Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#281

Post by snowwrestler » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:04 PM UTC

eldritch_4ier wrote: post #237

ok_dad wrote: post #121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It only affects people who care about what other people wear, and those people shouldn’t have any sort of societal influence because that’s stupid. Name literally one reason that wearing pajamas in public will cause another person actual harm and I’ll take back this statement.

Would you dress that way to meet your partner's parents for the first time? Or to see a friend you haven't seen in years? Or to represent your company at an event? What about going somewhere where you are expected to be a role model? Of course not. That's because you give a shit about the impression you give in those situations and understand the kind of atmosphere and impression it gives if you dress like a bum. Now…

Love reading sentiments like this on Hacker News. Hackers are so well-known for their adherence to social norms on dressing up.

Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#282

Post by yawnxyz » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:04 PM UTC

Having moved from the US to Sydney in the last year, Sydney feels like the US mid-2000's, where generally things still felt more stable, prices weren't terribly crazy (except for buying a house), and the streets are extremely safe. Kids still wander around and take public transit by themselves like I did as a kid in the 90's in Europe.

In terms of "rosy retrospection" there's probably a bias on the other side — things can get better or worse; they shouldn't always be improving. The last five years seem markedly worse than the five years before that, in terms of stability and safety etc.

However- I think this period of instability is might lead to the next positive shift in how we live our lives and our relationship with technology. (e.g. collectively we'll be moving away from social media)

Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#283

Post by bmitc » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:04 PM UTC

I am convinced that this is the case. The reasons for it, I think, are actually quite simple.

* Software automation has destroyed the human role in society. No one knows anything anymore bor are they allowed to accomplish anything anymore. Just 15 years ago, I could call Amazon and get an American worker on the phone who could contact other departments directly and solve exceptional problems. I distinctly remember doing this in one instance where the person actually cared about getting me a single book. Now, I am lucky if I can even get the automated service to get me a person on chat, and even then the person is basically only allowed to do what the system allows them, but for exceptional cases they can maybe override it. This really destroys motivations of both customers and workers because we're just literally pawns in a massively connected and ubiquitous but wholly dysfunctional software system. I recently had a weird delivery issue where the customer service person didn't even have the capability or knowledge or want to just call the shipping warehouse. I had to just wait weeks until the system was able to handle it.

* The other thing is inequality is just off the rails. People realize that hard work and doing the right thing doesn't matter. This really beats people down when everything continually gets more expensive and more hidden behind obtuse systems. Companies do not care about individual customers anymore. A customer is merely a statistical model. All of this is because capitalism worships scale, which further drives inequality. Inequality creates this "every person for themselves" attitude.

We're in the age of "the computer says no". Technology and capitalism are destroying individual human value. This is literally the matrix. The architects are just the super rich.

Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#284

Post by goostavos » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:04 PM UTC

eldritch_4ier wrote: post #215

adrianmsmith wrote: post #189

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But how far do you go? Using that approach, people 100 years ago wearing a suit and tie and a hat would probably want to ban what we wear today, on the grounds of broken glass theory. Yet we are (I presume) law abiding citizens here, etc.

It's really not that intellectual or complicated. Just don't dress like a bum in public? Not everything needs a theorem or rigorous, tested, scientifically researched set of rules. Nobody is asking you to walk around in a 3 piece suit, there is no slippery slope or conspiracy theory here, it's just "dress like you give a shit about the public space and others in it".

Big neckbeard energy with these comments.

Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#285

Post by wesapien » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:05 PM UTC

wesapien wrote: post #276

noud wrote: post #7

I think you're way off base. It's called rosy retrospection, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosy_retrospection . As you already mentioned in your comments, you're judging the past disproportionately more positive that the present. If you really want to know if everything is declining, try measure it everyday for the next five years. For example, every day, rate your personal well being, track how (un)happy you are wit…

This reminds of a classic Late Night with Conan O'Brien episode when Louis C.K. was the guest. He is very right. We adopt to the new normal so fast. We need more people feeling gratitude. It is tough since modernity is focused on consumption.

Here's the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdFB7q89_3U

Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#286

Post by AnonCoward42 » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:05 PM UTC

dinkleberg wrote: post #253

Beaver117 wrote: post #192

Earlier quoted context omitted.

[flagged]

You need to read up on the definition of gaslighting. That is a nasty accusation and inaccurate.

Telling people that the reality is not what they see and they imagine things, is - so to speak - the definition of gaslighting. Gaslighting might be hyperbole and surely I made it a bit more pointed, however I see how his post can be seen as gaslighting.

Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#287

Post by bottlepalm » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:05 PM UTC

I think it’s part of growing up that you become a lot more aware of all the problems in the world.

Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#288

Post by noodleman » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:05 PM UTC

laserlight wrote: post #153

keiferski wrote: post #134

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Respect for other people, general social norms, polite behavior, personal dignity, and in general just a respect for one's appearance and a desire to make "civilization" aesthetically appealing. People seem to enjoy living in beautiful buildings with green parks nearby, without pollution or noise, and yet somehow think dressing like a slob or putting zero effort into one's appearance is unimportant. To be honest, if…

> if you don't find this obviously true Not the one you're replying to... Not only I don't find this obviously true, but also I find it obviously wrong. I prefer people stop being offended by how others look and stop judging people by their looks. I consider such attitude very shallow.

I'm not going to defend the other commenters point but I find your position strange.

Imagine a person covered in poo, ripped clothes leaving visible track marks from using intraveinous drugs.

I'm sure if you were forced to interact with that person, you'd not be happy, right? Does that make you shallow?

I'm not sure someone wearing pyjamas is the slippery slope the previous commenter thinks it is, but their point about preferring people who make themselves more presentable is valid.

Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#289

Post by ryan93 » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:05 PM UTC

keiferski wrote: post #89

This is pretty much just the inevitable consequence of a market-based, individualist society that is obsessed with removing any standards or expectations on behavior, cultural output, language use, dress, or anything else. Unfortunately, I don't expect things to improve until people start caring about their local communities (i.e. the other people around them) and "Society" in general in a concrete, actionable way, a…

Probably hard to do without religion. Dont mention europe. They have marginally larger governments.

Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#290

Post by shigawire » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:05 PM UTC

goostavos wrote: post #250

eldritch_4ier wrote: post #210

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Dress how you want in your own house. The public space isn't yours and you don't have a right to dress indecently in the public space. Turns out, some of us want to live in a society that takes itself seriously and gives a shit. Walking around in your Cookie Monster PJs just doesn't cut it. THIS mindset is what I think is the root of all the other listed problems. Somehow freedom has come to mean "I can do whatever I…

Holy crackers. When I see a person wearing PJs in public, I think -- actually, I guess I don't really think about it beyond "huh.. PJs in public." You're out there stewing on it, writing about it on the internet, and literally thinking that people wearing things you don't like is stemming from a mindset that's at the root of society's problems. This casual insight into madness is what keeps the internet exciting.

This line of reasoning is very popular with the "west in decline due to anything I personally dislike crowd".