You were lied to about the future as a kid.

[Tetrakemy 221]

1999 and 2007 were best years imo. 

 

99 for television when it was at it's height and 07 for video games.

 

 

The problem with the past is because we were so much younger, it only seemed like things were better and brighter. Because we never actually paid attention to what was going on in the world and the internet was not the source of information it is today. 

 

The world. The world never changes. 

[Luna 831 466]

Too much technology is not good it makes us not able to us our own brains. We look to are smart phone for the answers then rather then get them ourself.

Edited August 13, 2014 by Luna 831

[Moss 95]

 

 

Too much technology is not good it makes us not able to us our own brains. We look to are smart phone for the answers then rather then get them ourself.

 

The things you need to look at on a smartphone are usually the things that you would not be able to figure out without it.

 

 

 

Ah, nostalgia filter. Back when beating your wife not only was socially acceptable but actually encouraged, the internet didn't exist, being a poor person was pretty much a death sentence, and all those great world wars killing millions upon millions of people to keep you on your toes. Those were good times.

 

Damn someone beat me to the Sarcastic post XP.

[Justin_Case001 4,892]

I'd say that overall, things have, and are continuing, to get better with time.  Earlier today I read a great quote about this on a to-go bag from Chipotle.  Seriously.  Let me see if I can find it.  Hang on.

 

Yeah, here it is right here, and there's even a picture of the bag.

 

http://cultivatingthought.com/author/steven-pinker/

 

I just wish I could have been born in the distant future.  Who knows what things will be like and how good things might be.  Or maybe we'll be extict.  There's a lot I hate about society, but of every year from the dawn of man to now, I'm glad I'm alive now.  I think it gets better and better.

 

You could argue that technology has a dumbing effect, that our society is headed towards Idiocracy, but I'm not sure about that.  Someone has to be smart enough to invent that technology.  When the computers can upgrade themselves, then we'll have a problem.

[SolidTwilight 383]

So I am 29. I live in a time with out every one have a cell phone, no gps and no mp3 players. I had dial up internet untill after high school. I even rember a time before almost anyone had internet. when I was a kid I thought there would be flying cars by now. but I also though that one day. you could have a pocket sized thing that you lookup anyt information in the would from just about anywhere at any time. "computer, play this song I am thinking of, I don't know the name of it but it has these words in it". "computer, where am I? where is the place I am looking for, what time are they open till, and how do I get there?" when I was a kid, if you did not know someone that could tell you these things when you would out of the house, you would stuck in the water, now I can know all of these things in less then a minute. if I have a problem, and that problem can be fixed with information, there is like a 98% chance that my phone can be used to fix it. if you have ever lived with out GPS, only had a cassette tape player for music, only ever used a dial up modem, only had movies on VHS tapes, had a car with out fuel injection and no auto light off, only could find your friends if they were at there house or job, had to buy a hole CD for one song, could not walk and use a CD player because it would skip to much, tryed to talk to some one on a cell phone and all you can here is static. you had to pay money for ever photo you ever took and wait a few hours or a day to find out if it even came out. or anything else I missed, and you think the stuff we have to day is not mind blowing. I mean we don't have fiying cars but the stuff we do have is all most as good if not better then anything that was in the movies. you can keep your self fitting jacket, I will keep my smart phone.

Edited August 13, 2014 by SolidTwilight

[Luna 831 466]

I disagree we live in a society were people are zombies. Glued to there smartphone. They cant think for themselves. They are like cattle in the stores buying garbage. They have ipods and mp3 players in there ears so they don't talk to anyone. They are not aware of there surroundings so when they text and walk people have been killed same when they text and drive. The people can't do simple math problems without looking for the answer. I am sorry but I like the past and we still don't have flying cars.

[RockinRarity 1,605]

I disagree we live in a society were people are zombies. Glued to there smartphone. They cant think for themselves. They are like cattle in the stores buying garbage. They have ipods and mp3 players in there ears so they don't talk to anyone. They are not aware of there surroundings so when they text and walk people have been killed same when they text and drive. The people can't do simple math problems without looking for the answer. I am sorry but I like the past and we still don't have flying cars.

 

The past and the present each have their own pros and cons.

 

"People are zombies" "glued to their smartphones" "can't think for themselves."

 

Do you know how generalizing and narrow-minded those statements are? Did you know that what you are saying cannot be applied to every individual on the face of the planet?

 

Did you know that people can own a smart phone without being glued to it? Did you know that people can still have real conversations with others, in person? Did you know that, perhaps, people use the vast information on the Internet and read it, and therefore exercise their brains so that they CAN think for themselves and that they CAN have an opinion on a subject that before they knew little about?

 

I have a testimony. A couple of years ago when I started my current job, I had to take a "Strengths Finder" test. This is a test that evaluated what my top 5 strengths are and it gives information on how to improve on those strengths. One of my strengths is called "Input." Input means that I like to collect all kinds of information and store it in my brain. I like to read, read, and read. When I was a kid, I liked to read the encyclopedia whenever I wanted to learn more about a particular subject. I'd bring it up to my bedroom and read about it in private. That information is very limiting. Then I got older and learned to Google, and it is amazing.

 

I bring this up because I was reading testimonies from other people about their Input strength, and one person said the following:

 

"I'm one of those people who think that the Internet is the greatest thing since sliced bread. I used to feel so frustrated, but now if I want to know what the stock market is doing in a certain area or the rules of a certain game or what the GNP of Spain is or other different things, I just go to the computer, start looking, and eventually find it."

 

There are people like me in the world who thrive when we can soak up information like a sponge. Just because information is easily accessible, it doesn't mean that people aren't learning. Rather, the spread of information helps people's perspectives open wide. Their worldview becomes grander because they allow their brains to gather more information. It allows people to think, to ponder, to learn.

 

Consider this: Do you REALLY believe that the people who allow technology to control them, the people who rely on Google without retaining information that they learned, and the people who can't hold a conversation without staring at their phones - do you really think that they would have become ideal members of society without those tools? Do you think that they would have become intelligent, upstanding, model people of our civilization?

 

Or would they still be a product of their time, saying the things they say and doing the things they do because that's what the culture propagates?

 

Perhaps they wouldn't be glued to smartphones, but maybe they believe that women who dress immodestly are "asking for it" if they get raped.

 

If they wouldn't be able to retain information that they Googled, what makes you think that they would retain any information that they were supposed to learn in school? A love for learning is not guaranteed if computers aren't in front of their faces.

 

Somebody may be a good conversationalist - can keep eye contact, speak politely - but maybe they are manipulative, and politeness is a facade.

 

I'm not saying that you shouldn't be critical of our modern culture. Actually, I think that being critical of our culture of mass consumption and distraction is a healthy thing to have. So I am not against you being critical of our world's apathy towards those who decide to let technology and materialism run their lives.

 

But saying "the past was better" does NOTHING. It is an ignorant statement made by wearing rose-colored glasses.

 

Here is why saying something like that does nothing:

 

It's because we can never go back. Ever. This world that we live in, our modern culture, it's not going to go back to the 90's. It will only keep moving forward.

 

So instead of griping about how much modern times are horrible and that things were better "back in the day," we need to be living our lives now, and figuring out how to make the most of our lives in spite of the culture that begs us to keep our minds distracted and our pockets empty.

 

I am not sure what your religious affiliation is, but the Bible says that we shouldn't let our minds be conformed to the modern age. I think that message can apply to anyone. Always stay on your toes, is how I see it. Don't mindlessly do what everyone else is doing, and don't just accept everything that modern culture declares is normal. Think.

 

And I think that since that message was written to people about 2000 years ago, I'm thinking that the "mindless zombie" concept has been an issue among humanity for thousands of years. It just takes a different form every generation.

 

I do hope that you read this post and have thought about what I'm saying. I'll be disappointed if you ignore this post and tell someone else a rehashed version of what I quoted from you.

[SolidTwilight 383]

The past and the present each have their own pros and cons.

 

"People are zombies" "glued to their smartphones" "can't think for themselves."

 

Do you know how generalizing and narrow-minded those statements are? Did you know that what you are saying cannot be applied to every individual on the face of the planet?

 

Did you know that people can own a smart phone without being glued to it? Did you know that people can still have real conversations with others, in person? Did you know that, perhaps, people use the vast information on the Internet and read it, and therefore exercise their brains so that they CAN think for themselves and that they CAN have an opinion on a subject that before they knew little about?

 

I have a testimony. A couple of years ago when I started my current job, I had to take a "Strengths Finder" test. This is a test that evaluated what my top 5 strengths are and it gives information on how to improve on those strengths. One of my strengths is called "Input." Input means that I like to collect all kinds of information and store it in my brain. I like to read, read, and read. When I was a kid, I liked to read the encyclopedia whenever I wanted to learn more about a particular subject. I'd bring it up to my bedroom and read about it in private. That information is very limiting. Then I got older and learned to Google, and it is amazing.

 

I bring this up because I was reading testimonies from other people about their Input strength, and one person said the following:

 

"I'm one of those people who think that the Internet is the greatest thing since sliced bread. I used to feel so frustrated, but now if I want to know what the stock market is doing in a certain area or the rules of a certain game or what the GNP of Spain is or other different things, I just go to the computer, start looking, and eventually find it."

 

There are people like me in the world who thrive when we can soak up information like a sponge. Just because information is easily accessible, it doesn't mean that people aren't learning. Rather, the spread of information helps people's perspectives open wide. Their worldview becomes grander because they allow their brains to gather more information. It allows people to think, to ponder, to learn.

 

Consider this: Do you REALLY believe that the people who allow technology to control them, the people who rely on Google without retaining information that they learned, and the people who can't hold a conversation without staring at their phones - do you really think that they would have become ideal members of society without those tools? Do you think that they would have become intelligent, upstanding, model people of our civilization?

 

Or would they still be a product of their time, saying the things they say and doing the things they do because that's what the culture propagates?

 

Perhaps they wouldn't be glued to smartphones, but maybe they believe that women who dress immodestly are "asking for it" if they get raped.

 

If they wouldn't be able to retain information that they Googled, what makes you think that they would retain any information that they were supposed to learn in school? A love for learning is not guaranteed if computers aren't in front of their faces.

 

Somebody may be a good conversationalist - can keep eye contact, speak politely - but maybe they are manipulative, and politeness is a facade.

 

I'm not saying that you shouldn't be critical of our modern culture. Actually, I think that being critical of our culture of mass consumption and distraction is a healthy thing to have. So I am not against you being critical of our world's apathy towards those who decide to let technology and materialism run their lives.

 

But saying "the past was better" does NOTHING. It is an ignorant statement made by wearing rose-colored glasses.

 

Here is why saying something like that does nothing:

 

It's because we can never go back. Ever. This world that we live in, our modern culture, it's not going to go back to the 90's. It will only keep moving forward.

 

So instead of griping about how much modern times are horrible and that things were better "back in the day," we need to be living our lives now, and figuring out how to make the most of our lives in spite of the culture that begs us to keep our minds distracted and our pockets empty.

 

I am not sure what your religious affiliation is, but the Bible says that we shouldn't let our minds be conformed to the modern age. I think that message can apply to anyone. Always stay on your toes, is how I see it. Don't mindlessly do what everyone else is doing, and don't just accept everything that modern culture declares is normal. Think.

 

And I think that since that message was written to people about 2000 years ago, I'm thinking that the "mindless zombie" concept has been an issue among humanity for thousands of years. It just takes a different form every generation.

 

I do hope that you read this post and have thought about what I'm saying. I'll be disappointed if you ignore this post and tell someone else a rehashed version of what I quoted from you.

WOW that was much better then what I was going to put. I was just going to say that these types of people were always this stupid and zombified and self adsorbed way before smart phones. I know this because I know people that are phone zombies now and I know them before they ever had a cell phone of any kind. the phone did not make then a self adsorbed idiot, they did that all on there own.

 

also all this talk about phone zombies make we kind of happy that there are no flying cars. people enough when they text and drive on the ground!

[Jeric 46,851]

In Back to the Future Part 2, the year 2015 is full of flying cars and cloths that fit themselves to you. When I was a kid I thought all that stuff would totally be here by now. I was convinced that the first flying car would exist the moment it was the year 2000.

 

 

Well, it's not 2015 yet. There's still time!

Under no circumstances do I ever want flying cars! Have you seen how some people drive on terra firma? Imagine them airborne with multiple added variables like axis and yaw.

 

O-0

[Princess Pinny 6,099]

Yeah, I thought in the future SpongeBob would exist.

[SparklingSquirrels 21,345]

I never really watched those cartoons as a kid... I didn't have high expectations for the future, so I'm fine with what we have. I do prefer it to the past as well; I don't think I could live without internet .

[Luna 831 466]

I never really watched those cartoons as a kid... I didn't have high expectations for the future, so I'm fine with what we have. I do prefer it to the past as well; I don't think I could live without internet .

I think that is very bad . How people know a days use the internet alot.

[LED Dasher 228]

When you are going through problems in the present, the past may look better since you tend to remember the positive aspects of the past. When you realize that the past had its own share of problems, you begin to appreciate the present more.

[RockinRarity 1,605]

I think that is very bad . How people know a days use the internet alot.

Says someone who is using the Internet to bash people who use the Internet.

 

I do not appreciate the fact that you have completely ignored my posts as well as others who have taken the time to counter-argue your points in depth.

 

That is how a discussion works. People say things, and you respond.

 

Using anything in excess is not good for anyone. 20-30 years ago however, the people who use the Internet too much would have just been watching too much TV.

WOW that was much better then what I was going to put. I was just going to say that these types of people were always this stupid and zombified and self adsorbed way before smart phones. I know this because I know people that are phone zombies now and I know them before they ever had a cell phone of any kind. the phone did not make then a self adsorbed idiot, they did that all on there own.

 

also all this talk about phone zombies make we kind of happy that there are no flying cars. people enough when they text and drive on the ground!

We still came to the same conclusion. I am 25 so old enough to remember what things were like before broadband, YouTube, Facebook, Skype, etc. However I can't personally think of anyone who is currently a "smartphone zombie" who had their own addictions when they were younger. However I compare my dad, whose vice is cable television, and my brothers and my husband, who spend most of their free time playing video games. It makes no sense for older people who complain about too many video games when they watch too much TV (not that my dad is one of the complainers, but rather his TV watching can be comparable to some gamers' time spent gaming).

 

Modern technology doesn't make choices for people. We always have the choice to spend our time in the ways that we do. Damning modern technology lets people off the hook when it comes to personal responsibility and time management.

[Stone Cold Applejack 381]

I don't watch the Jetsons but I was lied to as a kid. They said I could be anything I wanted. But we can't enjoy a cartoon about ponies.

[RockinRarity 1,605]

And for what it's worth, I do not think that it is fair to say that our age of Google has caused people to learn less and to retain information.

 

While I can see the information overload as intimidating, and while it gives the lazy an excuse to look up information and pretend that they are smart, we can still tell the difference between those who learn and those who don't.

 

It's called IQ. IQ doesn't tell people how smart they are, but it does tell people how much they are able to learn and how quickly they can learn.

 

The average IQ is always going to be 100. Anyone who is above 100 is above average, and vice versa.

 

This has not changed since the IQ test was first made.

 

There are plenty of people in the Internet age who can learn, retain, and use information intelligently. It is just that it is easier for those who cannot retain information to pretend that they are smart. Is it a problem? Maybe, because I think that people can learn to learn, but if they do not see the value of learning, then they aren't going to challenge themselves.

[GuerrierCosmique 146]

We were lied to about the future as a kid. I watched a tv show called the jetsons . I thought the future was going to be like that. But instead it is 2014 and we still live in a dark and gloomy world .I think the past was better.

The Jetsons was supposed to be set 100 years after it's release, that would be 2062, so there is still plenty of time.

[Luna 831 466]

Sorry but by 2025 The world will be destroyed.

[SilverStarApple 849]

We were lied to about the future as a kid. I watched a tv show called the jetsons . I thought the future was going to be like that. But instead it is 2014 and we still live in a dark and gloomy world .I think the past was better.

Go online.

Get Fallout Three or Fallout New Vegas.

See what kind of future the old people envisioned.

Play through it in glorious high definition.

Remember Nipton.

Slay Legionaires and Raiders.

Take drugs, Kill a bear.

See the sunrise.

Behold, the future.

[GuerrierCosmique 146]

Go online.

Get Fallout Three or Fallout New Vegas.

See what kind of future the old people envisioned.

Play through it in glorious high definition.

Remember Nipton.

Slay Legionaires and Raiders.

Take drugs, Kill a bear.

See the sunrise.

Behold, the future.

This is about the future in real life, not videogames and least of it dystopian ones. Besides good videogame graphics don't help the poor children in Africa.