whats wrong with society?

[kakihara]

humans are getting stupider.  I know, im a human too.  people and society in general just seem to be getting worse in many different ways. old and young. where i live, people are acting more aggressive, especially when they drive. everyday im  tailgated when im already going 15 miles over the speed limit. theres more than one lane, all this A-hole has to do is go around me, but im supposed to get out of his way. I do experiments sometimes just to see how somebody reacts. ill pass somebody just a little bit. they speed up. I speed up a little more. now they have to rev their engine to stay ahead of me. why do they have to beat me to the next red light? whats gained from this?  Im thinking that media has to do with this. everyone acts like theyre in a reality show. is everybody from the hood now?  i have violent impulses all the time, but i control them for the sake of me and my children. im usually pretty polite and courtious. i dont mind saying "excuse me" if i bump in to somebody. it seems to be looked at as a sign of weakness. whats wrong with us?

[tracy]

Well...I honestly think common sense is flopping around at the shallow end of the gene pool,trying to get out. Some folks are hyper-competative anyway plus all the high-powered energy drinks are making this worse. Also stress all around us and folks just seem to be getting meaner and self-absorbed. Things like manners don't enter into the thinking process or are even considered. Being the best...on top...no matter what....that's almost too readily accepted these days. I get that where I work every day. It doesn't occur to people to unfold that skanky wad of cash they throw on the counter or to excuse themselves from that cell phone call just long enough to even give me the time of day. They ignore their messes,dump trash all over the parkinglot,ignore their screaming kids racing about the store and use extremely offensive language.
Sorry....enough of my gritching...I wish I knew what their deal was.
*gets off soapbox*

[The Burgomaster]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P61pF_fmJGc
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[El Misfit]

Mostly media, parenting being somewhat submissive (giving 12 year olds or less M rated FPS's and with food), lack of concentration...The main issues like these. I'm not going into politics here without having other members be p**sed off.

[tracy]

Sadly you could go political with this...but I think it's simply that people just don't care enough about what they say and do anymore. Lack of accountability and blaming others for your mistakes,for one thing,and a serious problem with manners.

[indianasmith]

We have forgotten our history, and so we have forgotten who we are.  Up until 50 years ago, high school students still learned Latin in the classroom.  They read "the Odyssey" and Caesar's "Gallic Wars."  They were taught that Western Civilization was something to be appreciated and cherished.  Now they watch "Jersey Shore" and reality TV and the only books they read are the Twilight series . . . .

[Psycho Circus]

The problem, in my opinion, is with the advancement of technology (says me typing on an online forum). Whereby, everything in our world has become almost too convenient and it's making people lazy and reliant on media to help them think, teach and achieve. This leads to lazy parenting, which in turn leads to children with no true focus. I'm not saying this absolutely applies to every single person on the planet, but indeed, to a large majority. Manners go out the window due to the fast developing culture of "having it now" and possessing better products than the next guy.

[tracy]

The problem, in my opinion, is with the advancement of technology (says me typing on an online forum). Whereby, everything in our world has become almost too convenient and it's making people lazy and reliant on media to help them think, teach and achieve. This leads to lazy parenting, which in turn leads to children with no true focus. I'm not saying this absolutely applies to every single person on the planet, but indeed, to a large majority. Manners go out the window due to the fast developing culture of "having it now" and possessing better products than the next guy.

"the advancement of technology".....I agree 100%. And don't misunderstand me...I like this site very much and have met a lot of cool folks here. But I think with texting and online dating and many other forms of "communication" some are losing the ability to really interact with people. And getting whatever you want at any price is way too accepted. I don't have anywhere near everything I want or even a few things I could really use but I'm just dealing with what I'm luck enough to have.

[Raffine]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wCXr_6wgns
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[Cthulhu]

I'm not sure what to blame on society, and what on people...then again, this distinction might only be a minor issue.
One fundamental problem is, in my opinion, the lack of questioning. Questioning yourself, politicans, priests, any authority. People are awfully quick to believe things that some authority figure says, rendering them easy to be manipulated.
We, as humans, are also prone to the "Us vs. Them" mentality. This is dangerous, and it's exploited wherever it can be exploited. This causes people to dismiss opinions because of a label that they attach to the person presenting it. "Don't listen to him, he's just a stupid hippie/republican/democrat/conservative/liberal/(whatever, you can put any label here)."
There is also a general lack of empathy, I believe.
Another problem is that a lot of people are dishonest with themselves. They act selfish and arrogant, blaming others for things that is clearly their own fault. This intellectual dishonesty  is one of the major ills of society.
I think that if we introduced teaching psychology in high schools, we could improve upon the above stated problems.

One thing that is society's fault, not the people's (if these two can even be seperated) is making certain things taboo.
Sex is taboo.
Drugs are taboo.
Criticizing religion is taboo.
We are slowly eradicating this taboo status, but we still have a long way to go.

Then again, I'm not even 20, so what do I know?

[Allhallowsday]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wCXr_6wgns

Yeh!  And how old is that?  50 years ago?  If one looks at early 1930s FRANK CAPRA movies, you see his characters often encountering indifference, greed, corruption, cynicism... I think human beings have always been capable of wonderful consideration, and abject cruelty and selfishness.  It's our nature.  I think we live in a time where regular instances of such low behaviors are just easier to find or witness.  We all slip.  We all fall.  Yet, it is each individual's responsibility to rise up, take the high road, and care. 

[RCMerchant]

I think AllAhallows got it.
The world has always had evil...we just hear more about it because the media blasts it at us 24/7.
The Middle Ages,the Old West,WW 2-it's always been here.
All this cannibal stuff?
Remember Alfred Packer,Albert Fish,Ed Gein,Jeffery Dahmer...?
Genocide? The Roman Empire,the Crusades (on both sides),the Indian Wars,WW 2-?

Everything changes-and nothing changes.

[indianasmith]

Those last four words are a wonderful summation of human history, RC.
You are more of a philosopher than you realize sometimes.
Virtual karma!

[Mofo Rising]

Well, let me interject a slightly different opinion here. You always hear this argument that something has gone wrong with society, and it's predicated on the belief that things used to be better.

It's not true.

Human nature is just that, human nature, and it has always had its nasty side. For example, the '50s are always presented as the last wholesome period of American history. At least that's the way it's presented on television, but then you'd have to ignore the rampant racism and misogyny that was present during that era.

Things have always been bad, and they will always be bad. My advice, become a decent person. You're the front line in the battle for a better society. You will always be the front line for a better society. A better world starts and ends with you.

[tracy]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wCXr_6wgns

Yeh!  And how old is that?  50 years ago?  If one looks at early 1930s FRANK CAPRA movies, you see his characters often encountering indifference, greed, corruption, cynicism... I think human beings have always been capable of wonderful consideration, and abject cruelty and selfishness.  It's our nature.  I think we live in a time where regular instances of such low behaviors are just easier to find or witness.  We all slip.  We all fall.  Yet, it is each individual's responsibility to rise up, take the high road, and care. 

"Take the high road and care...."
That is it right there. Come on,folks....treat people like you would like to be treated.