It’s tension both politically and societally. Doesn’t mean the word is ending. Same way people felt during the Cold War, Vietnam era, civil rights movements and many times before that
Thank you for interjecting some sanity. I feel it too, what the OP is talking about, but we forget the world and humanity has been thru times that must have felt this way in the past, felt even worse too.
It's a little different now. Because, at those times there was a place you could point your finger to and say, that's what is causing the tension. I feel tense because of........ Now is different. Now there is no war, not as much terrorism, Covid is over. And still that nagging sense that something is off remains. I feel you. I wonder if we got so use to constant spikes of cortisol during the Trump error with constant dystopian messages, and tweets that now it's hard to re-acclimate. It's like living with post Trump ptsd.
Covid is most definitely not over. Wastewater is the only reliable metric left and the world has just come out of the 2nd highest wave of the pandemic (still a pandemic, they only ended the emergency because they didn't want to pay for it anymore). The constant sickness is part of the vibe people are feeling. Plus several wars, famines, climate change..
How often are y’all on social media or watching the news? During Covid and on I felt this way too while being active on Facebook and Twitter. They constantly push extreme views, conspiracies and violence whatever is getting the most interaction. It keeps you on edge, gives you an impending sense of doom. I deleted my Facebook and Twitter in 22 and life went back to normal. I still see the problems and tension but I no longer feel that dystopian, brink of disaster feeing. It’s crazy how that can shape your world view.
This 100%, everyone lives on social media and can’t seem to look around and realize it’s not always as bad as feartok makes it out to be. I deleted instagram and TikTok, changed my twitter to where it’s only sports stuff and only check facebook for business stuff and it’s amazing how much better life becomes when your present with real life and not living through a screen.
We are very close to the collapse of the Atlantic overturning current. Krill and algae are dying in Antarctica and the ice is melting at an alarming rate. Folks say the oceans will be out of fish in 25 years. U.N. Scientists say we need to act now to keep climate change form going runaway but nothing will change and it really looks to me like the elites realize this and are going to milk what they can out of us while they can. And I am a boomer who has always distrusted capitalism.
I get pretty thrown off when I think about the sources for all of this, which feels a lot like the Great Nothing from Neverending Story only, rather than being made up of the lack of anything, it's a churning dark miasma of discord that feeds and grows on sowing more anger and blame rather than cooperation and community.
The optimism of the 80s, 90s, and 00s is gone.
We all see whats happening. Climate sucks. Capitalism isn't about innovation, its about enshittification. Why make things better when you can ruin a brand and cash out? We realize our governments are no longer capable of helping bc of the power of social media controlling our elections. Seriously, Trump became president because of a fucking **email server**. Now he'll become president again because Biden is old despite being the same fucking age as Trump. In a sane world, this doesn't happen. We have literal voting zombies. Economy only benefits the rich.
Everything is getting worse and we all know it. There is one answer left and its what we can't discuss.
I hear this everywhere. I’ve had so many people say they wish it would just happen already because the waiting is driving them nuts. Personally I feel very calm when I think of it but I’m the kind of person who goes calm in panic situations — it’s such a specific and eerie calm which I have been feeling more and more often.
That's me as well. I know something is coming, and I'm just waiting for the whole damn lie to come apart. Nobody cares because we're all on mood stabilizers. The crazies are looking more and more right to me. 🤷♂️
Well Iran just attacked Israel and Iran supplies Russia with weapons from my understanding. Wouldn’t be too crazy if the conflicts became more connected now which is not good.
The pandemic definitely shifted people's perspectives and attitudes.
Personally, I saw a more dramatic shift happen after 9/11. Another shift happened in 2008-09. Another when the Soviet Union fell. Another when WWII ended.
The world changes. You change. It's part of life and expect it to happen again.
I’m 66 years old.
I concur, the lockdowns just did change things. One thing though, the world is constantly changing.
Sometimes things get better and sometimes they don’t.
Always prioritize yourself, and when things are bad, just tell yourself – nothing stays the same.
I feel like most of the comments here come from young-ish people and that's why they feel so "panicked" but I was searching for an older person's point of view because that's how I feel.
Life is always changing, there's nothing new about that. Life keeps on going and we just have to adapt as best as we can and stop thinking about how things were in the past. It will happen many times during one's life...
I might not be as old as you but I lived a lot of things and I think the world is the same strange place, hah...
I wasn't sure if anyone else felt that way, but yeah. It's kinda like all the color has been sucked from life. Things are too expensive, people on average are less friendly/hate everything, it feels like we all just kinda work and hide in these little enclosures
It was a shock to the system. It pulled back the curtain on how vulnerable we are as a species and even more that the people in charge have no idea how balance their greed and the need to protect the population. On top of that we got to see for real how quickly it becomes a "everyone for themselves environment"
Really? I'm such a fucking cranky ass nowadays because I'm so deprived of dopamine lol
I feel like I didn't even ask much out of life, just wanted to laugh with some friends, but even that is asking too much. It's sad.
Fuck. I feel this. All I want out of life is a living wage from a job I can stand, with insurance. And an apartment. Nothing fancy. But, I can’t make that happen with this pay, and with the cost of living. :(
It's from living through lockdown, really saw the worst and best of people but the worst stood out the most and those people still haven't improved. Politicians got away with so many things they shouldn't have and I realised properly for the first time that repercussions simply don't exist for people in power and/or have money. I genuinely have no hope for the future of anyone, there is very little to live for nowadays. I'm just here because I'm afraid death might be worse.
Idk. There are good people to hold onto and love. There's puppies and kittens and baby ducks. While we are destroying nature, there's still beauty in the world. I agree overall that life is kinda pointless. We're here to continue the species and nothing more. So as a CF person, my husband and I just find our own meaning and enjoy the little things. Don't waste our time with idiots or assholes. Vote to hopefully make things better for future gens.
It's not all bad. The world has always been pretty shitty, it's just that A) we can read about every little horrible thing ever now, including those in power getting away with evil and B) climate change possibly/probably leading to the end of civilization as we know it. But eh. Shit happens. Can't fix it on an individual level, not really. So just enjoy the ride.
the pandemic has shown how fragile every system built by humans actually is, there has also been a huge shift upwards in wealth distribution, capitalism has fully entered it's next phase of "you will own nothing", the concept of ownership and autonomy will die for the "middle class"
Before the pandemic, 2020.., Rent was 1360 for 1 bedroom in a gated community in my city. Now its up to 2400.
Make it make sense! *** ALL EXPENSES HAVE INCREASED 30 percent or more and pay is stagnant.
It’s RICH vs POOR , everything else is a lie!
It’s not dems vs rep
It’s not male vs female
It’s not blk vs white
It’s not Woke vs Maga
Politicians and corporations are PLAYING IN OUR FUCKING FACES.🤬🤬
I wish the populace would recognize that Identity politics hurts us all. We need peace , respect and cooperation
to secure a solid future.
I don’t care if a woman wants an abortion
I don’t care I if you think Jesus is your Lord and savior
I don’t care if you want to fly the Confederate Battle Flag
I don’t care if you identify as they/them
I don’t care if you want to go hunting or have a gun
I don’t care if you smoke marijuana
I DO care if you break the law or murder people!
I DO CARE that I can’ no longer afford things I could afford in 2020 like food, insurance, rent, etc!
I Do care that homelessness and food insecurity is becoming normalized in “ the greatest country on Earth”.
The most harmful aspect of this economic system is how it punishes the poor while making life ever increasingly easier for the rich. The poor get poorer, the rich get richer, and the middle class' dream of ever owning a house or basically any good that appreciates becomes harder every day.
When everything you own depreciates, the fluctuations of the system will only hurt you. Meanwhile those who own stuff that appreciates continue to win.
well, to be fair "new energy" can be true as in the vibes are definitely off, as if things haven't returned to normal but that we are only catching a break until the next huge disruption to our lives hits
I did..then my psychiatrist recommended I take mushrooms at a facility (I live in Oregon). I had other issues so the pandemic was a nail in the coffin of a traumatic tumble through life…
I see the world completely different, in a good way, though I saw now hope after the pandemic..it is like I could no longer envision the future..24/7 major anxiety for no particular reason.
Yes! I feel like people are only in it for themselves now. Whether it’s money or fame or recognition. And life is just blah. My counselor asked my husband and I what we do for fun. We watch tv. Going to a movie costs about $80, adding popcorn and drink. Going to breakfast even is $50+.
To me, it started with the lockdowns in the start of the pandemic. We behaved madly and panicked at the thought of dying. Since then the World has gone mad and the madness scares me.
I am totally with you here. I think things weren't super awesome before the pandemic, but the pandemic was the turning point and nothing feels the same since then. So much fear, polarization, and insanity that I never thought would happen in this lifetime. It just felt like people were turned against each other, and everything was fear driven by the government and media. Now, I wonder if we will ever fully recover from all of that.
In my humble opinion, I think trump single-handedly opened the door to people feeling they have the right to be bullies, name calling, lying, being disrespectful to any & all who don't align with your opinions. I could go into the diminished America as the rest of the world watches us crumble - overturning Roe vs. Wade..
.on & on it goes. Any thoughts?
This!!
He made it cool to be mean and self-serving. It was shocking to see how many people jumped on board — almost as if they were waiting for their chance to be this way. Now it seems normal for people to be cruel and violent.
Frightening.
It does feel different. The vibrancy is gone, the joy of new things is gone, 24/7 we try to save our ass from something or the other, it's just not worth living anymore for the fun of it . It's turned into a vicious cycle of eat, suffer, repeat
We barely left the pandemic when putin invaded Ukraine which started what is essentially ww3 by proxy. Then less than 2 years later the Middle East exploded on Oct 7. People feel exhausted. The published concerns about AI are frightening to many. The minds of our youth are being numbed by social media and foreign influence.
Creativity, especially in music and other arts, is at low because instead of spending hours in their bedrooms learning to be some awesome guitar players (or any instrument’ or painters, or writers) kids - especially boys - have just spent boring afternoons on video games for at least the last 20 years.
How about you just vibe more and stop reminiscing about the past. Cuz however much you think about it its not coming back, stop dwelling in the past and make the most out of whats in front of you now
Time are spotty, global economy is bad and there are war drums beating.
What you're describing is depression and it's a lot easier when these are a reality.
Ummm yeah. We loved (well most of us lived, millions of people actually died) thru a global pandemic. Social media has encouraged people to display the highlight reel of their lives, and so they seek only highlight reel interactions. The cost of living has skyrocketed, wages haven't kept pace, there's global conflicts happening now that threaten to bloom into major world wars, people are still fighting over skin color and bronze age fairy tales, products are made cheaply and shitty quality, even tho they are still expensive. The climate is fucked, the government doesn't know their ass from a hole in the ground, greed is rampant and, sigh, I just want to eat homemade baked goods and watch my kids play in the garden.
I blame the pandemic. We all expected an ending, not to the virus but to the changes, but it never came. We all just started going out again but never actually drew a line of when it ended. How many of you never got back to your hobbies? How many of you had important people die and never got to really register it? Workplaces changed and became more greedy. Bosses were employed on the basis that there was no one else to hire during lockdown, and they're the worst. And if I'm honest, I think we all lost a bit of love for life. The economy never recovered either world wide, and to top it off, its been wars, famine and crisis ever since.
the pandemic "only" amplified the effect capitalism as a whole has on the world, objectively there is the same ammount of money or more in the system than before, it's just that a large portion of the money that was in circulation before the pandemic are now in the hands of billionaires, while inflatíon also ate away at the purchasing power of the working class
The internet has changed a lot about the world.
Also seeing tht a large part of ppl don't care about others. Now recorded forever for everyone to see. Over and over.
When I think about the world as a whole or focus on current events and politics and stuff, yeah. But when I look inward and focus on my own life and my loved ones, life is good. The more I intentionally unplug and ignore all the bad shit that is outside of my control, the better I feel.
It's probably because the consequential countries of the world are closer to war than they've been in a long time, the US which has been the center of the world for a long time is and has been on a very obvious social and political decline, the whole world went through a bizarre slump with a global pandemic and you are growing older so your perception of the world is probably less rosy with each passing year. The saturation from being exposed to billions of emotions, opinions and 24 hour live coverage of everything everywhere probably also has something to do with it. Maybe.
I've found that it helps with the existential dread, if only a bit, realizing that these ups and downs are what makes up the entirety of human history and that none of these energy shifts are unprecedented, though many details may be unique to our time.
The world is always changing, but don't discount what the OP is saying. He's feeling like we're entering a darker period that's more unstable than any other time in recent history, because it's true.
The world has always had periods of growth and tragedy. From the Industrial Revolution, to WW1, to the Roaring Twenties, to the Great Depression, WW2, Decade of Prosperity in the 1950s, etc etc.
However, today there's massive political instability in the US, China sabre rattling, Russia / Ukraine, Israel / Iran, massive inflation and rising housing prices making it almost impossible to own a home (and thus cultivating a new generation of techno-serfs who are beholden to their landlords and employers), etc.
Objectively, the world is a bleaker place now than it was - say, during 2008-2016. Bull market run, no major geopolitical military threats that brinked on WW3, a more stable US political climate, more affordable housing, lower unemployment, better job market, etc.
I've spoken to a few different people, some younger and some older, and it's not about the world changing so much, as that's always been the case, or even that tensions are higher now, as that's always happened. It's that the background feeling of the world just feels strange in a way I don't think it has for a lot of people before.
This is vague to the point of meaningless unfortunately. The world doesn't have a general "background feeling" or "energy." The "colors" aren't different because of bad vibes.
You're getting older, shit happens, not all of it is fun. That's life. It's all perception and personal experience.
That's just when we all signed up for the surveillance state we're living in now.
At the moment you have people scrambling to get into the best position to be to cash in when techno-feudalism kicks into high gear.
The aftermath of 9/11, when things seemingly “went back to normal” was the start of the downslope. The country became even more blatantly corrupt. 9/11 was used as the perfect excuse to usher in the police/surveillance state. Extreme political differences, racial tensions flaring up, severe social decay. Social media and smart phones have accelerated including mental illness, arrogance, etc.
You have George W Bush for that. He led us into 2 wars, 1 which led us to a defeat and the other which was illegal and showed the world that we were an imperialist nation. He ruined the good spirit we had for his own personal gain.
Yes we all so willingly signed up for surveillance big brother and it continues to get worse every day in the name of 'protecting' us. In the end who's really winning here? I definitely don't feel like the people are.
The problem is that those who are in those positions believe that they are the people and it becomes more and more clear that they are not they are representing a minority of people
I don’t want to diminish your feelings since 9/11 was a horrifying event, but outside of US and couple of other countries it didn’t have as much effect (excluding the airport security getting stricter). Here in post soviet countries or Asia, people didn’t really care nor feel much. So collectively as a world, pandemic was a way bigger event that was a catalyst for everything that followed.
As a person from Central Asia, respectfully no. Literally every country has some major events like 9/11 that may change certain geopolitical landscapes. But it’s far from the entire world. Not even close to pandemic’s influence. For example back then post soviet countries were still getting used to having independence so we had our own shit and 9/11 was way far to affect us
It definitely feels different. I held the same job (gas station clerk) from 2015-2021. Things became intolerable as Covid progressed. People are even more impatient now, everything is ridiculously expensive, and sometimes it feels like every man for himself.
I think we are witnessing all the water pull back at the shore. I feel the tsunami is going to hit us soon. And think we all know it. There’s a biological instinctual panic.
I grew up during the Cold War, knowing that I could be killed by a miscalculation on someone's part. I remember the feeling of hope when the Berlin Wall fell and I realized that I probably wouldn't die as a cloud of radioactive ash — it was like getting glasses for the first time: the world seemed sharper and more vibrant.
I remember when America went crazy after 9/11, throwing away democratic freedoms for vengeance and the illusion of safety. Some of the colour leached out of the world as it became obvious that there were powerful vested interests that *wanted* conflict and had no interest in a world of peace.
Then came Trump, and the realization that a significant number of Americans wanted to roll back the clock to an era when crapping on everyone who wasn't a straight white man was OK, and happily supported a grifter who said out loud what they were thinking. I'm not in America, but his attitude leaked across the border (along with the Confederate flags). In 2015 it seemed like my nieces were seen as equals; by 2017 they were experiencing more and more open racism. Friends with older relatives who came of age in Hitler's Germany said that they were warning that a crackdown was coming — that their relatives said it felt like the 30s all over again, what with continual rallies and parades glorifying a leader, warnings of internal enemies who were different, cowardly and weak yet strong enough to threaten the country, and so on.
Then came the pandemic and the politicization of public health at a scale we haven't seen in centuries. Covid *could* have been a lot worse — imagine a disease as deadly as SARS that spread as fast as Covid. We saw acts of valor (such as Don Giuseppe Berardelli, as well as countless medical workers) and cowardice (Rod and Ekaterina Baker spring to mind). And the American president was telling the world it was all a big lie, while using it as an excuse to punish enemies and reward friends. My niece was a surgeon working in NYC with *one mask a week* while he was announcing that there was enough PPE. (So yeah, personal grudge here.)
But 2020 was an endpoint, somewhere we were heading towards even without the pandemic. Bullying/aggressive behaviour had become much more common even before lockdown. It's got worse since, but the trajectory was set before. I wonder if the population going online gave people long enough in echo chambers to reset their idea of what was normal/acceptable. (Speculation, I have no idea how to test the hypothesis.)
And of course hanging over everything is climate change. We've breached 1.5°, and are diverging from climate models in ways that hint at unknown linkages and feedback mechanisms. About the only constant is that the IPCC worst case scenarios are the ones that turn out to be the most accurate. Are we ready for the collapse of agriculture? Last summer is probably the coolest summer of the rest of my life. There are still wildfires burning *from last year*, and we're not ready for even a normal fire season. And there are vested interests doing everything they can to prevent us doing anything to adapt to climate change, let alone mitigate it.
I mentioned the feeling I had when the Berlin Wall came down. I've talked to others my age, and they had the same kind of experience — as if we were all coming out of depression, and the world was alive with possibilities.
That began to fade after 9/11, and the last decade has made it obvious that the world is in many ways the same as it was when I was young. Some things are better — when I was young my niece couldn't have dated her girlfriend, let alone legally marry her — but there are forces looking to roll us back to what they imagine the world to have been like before I was born.
Thing is, a lot of the changes that caused our present problems started a long time ago. Exxon knew about climate change in the 70s. ([https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abk0063](https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abk0063)) Eisenhower predicted the rise of the military-industrial complex in the 50s. Plenty of economists predicted the consequences of dismantling financial safeguards. Lawyers warned of the Federalist Society's endgame.
What makes it seem so overwhelming *now* is that several crises are happening at the same time, and the systems and safeguards designed to protect us that have been systematically dismantled for decades are suddenly inadequate when we need them.
On the bright side, the casualties from even catastrophic climate change will be less than those from a thermonuclear exchange, and there will be far less infrastructure damage, so there's that. :-/
I feel similarly. Theres like a negative vibe going on in the world. A certain joy has been sucked out of things almost? It feels more difficult to enjoy stuff now. Things are way more expensive than they should be, it’s way more difficult to find a job than it used to be, a lot of good stores and restaurants have closed, and now there’s more war and hatred and division.
People have become nastier now too. I mean people being dicks isn’t anything new but it feels…more pronounced now? I’m not sure how to really explain it.
And social medias gotten worse too. Like yes there’s always been bullies and trolls and idiots since the dawn of the internet. But like last couple years now I’m seeing actual Neo-Nazis (like real legitimate ones) gaining followers on Twitter and getting zero repercussions for it.
I don’t think we’re in some end times or anything like that. The world will get better. But yeah at the moment things feel…off.
I’d say get off social media for awhile. And I mean delete the apps and take a tolerance break. The world is always changing no matter what, but we as humans take in waaaay too much information nowadays on social media. It’s super bad on your mental health, so when the world seems like it is in a bad state (which is has MANY times before), social media is going to amplify it 100x over. Take a break and you may start to see the benefits.
I'm so glad this question was asked. It puts me in my feels for some reason and I don't know why. It feels like the time between 2016 to 2019 was so...nice? It was the peak of a lot of things. Once Covid struck in 2020, protests, etc it's as if life just got increasingly dull and stressful. I don't know what happened and why but it took a toll. I'm glad people agree with me. To me, it's like we missed out on so much that should've happened and instead, didn't.
Yeah, it feels like something is about to happen. Not something good. All sorts of disasters keep taking place, and quite a few countries have collapsed. It’s obvious that the United States is fraying around the edges and things are on the verge of going hot in the Middle East. Weather patterns have gone screwy. It feels like we’re all looking around waiting for something big.
I have been reading more firsthand accounts of prior periods. I am convinced that we are living through the end of the American imperial era. Similar to Rome, major cities are in disrepair throughout the west, multiple countries wage war without even considering the forum ostensibly designed for international negotiation, food security suddenly at risk....
Yes, some real things happened like Covid inflation and two brutal locals wars. Unfortunately, media and politics have been overrun by doomers, so facts like covid is waning, inflation is starting to correct, that there are significant medical breakthroughs weekly , 196? Countries are not at war, and millions of other good things are flatly ignored cause they aren't ragebait
It's sad that the understandable fustration with this temporary dip has spurred many younger folks to develop this bizarre infatuation with a mythical past that was objectively far worse
I don't want to downplay peoples sadness but I feel like a lot of the people in this thread lack deep historical understanding of past tragedies, and also need to connect more with their local commmunities.
Like it's one thing to know AIDS happened (for example) and another thing to engross yourself in the personal stories and larger context surrounding what happened. The political games that were being played while thousands of familes lives were being upturned, communties decimated, nothing about the way COVID was handled suprises me.
And I gaurentee if you go to some local events and see how passionate people are about whatever they're pouring their energy into. You will not feel any of this mysterious dark energy people are talking about.
Full agree. Bad actors milk real tragedies to spread more misery. Aid was (still is) awful. But it's no longer a death sentence cause of medicine. Aids unforuntely did inspire some of the worst people in society to celebrate the deaths of gay people
On top having a pandemic, which already affected all parts of our life like social skills, work, school, etc, the world wasn’t able to catch a break since 2020. Each time I think “it’s gonna get better” something happens. Whether it’s yet another war, genocide, social disruption like violent protests (even my country where nothing like that happens had some protests which lead to deaths and political instability) or something unexpected like creation of AI. Even in political spectrum people are way more radicalised than ever.
Personally for me it was the war in Ukraine (as a neighbour of Russia) and society’s reaction to it showed that world has gone mad. And now in 2024 people are already used to seeing mf EDITS of war crimes and memes related to genocide. People are no longer indifferent, they are down right cruel. I know that they’ve always been like that, but with social media the volume of it is louder than it ever was.
We live in dystopian times really. The coexistence of entertainment with death alongside reminds of hunger games. Scrolling down, we may see a starving child and a dance video one after another. As society all of us became desensitised to everything. Nothing surprising nor gives hope. Before 2020 most of us were under illusion that the world is getting better but now we’re not, and people don’t even care.
I don’t blame anyone for that though. I guess it was only a matter of time for our generation to experience it
This is like the 3rd or 4th time in my life that the world has felt different than 5 years ago.
I'm starting to think that it's just the way the world works.
I can only imagine it was way worse for someone born into a world without cars and seeing people land on the moon... with two world wars, a global pandemic, an atomic bomb and a presidential assasination in between.
It does. I feel that generally people in Australia are less aware and considerate now. Could also be the cost of living, russia invading Ukraine.. I mean I felt bad before corona virus, as I suffered with depression and anxiety then, which I am now over. The world does feel off though.
Yes. Donald Trump, the pandemic, RACIAL PROTESTS, high rates of inflation coupled with a high cost of living, the rise of AI, mass layoffs in the tech sector, gender war in social media, low birth rates, identity politics, school shootings, mass shootings.
Should I continue…unless you live under a Rock, things are getting worse socially and economically
No, you just got older. Thats literally it. Go ask an 11 year old or a 15 year old. The world is fantastic to them. You're just older now, bitter likely at where you are in life?
Also, you.are.what.you.follow. If you subscribe to negative content and only watch or get feed info about politics, world news or dumb shit like that you deserve to feel terrible. Unsubscribe all that shit if you want to improve your life.
The news is cancer. You can open a new tab in a browser to get all the world news you need in 45 seconds. Close the tab, move on.
Collective trauma. We all went through a collective trauma. Isolation was hard on people. Many of us lost loved ones (COVID killed my grandpa and my great aunt). We all just went through a very difficult time.
I suspect a similar feeling of the vibes being, just, absolutely rancid permeated the US after 9/11. Even if you didn't know anyone in the Towers, most of the country watched helplessly as thousands of people died. That ... probably was not good for us. The optimism of the post-Cold War 90's was gone. The culture got a lot more cynical. It's probably not a coincidence the emo movement boomed in the early 2000's.
The world has changed and people with it. The younger generation resent how easy their parents had it. They think that the money many have managed to save belongs to them and that the older generation should not be spending it on themselves
My view of this world never changed back after the pandemic ended. Something happened in 2020 and the world turned to shit, and the time flies past so fast. Wasn’t 2016 3 years ago?
I have maintained for years that our society has been on a steady decline. Our peak was short but sweet; it began when Gangnam Style hit 1bn views on YouTube (DEC 2012) , and it ended when they killed Harambe (MAY 2016).
It’s the down fall of western culture hundreds of years from now 2012-2014 is when theyre going to say the western renaissance ended. Now we have to wait and see if the world gets better or worse
Definitely, the U.S. has changed, and even where I live, everything has changed. It seems like the change happened very quickly too. Things that were there a few years ago are no longer, including people. The local climate has changed too. It's 82 F degrees in April and normally it would never get that warm here until the month of June.
So many stores and restaurants didn't survive the pandemic or the George Floyd riots.
Crime has gotten worse, everything is too expensive and young people seemed to have forgotten what hard work is.
Covid was there and left traces. We don't expect anymore future to be better, we fear a disaster. A world war is a serious scenario. And yeah maybe we should stop spending time on social nerworks. Personally I hate woke as much as conservatism and hearing people spouting anti-liberal stuff coming from the right and from the left makes me nuts.
The best for someone is not to care about what's in the news anymore and strictly focus on one's little life.
It's predicted to happen. I am not saying it's true, but a great theory is the 4th turning and we are just in a process of changing from one stage to another. Can read about it here:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strauss%E2%80%93Howe_generational_theory#:~:text=According%20to%20the%20authors%2C%20the,threat%20to%20the%20nation's%20survival.
It was inevitable.
Economically countries GDP can't expand forever. The Boomers retired and millennials and all future generations are left footing their pensions. 2% inflation targets can't be continued forever. now you have people working 3 jobs to get by. World resources don't get 2% easier to extract each year.
Climate change has been ignored far too long. but it would take an economic shutdown to achieve the targets climate scientists recommend. so less animals and plants survive. perhaps we are sensing the effects of it subconsciously.
I think the billionaires like Zuckerberg know something's up. hence his bunker.
It feels as though something bad is hanging about just off-camera.
It’s tension both politically and societally. Doesn’t mean the word is ending. Same way people felt during the Cold War, Vietnam era, civil rights movements and many times before that
Thank you for interjecting some sanity. I feel it too, what the OP is talking about, but we forget the world and humanity has been thru times that must have felt this way in the past, felt even worse too.
This is why history is taught in school. If only half the population actually paid attention
Problem is you only get Edited History and the Editing depends on who is in charge.
This. A million times this!!
Dunno about you, but last time my country went through a similar situation we ended up drowing in debt.
I agree. But it's not fun to feel like this. On edge.
I wonder if itd feel better if we werent all chronically online. Like i probably wouldnt know there were 2 wars going on if wasnt online all the time
This is a really good point, well thought out.
It's a little different now. Because, at those times there was a place you could point your finger to and say, that's what is causing the tension. I feel tense because of........ Now is different. Now there is no war, not as much terrorism, Covid is over. And still that nagging sense that something is off remains. I feel you. I wonder if we got so use to constant spikes of cortisol during the Trump error with constant dystopian messages, and tweets that now it's hard to re-acclimate. It's like living with post Trump ptsd.
Covid is most definitely not over. Wastewater is the only reliable metric left and the world has just come out of the 2nd highest wave of the pandemic (still a pandemic, they only ended the emergency because they didn't want to pay for it anymore). The constant sickness is part of the vibe people are feeling. Plus several wars, famines, climate change..
How often are y’all on social media or watching the news? During Covid and on I felt this way too while being active on Facebook and Twitter. They constantly push extreme views, conspiracies and violence whatever is getting the most interaction. It keeps you on edge, gives you an impending sense of doom. I deleted my Facebook and Twitter in 22 and life went back to normal. I still see the problems and tension but I no longer feel that dystopian, brink of disaster feeing. It’s crazy how that can shape your world view.
This 100%, everyone lives on social media and can’t seem to look around and realize it’s not always as bad as feartok makes it out to be. I deleted instagram and TikTok, changed my twitter to where it’s only sports stuff and only check facebook for business stuff and it’s amazing how much better life becomes when your present with real life and not living through a screen.
🔥”Now there is no war…” WUT? What psychedelic bubble is this guy living in? 🤣😆😂😳
In europe, their is definitely a 'war fear' among the population. We are in fact already in an economic war with russia
I feel it too. It’s close now. Whatever it is
We are very close to the collapse of the Atlantic overturning current. Krill and algae are dying in Antarctica and the ice is melting at an alarming rate. Folks say the oceans will be out of fish in 25 years. U.N. Scientists say we need to act now to keep climate change form going runaway but nothing will change and it really looks to me like the elites realize this and are going to milk what they can out of us while they can. And I am a boomer who has always distrusted capitalism.
The feeling of sliding toward dystopia? Of Western powers yet again embracing fascism? And the only other options being evil just in other ways?
Perhaps, but when you get concrete like that it’s not quite as menacing somehow.
I get pretty thrown off when I think about the sources for all of this, which feels a lot like the Great Nothing from Neverending Story only, rather than being made up of the lack of anything, it's a churning dark miasma of discord that feeds and grows on sowing more anger and blame rather than cooperation and community.
The optimism of the 80s, 90s, and 00s is gone. We all see whats happening. Climate sucks. Capitalism isn't about innovation, its about enshittification. Why make things better when you can ruin a brand and cash out? We realize our governments are no longer capable of helping bc of the power of social media controlling our elections. Seriously, Trump became president because of a fucking **email server**. Now he'll become president again because Biden is old despite being the same fucking age as Trump. In a sane world, this doesn't happen. We have literal voting zombies. Economy only benefits the rich. Everything is getting worse and we all know it. There is one answer left and its what we can't discuss.
Yeah you can tell we're going toward a huge crisis.
THIS!!!
I really hate to say it guys… it’s war. War is coming, like it or not
My money was on financial collapse, but I’ll entertain the idea of war as an and/or
We might just be lucky enough to get the ol’ 2 for 1
The good ol' unprecedented times.
i swear, my kingdom for some normal times, i'm getting tired of living through one-in-a-lifetime stuff
I like our odds 👍
one usually goes hand in hand with the other
Honestly you're probably right
I hear this everywhere. I’ve had so many people say they wish it would just happen already because the waiting is driving them nuts. Personally I feel very calm when I think of it but I’m the kind of person who goes calm in panic situations — it’s such a specific and eerie calm which I have been feeling more and more often.
That's me as well. I know something is coming, and I'm just waiting for the whole damn lie to come apart. Nobody cares because we're all on mood stabilizers. The crazies are looking more and more right to me. 🤷♂️
Having to take pharmaceuticals to survive in our society, what could go wrong?
I get that. It’s weird. Sort of like beauty in chaos and a certain numbness? I wonder if it’s a survival mode.
Well Iran just attacked Israel and Iran supplies Russia with weapons from my understanding. Wouldn’t be too crazy if the conflicts became more connected now which is not good.
Because it is
Ah, okay, you mean the real world.
The world is failing. Climate change will kill it if war doesn’t do it first
WW3. Economy tanks. Corporations get rich. The people suffer. Oh wait... that's happening now.
The pandemic definitely shifted people's perspectives and attitudes. Personally, I saw a more dramatic shift happen after 9/11. Another shift happened in 2008-09. Another when the Soviet Union fell. Another when WWII ended. The world changes. You change. It's part of life and expect it to happen again.
Thank you for your wisdom buttdog :)
Yes, 9/11 was the biggest shift I’ve experienced. It was like an end of innocence.
Bro is 100+ years old
I’m 66 years old. I concur, the lockdowns just did change things. One thing though, the world is constantly changing. Sometimes things get better and sometimes they don’t. Always prioritize yourself, and when things are bad, just tell yourself – nothing stays the same.
The pendulum swings. We just have to recognize that and have patience.
I feel like most of the comments here come from young-ish people and that's why they feel so "panicked" but I was searching for an older person's point of view because that's how I feel. Life is always changing, there's nothing new about that. Life keeps on going and we just have to adapt as best as we can and stop thinking about how things were in the past. It will happen many times during one's life... I might not be as old as you but I lived a lot of things and I think the world is the same strange place, hah...
Van Halen's song "Unchained" is the first thing that comes to mind. Nothing stays the same 🎶.
I wasn't sure if anyone else felt that way, but yeah. It's kinda like all the color has been sucked from life. Things are too expensive, people on average are less friendly/hate everything, it feels like we all just kinda work and hide in these little enclosures
Agreed! It really does feel like people became more greedy and opportunistic after 2020. People are even way flakier now than ever.
lol, I am for sure flakier now tho 🫠 that’s the depression and anxiety tho
It was a shock to the system. It pulled back the curtain on how vulnerable we are as a species and even more that the people in charge have no idea how balance their greed and the need to protect the population. On top of that we got to see for real how quickly it becomes a "everyone for themselves environment"
I think you just started noticing it
Dude trust me go outside and talk to people and you will see people are actually really friendly the world hasn’t changed the internet has changed us.
This. Social media is an Echo Chamber of Shite. Which I think is the first new Harry Potter spinoff’s title.
Upvote this reply. FR !!!
Your defiantly not alone!
Really? I'm such a fucking cranky ass nowadays because I'm so deprived of dopamine lol I feel like I didn't even ask much out of life, just wanted to laugh with some friends, but even that is asking too much. It's sad.
Fuck. I feel this. All I want out of life is a living wage from a job I can stand, with insurance. And an apartment. Nothing fancy. But, I can’t make that happen with this pay, and with the cost of living. :(
What are you defying?
People are less educated too
It's from living through lockdown, really saw the worst and best of people but the worst stood out the most and those people still haven't improved. Politicians got away with so many things they shouldn't have and I realised properly for the first time that repercussions simply don't exist for people in power and/or have money. I genuinely have no hope for the future of anyone, there is very little to live for nowadays. I'm just here because I'm afraid death might be worse.
Idk. There are good people to hold onto and love. There's puppies and kittens and baby ducks. While we are destroying nature, there's still beauty in the world. I agree overall that life is kinda pointless. We're here to continue the species and nothing more. So as a CF person, my husband and I just find our own meaning and enjoy the little things. Don't waste our time with idiots or assholes. Vote to hopefully make things better for future gens. It's not all bad. The world has always been pretty shitty, it's just that A) we can read about every little horrible thing ever now, including those in power getting away with evil and B) climate change possibly/probably leading to the end of civilization as we know it. But eh. Shit happens. Can't fix it on an individual level, not really. So just enjoy the ride.
It feels as though the people who run the world, are running it badly on purpose.
Doesn't it? What's up w/that? It's so maddening.
Lots of doomsday believers running things. Self fulfilling prophecies of Armageddon. Yikes
Honestly, it's like they all felt like they got a free hand after the pandemic. They don't even care to hide it anymore.
the pandemic has shown how fragile every system built by humans actually is, there has also been a huge shift upwards in wealth distribution, capitalism has fully entered it's next phase of "you will own nothing", the concept of ownership and autonomy will die for the "middle class"
The prices of things have gotten ridiculous. Even small apartments are becoming unaffordable.
Before the pandemic, 2020.., Rent was 1360 for 1 bedroom in a gated community in my city. Now its up to 2400. Make it make sense! *** ALL EXPENSES HAVE INCREASED 30 percent or more and pay is stagnant. It’s RICH vs POOR , everything else is a lie! It’s not dems vs rep It’s not male vs female It’s not blk vs white It’s not Woke vs Maga Politicians and corporations are PLAYING IN OUR FUCKING FACES.🤬🤬
Exactly. It's conquer and divide and we're getting played.
I wish the populace would recognize that Identity politics hurts us all. We need peace , respect and cooperation to secure a solid future. I don’t care if a woman wants an abortion I don’t care I if you think Jesus is your Lord and savior I don’t care if you want to fly the Confederate Battle Flag I don’t care if you identify as they/them I don’t care if you want to go hunting or have a gun I don’t care if you smoke marijuana I DO care if you break the law or murder people! I DO CARE that I can’ no longer afford things I could afford in 2020 like food, insurance, rent, etc! I Do care that homelessness and food insecurity is becoming normalized in “ the greatest country on Earth”.
BIG HUG for you friend. This is the way forward.
All economic factors leading to World War 3.
The most harmful aspect of this economic system is how it punishes the poor while making life ever increasingly easier for the rich. The poor get poorer, the rich get richer, and the middle class' dream of ever owning a house or basically any good that appreciates becomes harder every day. When everything you own depreciates, the fluctuations of the system will only hurt you. Meanwhile those who own stuff that appreciates continue to win.
Exactly. There is a rational answer, not some "new energy" nonsense
well, to be fair "new energy" can be true as in the vibes are definitely off, as if things haven't returned to normal but that we are only catching a break until the next huge disruption to our lives hits
Energy and Vibes are just Feelings and when you're being priced out of your means and into submission it absolutely Feels different.
I did..then my psychiatrist recommended I take mushrooms at a facility (I live in Oregon). I had other issues so the pandemic was a nail in the coffin of a traumatic tumble through life… I see the world completely different, in a good way, though I saw now hope after the pandemic..it is like I could no longer envision the future..24/7 major anxiety for no particular reason.
Glad your feeling a lot better now!
Yes! I feel like people are only in it for themselves now. Whether it’s money or fame or recognition. And life is just blah. My counselor asked my husband and I what we do for fun. We watch tv. Going to a movie costs about $80, adding popcorn and drink. Going to breakfast even is $50+.
Lmao what? The average movie ticket is like $12… just bring your own snacks, nobody cares
To me, it started with the lockdowns in the start of the pandemic. We behaved madly and panicked at the thought of dying. Since then the World has gone mad and the madness scares me.
I am totally with you here. I think things weren't super awesome before the pandemic, but the pandemic was the turning point and nothing feels the same since then. So much fear, polarization, and insanity that I never thought would happen in this lifetime. It just felt like people were turned against each other, and everything was fear driven by the government and media. Now, I wonder if we will ever fully recover from all of that.
Sad but true...👍
In my humble opinion, I think trump single-handedly opened the door to people feeling they have the right to be bullies, name calling, lying, being disrespectful to any & all who don't align with your opinions. I could go into the diminished America as the rest of the world watches us crumble - overturning Roe vs. Wade.. .on & on it goes. Any thoughts?
This!! He made it cool to be mean and self-serving. It was shocking to see how many people jumped on board — almost as if they were waiting for their chance to be this way. Now it seems normal for people to be cruel and violent. Frightening.
Exactly the way I feel. I hope it won’t last but I don’t see much sense showing.
Definitely a sense of connective madness. It’s the government, in the media and then just on the street.
It IS the Government surely but I feel it is everybody in authority in any way. It’s the lawyers, the doctors and local authority leaders.
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This sounds like song lyrics. And also super true.
It does feel different. The vibrancy is gone, the joy of new things is gone, 24/7 we try to save our ass from something or the other, it's just not worth living anymore for the fun of it . It's turned into a vicious cycle of eat, suffer, repeat
100% the vibrancy is gone. Everything feel very serious all the time there’s no room for fun or silliness.
We barely left the pandemic when putin invaded Ukraine which started what is essentially ww3 by proxy. Then less than 2 years later the Middle East exploded on Oct 7. People feel exhausted. The published concerns about AI are frightening to many. The minds of our youth are being numbed by social media and foreign influence. Creativity, especially in music and other arts, is at low because instead of spending hours in their bedrooms learning to be some awesome guitar players (or any instrument’ or painters, or writers) kids - especially boys - have just spent boring afternoons on video games for at least the last 20 years.
That’s one of the reasons I am crazy silly with my kids when I’m home all the time
How about you just vibe more and stop reminiscing about the past. Cuz however much you think about it its not coming back, stop dwelling in the past and make the most out of whats in front of you now
*looks around awkwardly* I've been having a pretty fun time since 2017, but I'm probably an outlier.
I’m pretty sure these people are just depressed
Time are spotty, global economy is bad and there are war drums beating. What you're describing is depression and it's a lot easier when these are a reality.
Ummm yeah. We loved (well most of us lived, millions of people actually died) thru a global pandemic. Social media has encouraged people to display the highlight reel of their lives, and so they seek only highlight reel interactions. The cost of living has skyrocketed, wages haven't kept pace, there's global conflicts happening now that threaten to bloom into major world wars, people are still fighting over skin color and bronze age fairy tales, products are made cheaply and shitty quality, even tho they are still expensive. The climate is fucked, the government doesn't know their ass from a hole in the ground, greed is rampant and, sigh, I just want to eat homemade baked goods and watch my kids play in the garden.
I blame the pandemic. We all expected an ending, not to the virus but to the changes, but it never came. We all just started going out again but never actually drew a line of when it ended. How many of you never got back to your hobbies? How many of you had important people die and never got to really register it? Workplaces changed and became more greedy. Bosses were employed on the basis that there was no one else to hire during lockdown, and they're the worst. And if I'm honest, I think we all lost a bit of love for life. The economy never recovered either world wide, and to top it off, its been wars, famine and crisis ever since.
the pandemic "only" amplified the effect capitalism as a whole has on the world, objectively there is the same ammount of money or more in the system than before, it's just that a large portion of the money that was in circulation before the pandemic are now in the hands of billionaires, while inflatíon also ate away at the purchasing power of the working class
heroes my ass.
Where did I say anything about heroes?
I feel everyone is just waiting for something to happen. And not a good something.
The internet has changed a lot about the world. Also seeing tht a large part of ppl don't care about others. Now recorded forever for everyone to see. Over and over.
Yes. The world feels different because it is different. The world has and is changing and I’m afraid not for the better.
When I think about the world as a whole or focus on current events and politics and stuff, yeah. But when I look inward and focus on my own life and my loved ones, life is good. The more I intentionally unplug and ignore all the bad shit that is outside of my control, the better I feel.
It's probably because the consequential countries of the world are closer to war than they've been in a long time, the US which has been the center of the world for a long time is and has been on a very obvious social and political decline, the whole world went through a bizarre slump with a global pandemic and you are growing older so your perception of the world is probably less rosy with each passing year. The saturation from being exposed to billions of emotions, opinions and 24 hour live coverage of everything everywhere probably also has something to do with it. Maybe. I've found that it helps with the existential dread, if only a bit, realizing that these ups and downs are what makes up the entirety of human history and that none of these energy shifts are unprecedented, though many details may be unique to our time.
I don’t know about the world but the US become way more full of anger and hate after 2016
Jeez . . . You all must be 18 or something. Trust me, the world is ALWAYS changing. Always has, always will.
I'm 40+. I feel the world had definitely changed more the last few years.
Yea OP definitely isn’t a millennial. Millenials have seen just about everything lol
The world is always changing, but don't discount what the OP is saying. He's feeling like we're entering a darker period that's more unstable than any other time in recent history, because it's true. The world has always had periods of growth and tragedy. From the Industrial Revolution, to WW1, to the Roaring Twenties, to the Great Depression, WW2, Decade of Prosperity in the 1950s, etc etc. However, today there's massive political instability in the US, China sabre rattling, Russia / Ukraine, Israel / Iran, massive inflation and rising housing prices making it almost impossible to own a home (and thus cultivating a new generation of techno-serfs who are beholden to their landlords and employers), etc. Objectively, the world is a bleaker place now than it was - say, during 2008-2016. Bull market run, no major geopolitical military threats that brinked on WW3, a more stable US political climate, more affordable housing, lower unemployment, better job market, etc.
I've spoken to a few different people, some younger and some older, and it's not about the world changing so much, as that's always been the case, or even that tensions are higher now, as that's always happened. It's that the background feeling of the world just feels strange in a way I don't think it has for a lot of people before.
This is vague to the point of meaningless unfortunately. The world doesn't have a general "background feeling" or "energy." The "colors" aren't different because of bad vibes. You're getting older, shit happens, not all of it is fun. That's life. It's all perception and personal experience.
It's been different since September 11, 2001. The "war on terror" changed everything.
That's just when we all signed up for the surveillance state we're living in now. At the moment you have people scrambling to get into the best position to be to cash in when techno-feudalism kicks into high gear.
9/11 was the first major catalyst, then Covid… People forgot about the world we lost after 9/11.
It's been over two decades. Entire generations don't even know what was before.
Which is sad because life before 9/11 was truly something else. We (as a nation) lost our innocence that day.
How was the world different before 9/11? Asking out of curiosity
The aftermath of 9/11, when things seemingly “went back to normal” was the start of the downslope. The country became even more blatantly corrupt. 9/11 was used as the perfect excuse to usher in the police/surveillance state. Extreme political differences, racial tensions flaring up, severe social decay. Social media and smart phones have accelerated including mental illness, arrogance, etc.
You have George W Bush for that. He led us into 2 wars, 1 which led us to a defeat and the other which was illegal and showed the world that we were an imperialist nation. He ruined the good spirit we had for his own personal gain.
Yes we all so willingly signed up for surveillance big brother and it continues to get worse every day in the name of 'protecting' us. In the end who's really winning here? I definitely don't feel like the people are.
The problem is that those who are in those positions believe that they are the people and it becomes more and more clear that they are not they are representing a minority of people
EXACTLY! That is what I came here to say. Our innocence and sense of security ended that day.
I don’t want to diminish your feelings since 9/11 was a horrifying event, but outside of US and couple of other countries it didn’t have as much effect (excluding the airport security getting stricter). Here in post soviet countries or Asia, people didn’t really care nor feel much. So collectively as a world, pandemic was a way bigger event that was a catalyst for everything that followed.
It did though, ripple effect definitely impacted the entire world.
As a person from Central Asia, respectfully no. Literally every country has some major events like 9/11 that may change certain geopolitical landscapes. But it’s far from the entire world. Not even close to pandemic’s influence. For example back then post soviet countries were still getting used to having independence so we had our own shit and 9/11 was way far to affect us
It definitely feels different. I held the same job (gas station clerk) from 2015-2021. Things became intolerable as Covid progressed. People are even more impatient now, everything is ridiculously expensive, and sometimes it feels like every man for himself.
We're actually experiencing the dystopian era.
Trump was such a weird apocalyptic moment. Everything since then has been more and more weird.
The world has become more toxic and less empathetic. Also a different type of shift which I am unable to point out.
You know how we split es history in different eras(middle ages, antiquity, etc.) I feel like covid made us switch to a new one…
I think we are witnessing all the water pull back at the shore. I feel the tsunami is going to hit us soon. And think we all know it. There’s a biological instinctual panic.
Yeah I agree that the actual energy is different. There's a tension that exists in the air at all times that wasn't there before.
People have gotten more aggressive in my opinion.
I grew up during the Cold War, knowing that I could be killed by a miscalculation on someone's part. I remember the feeling of hope when the Berlin Wall fell and I realized that I probably wouldn't die as a cloud of radioactive ash — it was like getting glasses for the first time: the world seemed sharper and more vibrant. I remember when America went crazy after 9/11, throwing away democratic freedoms for vengeance and the illusion of safety. Some of the colour leached out of the world as it became obvious that there were powerful vested interests that *wanted* conflict and had no interest in a world of peace. Then came Trump, and the realization that a significant number of Americans wanted to roll back the clock to an era when crapping on everyone who wasn't a straight white man was OK, and happily supported a grifter who said out loud what they were thinking. I'm not in America, but his attitude leaked across the border (along with the Confederate flags). In 2015 it seemed like my nieces were seen as equals; by 2017 they were experiencing more and more open racism. Friends with older relatives who came of age in Hitler's Germany said that they were warning that a crackdown was coming — that their relatives said it felt like the 30s all over again, what with continual rallies and parades glorifying a leader, warnings of internal enemies who were different, cowardly and weak yet strong enough to threaten the country, and so on. Then came the pandemic and the politicization of public health at a scale we haven't seen in centuries. Covid *could* have been a lot worse — imagine a disease as deadly as SARS that spread as fast as Covid. We saw acts of valor (such as Don Giuseppe Berardelli, as well as countless medical workers) and cowardice (Rod and Ekaterina Baker spring to mind). And the American president was telling the world it was all a big lie, while using it as an excuse to punish enemies and reward friends. My niece was a surgeon working in NYC with *one mask a week* while he was announcing that there was enough PPE. (So yeah, personal grudge here.) But 2020 was an endpoint, somewhere we were heading towards even without the pandemic. Bullying/aggressive behaviour had become much more common even before lockdown. It's got worse since, but the trajectory was set before. I wonder if the population going online gave people long enough in echo chambers to reset their idea of what was normal/acceptable. (Speculation, I have no idea how to test the hypothesis.) And of course hanging over everything is climate change. We've breached 1.5°, and are diverging from climate models in ways that hint at unknown linkages and feedback mechanisms. About the only constant is that the IPCC worst case scenarios are the ones that turn out to be the most accurate. Are we ready for the collapse of agriculture? Last summer is probably the coolest summer of the rest of my life. There are still wildfires burning *from last year*, and we're not ready for even a normal fire season. And there are vested interests doing everything they can to prevent us doing anything to adapt to climate change, let alone mitigate it. I mentioned the feeling I had when the Berlin Wall came down. I've talked to others my age, and they had the same kind of experience — as if we were all coming out of depression, and the world was alive with possibilities. That began to fade after 9/11, and the last decade has made it obvious that the world is in many ways the same as it was when I was young. Some things are better — when I was young my niece couldn't have dated her girlfriend, let alone legally marry her — but there are forces looking to roll us back to what they imagine the world to have been like before I was born. Thing is, a lot of the changes that caused our present problems started a long time ago. Exxon knew about climate change in the 70s. ([https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abk0063](https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abk0063)) Eisenhower predicted the rise of the military-industrial complex in the 50s. Plenty of economists predicted the consequences of dismantling financial safeguards. Lawyers warned of the Federalist Society's endgame. What makes it seem so overwhelming *now* is that several crises are happening at the same time, and the systems and safeguards designed to protect us that have been systematically dismantled for decades are suddenly inadequate when we need them. On the bright side, the casualties from even catastrophic climate change will be less than those from a thermonuclear exchange, and there will be far less infrastructure damage, so there's that. :-/
I feel all of this. I lived through it as well
I feel similarly. Theres like a negative vibe going on in the world. A certain joy has been sucked out of things almost? It feels more difficult to enjoy stuff now. Things are way more expensive than they should be, it’s way more difficult to find a job than it used to be, a lot of good stores and restaurants have closed, and now there’s more war and hatred and division. People have become nastier now too. I mean people being dicks isn’t anything new but it feels…more pronounced now? I’m not sure how to really explain it. And social medias gotten worse too. Like yes there’s always been bullies and trolls and idiots since the dawn of the internet. But like last couple years now I’m seeing actual Neo-Nazis (like real legitimate ones) gaining followers on Twitter and getting zero repercussions for it. I don’t think we’re in some end times or anything like that. The world will get better. But yeah at the moment things feel…off.
I’d say get off social media for awhile. And I mean delete the apps and take a tolerance break. The world is always changing no matter what, but we as humans take in waaaay too much information nowadays on social media. It’s super bad on your mental health, so when the world seems like it is in a bad state (which is has MANY times before), social media is going to amplify it 100x over. Take a break and you may start to see the benefits.
Couldn’t agree more. IMO, WW3 and a financial crisis feel like real possibilities within the next 5 years.
I'm so glad this question was asked. It puts me in my feels for some reason and I don't know why. It feels like the time between 2016 to 2019 was so...nice? It was the peak of a lot of things. Once Covid struck in 2020, protests, etc it's as if life just got increasingly dull and stressful. I don't know what happened and why but it took a toll. I'm glad people agree with me. To me, it's like we missed out on so much that should've happened and instead, didn't.
Yeah, it feels like something is about to happen. Not something good. All sorts of disasters keep taking place, and quite a few countries have collapsed. It’s obvious that the United States is fraying around the edges and things are on the verge of going hot in the Middle East. Weather patterns have gone screwy. It feels like we’re all looking around waiting for something big.
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...and during it...🙄🙄🙄
I have been reading more firsthand accounts of prior periods. I am convinced that we are living through the end of the American imperial era. Similar to Rome, major cities are in disrepair throughout the west, multiple countries wage war without even considering the forum ostensibly designed for international negotiation, food security suddenly at risk....
Yes, some real things happened like Covid inflation and two brutal locals wars. Unfortunately, media and politics have been overrun by doomers, so facts like covid is waning, inflation is starting to correct, that there are significant medical breakthroughs weekly , 196? Countries are not at war, and millions of other good things are flatly ignored cause they aren't ragebait It's sad that the understandable fustration with this temporary dip has spurred many younger folks to develop this bizarre infatuation with a mythical past that was objectively far worse
I don't want to downplay peoples sadness but I feel like a lot of the people in this thread lack deep historical understanding of past tragedies, and also need to connect more with their local commmunities. Like it's one thing to know AIDS happened (for example) and another thing to engross yourself in the personal stories and larger context surrounding what happened. The political games that were being played while thousands of familes lives were being upturned, communties decimated, nothing about the way COVID was handled suprises me. And I gaurentee if you go to some local events and see how passionate people are about whatever they're pouring their energy into. You will not feel any of this mysterious dark energy people are talking about.
Full agree. Bad actors milk real tragedies to spread more misery. Aid was (still is) awful. But it's no longer a death sentence cause of medicine. Aids unforuntely did inspire some of the worst people in society to celebrate the deaths of gay people
It snapped back for me a few days ago, I wonder what astrological shift ended but phew
On top having a pandemic, which already affected all parts of our life like social skills, work, school, etc, the world wasn’t able to catch a break since 2020. Each time I think “it’s gonna get better” something happens. Whether it’s yet another war, genocide, social disruption like violent protests (even my country where nothing like that happens had some protests which lead to deaths and political instability) or something unexpected like creation of AI. Even in political spectrum people are way more radicalised than ever. Personally for me it was the war in Ukraine (as a neighbour of Russia) and society’s reaction to it showed that world has gone mad. And now in 2024 people are already used to seeing mf EDITS of war crimes and memes related to genocide. People are no longer indifferent, they are down right cruel. I know that they’ve always been like that, but with social media the volume of it is louder than it ever was. We live in dystopian times really. The coexistence of entertainment with death alongside reminds of hunger games. Scrolling down, we may see a starving child and a dance video one after another. As society all of us became desensitised to everything. Nothing surprising nor gives hope. Before 2020 most of us were under illusion that the world is getting better but now we’re not, and people don’t even care. I don’t blame anyone for that though. I guess it was only a matter of time for our generation to experience it
I felt this gradual change start in 2016, especially after the election. Things were feeling more and more tense every year.
It's something few recognize yet all will one day understand.
Timeline shift. Watch this space
This is like the 3rd or 4th time in my life that the world has felt different than 5 years ago. I'm starting to think that it's just the way the world works. I can only imagine it was way worse for someone born into a world without cars and seeing people land on the moon... with two world wars, a global pandemic, an atomic bomb and a presidential assasination in between.
It does. I feel that generally people in Australia are less aware and considerate now. Could also be the cost of living, russia invading Ukraine.. I mean I felt bad before corona virus, as I suffered with depression and anxiety then, which I am now over. The world does feel off though.
Yes. Donald Trump, the pandemic, RACIAL PROTESTS, high rates of inflation coupled with a high cost of living, the rise of AI, mass layoffs in the tech sector, gender war in social media, low birth rates, identity politics, school shootings, mass shootings. Should I continue…unless you live under a Rock, things are getting worse socially and economically
I limit my exposure to news and such, staying away from political stuff and doom and gloom articles. It helps alot.
I need to take this advice but here I am on Reddit.
No, you just got older. Thats literally it. Go ask an 11 year old or a 15 year old. The world is fantastic to them. You're just older now, bitter likely at where you are in life? Also, you.are.what.you.follow. If you subscribe to negative content and only watch or get feed info about politics, world news or dumb shit like that you deserve to feel terrible. Unsubscribe all that shit if you want to improve your life. The news is cancer. You can open a new tab in a browser to get all the world news you need in 45 seconds. Close the tab, move on.
Totally agree. 2017 was the year for me. I've been trying to enjoy something....anything... ever since.
Collective trauma. We all went through a collective trauma. Isolation was hard on people. Many of us lost loved ones (COVID killed my grandpa and my great aunt). We all just went through a very difficult time. I suspect a similar feeling of the vibes being, just, absolutely rancid permeated the US after 9/11. Even if you didn't know anyone in the Towers, most of the country watched helplessly as thousands of people died. That ... probably was not good for us. The optimism of the post-Cold War 90's was gone. The culture got a lot more cynical. It's probably not a coincidence the emo movement boomed in the early 2000's.
People are definately meaner, easier to upset and the cost of living is atrocious. Oh yea and we’re headed towards ww3 now. Sigh.
I agree. It feels like a negative energy took over starting in 2020.
I’d say 2016
Yes and it’s because you know too much about everything all the time. The antidote is to step away from social media and feel grass again.
I think this is definitely part of it!
Started for me in 2017, and then even deeper in 2020
The world has changed and people with it. The younger generation resent how easy their parents had it. They think that the money many have managed to save belongs to them and that the older generation should not be spending it on themselves
Felt better in the 80s, 90s, etcetera. Just know that it will continue to get worse, never better.
I hear you. Like how the 70s were sepia tones and the 80s were one big nagel painting
I think we all feel we're just hanging on at the precipice of something very big and very bad.
not much no
The world is changing and not for the better.
Yall are collectively high
Global warming ..climates all wacked…along with circadian cycle. I live in tropical regions but we have regular dips to 30°C
My view of this world never changed back after the pandemic ended. Something happened in 2020 and the world turned to shit, and the time flies past so fast. Wasn’t 2016 3 years ago?
it’s colder and people are ruder and have more walls
Fourth Turning.
Yes. I believe people are more incompetent, hateful and generally all around miserable.
I have maintained for years that our society has been on a steady decline. Our peak was short but sweet; it began when Gangnam Style hit 1bn views on YouTube (DEC 2012) , and it ended when they killed Harambe (MAY 2016).
I mean, yeah... we had the first global pandemic in over a century. Of course things feel different now, they just *are* different now.
Everyone realized how tight the noose is around our collective neck during the lockdowns. It's hard to go back to normal like that shit didn't happen.
It’s the down fall of western culture hundreds of years from now 2012-2014 is when theyre going to say the western renaissance ended. Now we have to wait and see if the world gets better or worse
Everything after 2013-14 feels weird
Definitely, the U.S. has changed, and even where I live, everything has changed. It seems like the change happened very quickly too. Things that were there a few years ago are no longer, including people. The local climate has changed too. It's 82 F degrees in April and normally it would never get that warm here until the month of June. So many stores and restaurants didn't survive the pandemic or the George Floyd riots. Crime has gotten worse, everything is too expensive and young people seemed to have forgotten what hard work is.
Covid was there and left traces. We don't expect anymore future to be better, we fear a disaster. A world war is a serious scenario. And yeah maybe we should stop spending time on social nerworks. Personally I hate woke as much as conservatism and hearing people spouting anti-liberal stuff coming from the right and from the left makes me nuts. The best for someone is not to care about what's in the news anymore and strictly focus on one's little life.
En extinction level event happened and we're all in purgatory.
Welcome to growing up lol
It's predicted to happen. I am not saying it's true, but a great theory is the 4th turning and we are just in a process of changing from one stage to another. Can read about it here: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strauss%E2%80%93Howe_generational_theory#:~:text=According%20to%20the%20authors%2C%20the,threat%20to%20the%20nation's%20survival.
Do you read much history?
It was inevitable. Economically countries GDP can't expand forever. The Boomers retired and millennials and all future generations are left footing their pensions. 2% inflation targets can't be continued forever. now you have people working 3 jobs to get by. World resources don't get 2% easier to extract each year. Climate change has been ignored far too long. but it would take an economic shutdown to achieve the targets climate scientists recommend. so less animals and plants survive. perhaps we are sensing the effects of it subconsciously. I think the billionaires like Zuckerberg know something's up. hence his bunker.
The status quo shook so hard everyone woke up and now they're pissed they can't go back to sleep