of this newly complicated society because we're way beyond transistor radios and color televisions and into a level of technology that has grown far faster than a society could have kept up with.

Another thing is that maybe some of the problems we can see today in our society are problems that existed before but weren't visible for any number of reasons.

I do think our society appears to be floundering quite a bit right now, but maybe that's the same kind of floundering that some young adults do when they try new religions, new lifestyles, new images, etc. It can be hard enough for one individual to find an identity, but for millions to build a collective identity from a fairly young but grown-up nation is obviously something that requires time.

Our nation is part Lady Liberty, who stands in NY harbor; part tired soldier, who may stand on any number of town commons, part shining star, part Rock of Gibraltar, part college co-ed in a girls-gone-wild video, part schoolyard bully at times, part rape victim at times, part Red Cross nurse, part shining city on a hill, part ghetto, and part purple mountains' majesty. Its no wonder she's having such trouble building an identity so solid that it makes her citizens so sure that all will most likely turn out ok.

There used to be one of those little plaques that have sayings on them that had the following saying: "Be patient. God isn't finished with me yet." When it comes to the culture keep that saying in mind. Things are not "the worst ever", and there is always the possibility that the best ever is (again, from the animated Pocohontas film) "just around the river bend".

Answer 2

In fact, there has been no American generation since the beginning of the United States, that has not seen war. Every 50 years or so, there is another war, always... Check it if you like, it's true.

Furthermore, we are FAR less insecure NOW than we were during the cold war.

People are MUCH happier now than they were during the great depression... And people are much more educated these days, seeing as how evolution was against the law a long while ago.

We are not as hateful NOW as we were back before black people had their deserved rights.

Unemployment was MUCH worse during the great depression.

People were a LOT more fearful during the cold war...

As for lack of values, that's a one sided perspective.

So, the answer is, "Absolutely not."

This is NOT the worst time ever... In fact, it is quite far from it...

Answer 3

I'll let you into a little secret ......... Everybody feels the same way and always have.

It doesn't matter how old you are or where you come from - What is happening now in your world always feels like it is the worst time in history. Ten years down the line, you and I will look back at nowadays and say "Ah those were good days, why can't it be like that now?"

When we look backwards, we look through rose-tinted glasses, when we look forward we do so with hope. The problem is that when we look at now - we see reality.

Try focussing on what is good in this world, there will always be conflict and problems but we still manage to survive.

Hope this helps

Answer 4

Every generation has different problems and each one seems to be so different. I think that times do suck but at least we have a higher survival rate. I'm happy to be around now. I am allowed to read; vote; go to school; college; I can marry or not; I can own land; own property at that; no one cares if I am a witch or not (I am not a duck); I can use contraceptives; the list goes on. The world is not perfect nor will it ever be. People should focus on the good.

Answer 5

There have been much worse times througout history.... some people only think it's worse now because they watch the news.

Remember: When it comes to broadcast news - There's no news like bad news.

I have not watched the news for several years and this world doesn't seem half as bad now. But if you listened to my parents, who watch the news every single night, the world is spinning out of control. I wish they would stop tormenting themselves and just start enjoying life.

Answer 6

people tend to have such problem because of desperation... most of the time they are doing things that are against their will to survive... some are making wars, because they hunger for more power, which affects common people's lives.

Answer 7

Because Bozo the Clown is running the show.

Answer 8

Because these things have to happen for the world to come to past. These things are fulfilled prophecies. Hope this helps...

Answer 9

Start using the term 'today is better than tomorrow'.

Answer 10

I think these things have always existed. Haven't they?