It is my belief that the quality of life has generally been improved... with most of the improvement taking place in developed countries....

I voted yes, but that's because I want to think I'm happy and I am, I think.

Edit: I hope all you hear about parents don't take time to care for the kids is wrong.

yeah man people dont get burnt at the stake anymore so yeah it's better

Q.E.D.


Seriously, I believe that when you think of the things that happened to people in the past all over the world and today are not any more (or at least not all over the world), weighing that and all other pluses and minuses, the only conclusion you can come to is that life has improved.

This.

Overall quality of life in terms of comfort and convenience have improved dramatically in the past couple centuries. Of course this allows for lazieness and slacking off.

Edit: And I blame mass media for many peoples lack of mental health, not just garbage TV and music but also the news. Every time you read or hear the news they are talking about some killings or war in countries that just a couple generations ago people didnt even know exsited and it seems like the world is going down the drain more and more with each passing day and truth is its always been like that, we just hear about more. They say ignorance is bliss :shrug:

Millions of people still die each year. Millions of people go hungry each year. Millions of people are suffering in ways we can't imagine as we speak, whether it be disease, starvation, lack of shelter, etc.
Life hasn't really improved all that much.
Our technology has advanced. That's about it.

I disagree. With technology comes improved living conditions. If you go back to the 1860's in the United States and look at who held all the power it is a lot different than today. Blacks and women had virtually no rights, only white land owners could vote. There was no penicillin so the best medical treatment available was amputation in most cases (especially during the Civil War). I had a medical illness that would have resulted in my death without modern medicine. Millions of people die each year as much as that is true people are living longer. The average life expectancy in 1860 was around 40. Today it's nearing 80. Life in terms of living conditions in non-third world countries has improved drastically.

However, I see things through a biased lens living here in Wisconsin. I can't speak for third world countries. I have an opinion of course, not that it's right, but I would say that those countries that have millions of suffering people have a better chance surviving today than they did 100 years ago.

And with new technology comes new problems, new causes of death.

200 years ago millions of lives could have been saved if you simply had a car to drive you to a medical facility! Yay cars! Technology!
How many people die every year from car related injuries?

Such is the circle of life, and life has not improved. We've found new comfort, but we've just invented new ways to die. Lets not get started on nuclear missiles.

The average life expectancy has doubled and population has increased by roughly 6 billion people. 1.2 billion people had an average life expectancy of 40. 7 billion people have an average life expectancy of 80. Were are sustaining more people and living longer. I don't see how that's not an improvement.

Yep. The world is such a great place to live right now, huh?
I shant elaborate further, due to delving into politics. But I'm pretty sure you know what I'm talking about. :goodjob:
And with that, I'll take my leave of this thread before I get myself banned.

I would be a selfish snot if I didn't say our general quality of life hasn't increased.

But sometimes man, sometimes it really doesn't feel like it.

Explains my answer perfectly.


Otherwise, just look at the 1950's. I think they had it way better then us. Ability to just go out on a whim, better music, better made cars, no war that wasn't cold, booming economy, a time of great luxuries, simpler life, people actually communicated with each other (I hate you texting), ability to walk around town without fear, better movies (even 50's sci fi's are more entertaining then Avatar), better art in general, etc.

Life has improved in ways, but in other great things we've had before have been taken away. Greats forests, fields, nature, ability to sit somewhere without hearing some industrial noise of some sort, more personal communication, all that hep stuff cat.

That has become the new ultimate argument on these forums, hasn't it? I quite like it.

"You're wrong, I'm right. Why? Politicsreligionuditypetitionbittorrentadvertising!!!!"

I'd say corruption in government was worse back in the "good ol' days", ie. pre-1500's :shrug:

No this has nothing to do with politics... It has to do with history :hehe:

I could argue all day. I've studied history quite extensively as well as taken many politics courses at my University. What's going on today in terms of what happened in the Soviet Union and Germany less than a century ago is not even worth debating if you want to talk about living conditions today.


That is awesome.

I've noticed that aswell...

Talking about our rich portions of the world ? Of course. No comparison.

My grandma never finished her studies. She was good, tho. But at 14, she was needed at the farm. Big regret of hers. Then got married, had a kid... Her mother ? At her time, the idea of a woman voting was considered preposterous. Me ? University, good job, can do whatever the hell I want, nobody argues. Just an example. Life was probably good a century ago, provided you were an heterosixual white guy from a certain social class. Otherwise... *shrug*

Medecine, too. Medecine is good. I mean, being able to replace failing organs. I still don't manage to wrap my head around how marvellous that idea is.

I won't argue that we lost things on the way. For instance, there seemed to be a better idea of community, solidarity earlier on - neighbours or families sticking together. Still exists, but in some pocket areas. But hey. Easier to find back what you lost than figure out a new way to live.

Something I forgot in my first post, I really enjoy the freedoms that we've gained in the last few hundred years. It's nice to not be killed for speaking out against the government, you can associate yourself with whoever, reduction of racism and other discrimination, all that great stuff that people in this thread seem to forget.

I'd like to know why people think that people in the past were happier or healthier psychologically.

Psychology wasn't even a widespread science in the past, and people who were diagnosed with psychological conditions were basically locked up. Soldiers with PSD were basically told to toughen up and then sent back to war.



How much of this is actually true, and not just part of the image formed from media though?
Lets go through it all:
Better made cars; if by better made you mean more dangerous then yes. See "Unsafe at Any Speed - Ralph Nader".
No war that wasn't cold; Korea?
Great luxuries, simpler life; Valium!
People actually communicated with each other (I hate you texting); People don't communicate? Texting isn't communication?
Ability to walk around town without fear; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Violent_crime_rates_by_gender_1973-2003.jpg

Not to mention the forms of treatment they had for PTSD or "shell shock"


When you think of the 1950's you think of husband and wife with 2.5 kids and a picket fence. That is far from the reality of things. Sure the economy was booming but so were the people being born.

And now all those Baby Boomers are reaching retirement age and are going to be a massive drain on superannuation.

Yes.

That makes sense but why should prosperity comes at the cost of less stability with jobs? I don't see why they should be mutually exclusive, what am I missing?

IIt may well be something the media made up but where I live people keep talking about how things used to be better (like 20/30 years ago) and how our country is on the decline. Unemployment is high, the gap between poor and upper-middle classes is (according to the media) increasing, more strain is put on the healthcare system because of an aging population... and as I said xenophobia is on the rise as people look for scapegoats; society as a whole is becoming increasingly afraid of those who come from the outside.

I am not saying that all this isn't exaggerated; sure, when compared to the problems of the beginning of the 20th century all this may seem rather minor... but people don't make comparisons with the 1920s or 1930s, but with the 60s, 70s and 80s, and many come to the conclusion (right or wrong) that they were happier in the recent past. In my country we have political debates on "what it means to be French," debates that lead to nothing but feed this fear that "our country is threatened." I am not going to get more specific (no talks about politics and all that), but that's just my general thoughts on the question

Everything I think is [censored] is bolded, the things I kind of agree with cursive.

Music has never been better than it is today, since besides the many great contemporary artists (no I am not talking about Kanye West or Lady Gaga) you can still listen to 50s music if you like (though most of it was crap anyway). Cars looked good but were definitely not better. The Korean War was far from cold. I have many more great luxuries than my grandparents had in the 50s. Things like texting actually make personal communication easier, I can reach people any time and arrange to hang out together instead of hoping they're at home where they can answer the phone. My city is perfectly safe and I'll take Pulp Fiction, Black Swan or Lord of the Rings over crap like The Searchers any day. Actually the only thing you said in the bolded part that may make sense is about people having a simpler life, but unlike you I don't think that's a good thing. I prefer to make my own choices, instead of having my state/church/parents/neighbours do it for me.

As for the great forests, fields, blah blah. I agree that it is most unfortunate that we no longer have that today (not in Western Europe at least), but all the great forests here were destroyed centuries ago. Not like the 50s were any better in that regard.

Wise words. I have to agree on this.