Everything from entertainment to politics to just every day life in this world currently is beyond broken and mediocre. I am 28 and I remember as a kid things just being so much better. There was just enough technology to make life easier but not too much as to take over everything. Things were more affordable, people were friendlier and actually talked to each other now everybody is glued to their phones, public spaces were much safer than today and the best of all the movies, tv shows and music was amazing.
Every single year there was at least 5 blockbuster movies that came out that were absolutely amazing and they actually made shows with 24 episodes a season nowadays you will be fortunate to find a show with even just 10 episodes per season and you have to wait like 3 years between seasons that was unheard of back in the day. The Billboard charts were full of bangers every single month, every single genre of music was doing well. My God, this was just 20 years ago what happened? Now I’m not even excited to go to the movie theater anymore because all the movies that come out are just pure garbage and the music industry is a huge dumpster fire. Everything just feels so bland, even the video games that come out these days have no soul, all they care about is making the graphics really good but neglect the storyline and the gameplay. I feel so bad for kids today that have to grow up with this mediocrity.
We really had it good. What blows my mind is how fast the state of things has declined and to this extent. Everything is expensive from groceries to housing. People can’t even afford rent anymore, the average studio apartment in a good area is like $900/month. I only get upset because I know how good things were. People actually had hope, kids went to college with zeal knowing the chances of landing a job in their respective fields were high. Nowadays with technological advancement and AI taking over jobs so many people are in student debt getting useless degrees that will never land them a job. More and more people with degrees are working at McDonalds and other entry level jobs because they have no hope.
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Well you’re becoming adult that’s why, mindless entertainment like TV and games doesn’t work on you anymore. You’re becoming aware of your surroundings, instead of living in a sheltered cocoon provided by your parents. Guess what all those problems existed 20 years ago you were just not aware of them.
Now you have to do adult type things to entertain yourself. This could be starting a company, making a product, starting a family, volunteering, running for a local political office, traveling, learning a skill, reading books etc
Things are way worse over the last 10 years. Id say globally. I cant explain it.
Capitalism is reaching its end game
Capitalism is dying hard but capitalists won’t let it go because all they care about is how much money they have. This is the result. Art isn’t dead but is overshadowed by the pseudoart of nepo-babies that lack talent, products suck in general because nobody is passionate anymore and working hard gives you nothing back.
It’s gonna be tough for a while now, we’re in the deep of a very turbulent period of collapse.
I know how you feel, so far what has helped me was being close to nature and trying to ignore as much as possible what’s going on in the world because I mean wtf even is this 😂 I find it very very difficult to connect with people these days, nobody wants any meaningful interactions. I’ve been filling that gap with animals. Animals haven’t been frying their brains with social media and consumerism, also they aren’t getting crushed under the weight of poverty, long shifts and soul killing bureucracy. So interacting with them somehow feels more human.
Good luck out there!
Nostalgia’s a bitch, eh?
For the tech part. Smart phones were supposed to give everyone access to information to learn. Instead, people decided they didn’t need to learn because they always have the option to just look something up. Chatgpt is taking this a step further.
Hate has become more rampant because stuff that would normally get you a punch in the face can be said with ease hiding behind a screen. Capitalism is reaching its breaking point. People are working to survive and get very little to no reward from it. Price gouging, shrinkflation, etc. Look at how much stuff shot up during covid and has not come back down.
Movies and shows have become more about how quickly they can churn stuff out to make money versus actual quality.
Intentionally choosing to do the wrong thing that only benefits a few for the past, like 40 years, is finally catching up?
Thats what ive been telling my boyfriend. We love horror movies but these last two years every single horror movie has a unnecessary sex scene , fart type humor and just dumb loud scenes. Like im here to be spooked. Its been so long since a show or movie has been different. Everything is copy paste.
Your premise is wrong.
In 1930 90% of the worlds population were living in abject poverty (less than $2 a day adjusted for inflation). Today only 10% of the worlds population live in abject poverty. The economic activity of the wealthy and middle class in developed nations are globally fixing the problem.
In 1950, the average life expectancy at birth was only 48.5 years. In 2019, it was 72.8 years. That’s an increase of 50 percent.
Out of every 1,000 live births in 1950, 20.6 children died before their fifth birthday. That number was only 2.7 in 2019. That’s a reduction of 87 percent.
Between 1950 and 2018, the average income per person rose from $3,296 to $15,138. That’s an inflation adjusted increase of 359 percent.
Between 1961 and 2013, the average food supply per person per day rose from 2,191 calorie to 2,885 calories. That’s an increase of 31.7 percent.
In 1950, the length of schooling that a person could typically expect to receive was 2.59 years. In 2017, it was 8 years. That’s a 209 percent increase.
The world’s democratic score rose from an average of 5.31 out of 10 in 1950 to an average of 7.21 out of 10 in 2017. That’s a 35.8 percent increase.
IMO the problem is that real innovation that benefits people is starting to plateau. In the 1900s, you had rapid innovations in agriculture, manufacturing, transportation — basically everything mechanical under the Sun. In the ’80s through the 2010s, we were having rapid innovation in electronics and computing and computer programs that streamlined the use of those mechanical systems and radically improved communications.
Nowadays, all of these innovations have borne fruit and are in use to more or less their fullest potential. Our economy is more efficient than ever, but it’s left us with little room to grow. When the pie isn’t getting bigger anymore, all that’s left is to fight each other for slices of the pie. Everything gets more deceptive, more predatory, more cutthroat, and more parasitic. This generates a pervasive sense of distrust and cynicism that plagues every facet of society.
Definitely notice it in movies
We got split into the dead Harambe timeline.
Colleges pump MBAs with little to no moral compass they have taken over every company. They lack technical knowledge of how the companies actually work and rely on schemes to make money.
It’s not just this,. but the quality and service-levels of everything are piss poor now too. Food quality is down. Order I pickup are almost always missing something. Whenever I go to a Store and ask for help, it’s obvious the staff have no idea. Pretty much everywhere I go,. it seems like people are just sort of “phoning it in” (doing the bare bare minimum). I feel apprehensive pretty much going anywhere to expect someone else to to serve me,. how do I know they’re paying attention enough (and caring enough) to do things safely ?
the selfish “f everyone else” type of mentality just seems to be everywhere. It’s like people have completely given up caring about how what they do affects others around them.
1918 plague and war
30s dust bowl and depression
40s WW2
50s they were convinced enough Russia would nuke us to make kids hide under desks and build back yard shelters
60s you had a fine chance to die in a jungle
So…uh. It’s really not that bad
OP got older… (lol, same tune different generation)
Entertainment is not as important or pressing, tastes change, responsibility changes and with that comes life…
Life is subjective and you are here, where the end of the world begins the moment you start scrolling.
>Billboard charts were full of bangers every single month, every single genre of music was doing well
Music tastes change. You equate “doing well” with what YOU like.
I am in my 6th decade, the music YOU love is all shit and soulless to me. Your music is manufactured.
>even the video games that come out these days have no soul
Triple A? Sure because half are chasing monthly passes and cosmetics and the other half is chasing a customer who doe not exist. But there are plenty of great games, you’re just busier now and haven’t got a much time to look for them.
>People can’t even afford rent anymore, the average studio apartment in a good area is like $900/month.
People in larger cities cannot afford it. Did you move? It’s weird to me how redditors routinely group all people into the same category/situation as they.
>I only get upset because I know how good things were
No you don’t, you think you do because you are a more responsible person now. It was so good because you didn;t have to do much.
>people were friendlier and actually talked to each other now
Those of us who go outside do talk to other people. The world is full of great people, you have to make an effort.
>More and more people with degrees are working at McDonalds and other entry level jobs because they have no hope.
I am not sure where you are getting all this information from but you use grand sweeping statements of which you cannot possibly know all the details to.
The reason people are working shit jobs is because of their choices. If you become a something something no job market for me major, sure you’ll work at McDonalds, but if you went into engineering, you’d have a shot.
>People actually had hope, kids went to college with zeal knowing the chances of landing a job in their respective fields were high.
This is quite comical, as someone much older, all of this (the entire comment) is said each generation, virtually verbatim.
You find gems but need to look harder
Nostalgia. It always feels like the past was better. But in the past, you were a kid. You didn’t know much about politics and current events, so the world looks bleaker. You have more responsibilities as you grow older, so the past seems easier and lighter. We also tend to forget a lot of bad stuff (not all, though) as we grow, so it makes the past seem better in retrospect in our memories than it was for real. It’s all these little things that make us long for the past. And many more!
Yeah, life feels more expensive and entertainment feels emptier. The 2000s had simpler tech, better music and movies.
Did you vote?
Stop listening to the media and the obnoxious doom and gloom politicians. Embrace family and friends and community. Work on yourself and things in your control. Society is definitely more complicated, we need to actively filter out the fear. Wish you all the best
Im turning 59 and my husband 60. We talk about this ALL the time!!!!! The past 10 years have sucked!!!! We worked so hard to get a house and get ahead and you finally think well retirements soon, I think we will be ok. Enough to pay for ins and medecine and dr bills and food. Then wham… your back to couponing, spending 25.00 at mcdonalds for 2 people. Forget about taking all the grandkids. Worried about how high utilities are going to go. Flipping watching tv and cell phone bills is ridiculous. Cant watch fricking football on regular channels. You gotta have Amazon, Directv, Paramount+, Peacock, EVERYONE is so damn greedy. Movies suck, restaraunt food sucks, tv sucks, family time sucks, no one gets along any more. Everyone walks around with a chip on their shoulder just itching to start a fight. I dont know whats going to happen within the next three years but I know it wont be good. Hope seems to be running on short supply these days. What is the answer? How do we fix chaos?
it sucks because everything is studied for maximum revenue. no risk taken. no controversial topic. everything should be equally appreciated by the average american guy, but also by chinese, africans, europeans etc.
this is globalisation. orwellisation even. it sucks.
i try to not consume such content anymore and find more niche artforms that stayed true.
Top many businesses are intertwined and it’s led to everything favoring safety and being mainstream-friendly above all else.
All investors and corporations would prefer to maximise their market share, and they all pursue it the same way.
It’s just too much of a homogenised corporate culture and corporate values imo. Too much of a sense of “let’s all just do business the Apple way.” Minimalism, sleek designs, vaguely progressive values, etc
I mean why tf does every McDonalds from the outside look like a 2016 Apple Store these days
Some people don’t realize that “blow job” is just a figure of speech.
Monopolies basically, a product of end stage capitalism.
If you don’t like a product or service, you can’t just choose a different company, as there are so few and they all have the same supplier which sets the same rules or limitations that new player’s cant overcome.
So most companies can produce abyssmal quality goods and thrive because the customer has no say in the matter.
It’s bad and that’s a fact BUT lately I’ve been feeling like that feeling is amplified if you’re using any form of social media. The algorithms know what to bombaed you with to get interactions. I’ve had to delete Instagram almost every week to keep me from falling into doom scrolling
Also there’s no real push for movie studios or record companies to make new original art. They have the formula for selling music and artists down to a science. Same with big box office movies. Why make something that will make them a few million when they can put stuff out that will buy them all villas in Italy?
Because the Cons have power. Everything always sucks when the Cons have power.
Late stage capitalism
It’s called growing up. You are thinking back through the filter of a 10 year old. Things change mate. Inflation, technology and societal norms change, it’s just life. When you were a kid I’ll bet you a million dollars that 28 year olds were thinking exactly the same as you are now. 50 years before that 28 year olds were doing the same thing. Think of your father or grandfather talking about “Back in my day….”. Everything changes but everything stays the same.
Capitalism as practiced!
Money over quality of life
The majority suffer
The wealthy don’t. Cost is irrelevant when you pull in more in interest than you can spend.
They got great healthcare, food, shelter, security etc.
But as they suck those who aren’t wealthy dry it’s going to get real bad.
Some theorize it will be corrected by technology or wisdom.
They’re wrong.
Because here people would rather shoot themselves in the foot than for others to prosper.
Fear and hate ➡️ courage and love.
also M 28.
kpop demon hunters is worth going to the movie theater for. (only this weekend)
Stranger Things final season is coming out later this year.
not too much innovation from phone makers. this may be the year to try something different (a fold)
nothing wrong with replaying some old classics (replayed dead space 1&2, getting back into fortnite with old friends)
there are things you can’t control, and there are things you can (diet, exercise, relationships, hobbies, media consumption) focus on what you can control. set goals, get em done.
Find things that are good. It’s not that difficult
Heraclitus, the Greek scholar said, ‘The only constant in life is change.’ Everything is constantly changing and if you perceive it as positive or negative, it doesn’t stop.
Charles Dickens began his famous novel, Great Expectations, with the line, ‘It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.’
I find these philosophical comments a comfort because both delineate the view I take on the world in which we live. May they help you, also.
During my daily thoughts about the Roman Empire (lol), I often wonder if they thought the same towards the end.
Because elections have consequences
The enshittification of everything
The disco biscuits are crushing it
Simply put, enshitification. Everything is shit. Everything fucking sucks. Nothing is worth anything. Everything is a shitty facade of what they used to be. Everything is made so cheaply that their quality is shit. Nothing is built to last anymore. Means you gotta buy another. Jobs suck. Pay sucks. Paying for the same things over and over, just to eventually have to replace it… again. The poor keep getting poorer. The rich keep shitting on the poor. I fucking hate everything. Everything fucking sucks.
I love my family tho.
It’s private equity groups. Think of a group that has many holdings that don’t have anything to do with each other.
Let’s say I start “Tasty Trunk Group” and you look into our portfolio. You would imagine a few food franchises. There may be one or two, but also a pantyhose company, a perfume company, a donut chain, a music licensing company etc.
These firms don’t give a shit about the quality of any of these holding as long as they can milk them for max profit with minimum investment. At the expense of consumer experience and value.
And that is partially why everything sucks now.
Basically enshittification.
It was always there but now it’s happening at a rate that’s unprecedented. Inflation and our culture are creating a race to the bottom with most products where they can’t afford to actually be really good because the infrastructure for it no longer exists, inflation is too high and there’s more of a culture of having big corporations buy up all the unique little guys and push them out of the market…while at the same time the companies quality keeps going down to squeeze every last drop out for investors.
It’s actually been a great year for movies, I don’t understand where this, “all movies in 2025 are bland and soulless” thing is coming from. I work at a movie theater, and I’ve seen quite a lot of the movies that came out this year, more of them are good then bad.
And if we’re cherrypicking, here’s some of the incredible 2000’s music that’s supposedly “objectively better” then everything now – Ying Yang Twins – Wait (The Whisper Song) (Official Music Video) Apparently, this is a musical masterpiece compared to Die With A Smile and This Is What It Sounds Like
Ok I have a few questions:
Were not old enough to remember Monica Lewinsky? Or Rodney King?
You were aware of the concept of affordability when you were a kid and it affected you?
When was the last time you went outside? Because I did today and no one was “glued to their phones”
Are you aware that crime has gone down since you were a kid?
Are you aware that fewer episodes per season isn’t necessarily a bad thing and some prefer it?
Do you not remember dumpster fires like Zoom, the original Fantastic 4, Jumper, or Catwoman?
Do you really think that songs like “My Humps” are bangers? Can you give me some examples of these “bangers”?
Do you not consider films like The Substance, Anora, Everything Everwhere all at Once, or Dune to be good movies?
Do you think modern games like Elden Ring or Baldur’s Gate 3 have no soul? Do you think older games like Modern Warfare or any of its clones had a soul?
Are you a bot? Or just ambitionless and terminally online? Because this entire post is filled with sweeping generalizations that do not hold up to reality.
You have depression. Maybe not a lot, but you do.
You’re likely too connected to SM and probably on the left side. Their shtick is to paint the world as ending to get you to click/vote/donate.
This is what happens when you lockdown the whole world for a year and then you print a lot of money. This is valid regardless in which country you are, most of them used the pandemic as an excuse to spend like crazy.
It’s called “enshittification” and it’s real.
Comes down to people want “more” for less. People wanted easy-to-access entertainment, so streaming became big. But they didn’t factor in that good entertainment isn’t cheap, so instead of paying more, they feed their minds on the cheap/crap entertainment that is designed to keep them coming back for dopamine hits, not engaging with any thinking. We used to pay $30 (in my country) PER movie dvd, a tv season dvdbox set could go for $60-100. Now, people bitch and whine about paying $30/month for access to a thousand tv shows/moves, and claim they’re being ripped off. $30/movie might sound expensive, but you sell a million copies, there’s $30mil to invest back into film making and making sure the studios can pay for quality, not quantity (and that doesn’t include bluray sales or movie theatre ticket sales, or deals for tv airing).
People’s attitudes to a lot of things need serious adjustments, including being willing to pay for quality entertainment in forms that directly benefit the creators, not just the middle-men streaming services.
There is also the factor of “private equity investment firms” throwing their weight around to get the most crap on the lowest dollar. That’s why “reality tv” shows are so plentiful. “Reality tv” shows don’t need script writers as there’s no “script” to follow (but do require producers to direct people on what to bring up/what to say), the cameras required for the “realness” are less expensive than movie/tv show cameras. There’s less focus about set design and clothing, and lighting/sound/colour etc. Editing is even cheaper because it can be choppy/less professional.
The internet and social media has kind of mangled all pop culture together in the same way that fast food kind of ruined traditional food. Quality sacrificed for quantity and convenience.
The new word for this is enshittification
Republicans
I have no answers but just want to say you are not alone in feeling this way. I’m trying so hard to just focus on positive things that are within my control but man is it disheartening.
Things are amazing now! We have deodorant, PS5, and basically all of human knowledge at your fingertips (smartphones).
You just gotta distract yourself from the other shitty stuff.
Public spaces aren’t less safe. The violent crime rate has declined.
Technology stripped the revenue streams from television broadcasting, music publishing, and filmmaking. As an example, TV networks used to need to make 24+ episodes of their shows to get you to tune in and see their commercials. DVRs made skipping the commercials easy and, more importantly, let you just watch the one show you wanted to see rather than staying on the station to watch the following shows. This made commercials less saleable and made networks spend less on shows. The result is the crap you get today.
Another example is the music industry. People don’t pay for music they way they once did, so only guaranteed sellers get produced.
I could go on and on, but the short answer is that supply follows demand, and people won’t pay for the good stuff anymore.