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

Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#341

Post by [deleted] » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:16 PM UTC

maerF0x0 wrote: post #327

Zircom wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>being a grown-ass adult in pajamas out in public I'm with you about all the other things but people wearing whatever clothes they want to affects you in literally no way shape or form.

> whatever X they want to affects you in literally no way shape or form. Replaced "clothes" with "X" to point out a pattern. This has been said a lot, and I'm not sure it's true. It's true on a case by case basis that individual freedom does not affect us perceptibly. But I'm pretty sure it's not true in aggregate. Maybe the PJs don't matter, maybe yelling in the stairwell at an apartment once a year does'nt matter.…

[deleted]

Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#342

Post by drewcon » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:17 PM UTC

cedws wrote: post #308

zeroonetwothree wrote: post #274

I don't know your age but I'm going to guess 30+. This is just happens when you get old. When you were younger you probably noticed that all the older people you knew pined for some earlier time (say the 1970s or 1950s). And you probably thought they were being silly. Well, now you've become one of those people. The fact is the world always seems better when you are younger, not because the world necessarily better,…

I'm 21 and I think everything's going to shit as well... is it doomerism or reality? Politicians appear increasingly corrupt and selfish. Geopolitics are becoming less stable. Innovation is coming to a standstill. The average person just wants a decent job, a nice place to live, and maybe a family. All of these are becoming more and more difficult to achieve. Is it any wonder kids are checking out of life en masse?

You’re wrong on pretty much every measure here.

Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#343

Post by kortilla » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:17 PM UTC

keiferski wrote: post #241

meheleventyone wrote: post #217

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Right but that’s a non-answer because norms change over time and place and that can only happen if people are allowed to change them over time and place. All you’re saying is that it’s subjective in a clouded way. At best you’re basically being left behind the cultural norm and probably should catch up.

No, it just means that norms should align with values. I have certain values and think that caring about aesthetics (personal appearance, nice architecture, clean spaces, beautiful art) results in a society that is better for me and other people.

>beautiful art

Wow, you just keep digging deeper. Pray tell, what makes some art beautiful and other art not?

Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#344

Post by JarekThrax » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:17 PM UTC

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Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#345

Post by operatingthetan » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:17 PM UTC

AnonCoward42 wrote: post #286

dinkleberg wrote: post #253

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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.

Gaslighting by definition requires ill intent or manipulation and you are conveniently ignoring that.

In your version pretty much any internet disagreement is gaslighting.

Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#346

Post by zeroonetwothree » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:17 PM UTC

nerdchum wrote: post #49

Little things I've noticed decay in my 40 plus years. I noticed credit card machines fail a lot more. Like 5 or 10 years ago credit card machines very rarely failed. Like you didn't even think about it. Now it's like a 25% chance the credit card machine I'm using will not work properly. This is not a new technology. No one lets you in in traffic anymore. you used to be able to put your blinker on and people would wav…

> Now it's like a 25% chance the credit card machine I'm using will not work properly. This is not a new technology.

I don't know where you live but I use my credit card around 2x a day and I can't actually remember the last time it didn't work. Conversely, I remember in the past having them bring out the manual credit card carbon copy machine when their system was done. I believe the last time I did that was around 2007 so it seems like things have gotten much more reliable since then.

Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#347

Post by laserdancepony » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:17 PM UTC

Zircom wrote: post #67

PessimalDecimal wrote: post #25

> People are noisy as fuck and dont seem to give a shit. Seems like every night there's someone with loud as exhaust on "sportish" car ripping around the neihborhood. For months this guy would start up his loud car at 7am and no one care when I complained. > Police seem to not give a shit anymore. I've noticed what seems to be total lawlessness going on in my world. Folks stealing shit. People driving absurdly danger…

>being a grown-ass adult in pajamas out in public I'm with you about all the other things but people wearing whatever clothes they want to affects you in literally no way shape or form.

I enjoy the fact the American „clothing culture“, e.g. going to the shop in rags, hasn’t caught on in Europe yet.

Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#348

Post by imbnwa » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:18 PM UTC

lamontcg wrote: post #203

maerF0x0 wrote: post #165

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah the stock trading in congress is another one for your list. I sometimes feel like America is the most corrupt country I've ever encountered. it's not overt like "Pay me $50 and you can avoid a ticket" but it's pernicious and wide spread. - Law makers trade on what they're going to vote prior to voting it - charging people a different price for the exact same procedure, at the same location, under the same market…

Yeah America has largely avoided the little corruptions like the cops shaking you down for money, but we've got massive amounts of large corruption instead. Although the way that corporations are looking for any kind of new parasitic revenue stream they can find (flip around displays with tip amounts growing everywhere) are sort of a kinder, gentler style of little corruptions.

That one popular Greek economist pointed this out in the way Northern Europe critiques Southern Europe as 'corrupt', the economist points out that while Southern Europe is rife with highly localized corruption, it is Northern Europe that is the breeding ground for systemic corruption by elites (pointing out various banking scandals, etc)

Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#349

Post by snowwrestler » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:18 PM UTC

tejohnso wrote: post #117

> Anyone else have other examples? Elected president who is so crass and generally offensive he wouldn't have gotten close to being elected 50 years ago. Elected president who is showing clear signs of age related cognitive decline (so they say) but continues to occupy the office. Elected presidents with criminal behaviour that is far worse than what previous presidents were impeached or resigned for. Mental illness,…

Maybe what is declining is a knowledge of history? Like, compare Andrew Jackson to Trump, or Reagan or FDR to Biden; it’s no contest. Public mental illness, drug abuse, homelessness were all worse during the 1980s and that’s just in my lifetime. Go farther back in U.S. history and there were entire cities of homeless, destitute, starving, and sick people. The idea that “homelessness” is even a problem that society should collectively address is barely 100 years old. Prior to that people died in the streets all the time and the only public funding was to pick up the bodies and bury them.

Re: Ask HN: Why Is Everything Declining?

#350

Post by foobarian » Sat, Jan 28, 2023, 9:18 PM UTC

maerF0x0 wrote: post #278

ignoramous wrote: post #245

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Reminds me of this tweet by Derek Thompson (writer at The Atlantic ): In 2022, we: - Reversed organ death in pigs - Made the first embryo from stem cells - Made a pan-influenza vaccine - Saw the beginning of time - Got best-ever results from cancer & obesity therapy trials - Maybe cracked the case of multiple sclerosis From: https://twitter.com/DKThomp/status/1600864770751860737 ( https://archive.is/pi95L )

To be clear I'm not suggesting that specific advancements aren't being made. It's more like things that matter are going away and the things we're getting do not affect most of us. eg: something like 99.95% of the planet (all but 1-2 Million) have 0 or near 0 benefit from most of those findings (save for maybe the vaccine). But important things are going away -- treating people well, having happy lives, justice and b…

I think the generations that were raised coddled, spoiled, and helicoptered are getting into the workforce and administration, and it shows. Police can do much less nowadays because of red tape. The bad apples can do less damage too, but the rest are less empowered as well and the productivity suffers.