Is Our World Today a Better or Worse Place than When You Were a Kid?
This is today’s writing prompt
This question is the next prompt in my journal of 300 writing prompts. My initial inclination is to say that the world is much, much worse today than it was then.
For context, I was born in 1975 — so when I talk about my childhood, I’m mostly talking about the late seventies through the eighties, with maybe the first four or so years of the nineties thrown in to round things out. In my mind, of course, these were the best years in the history of the world. There’s no point in arguing with me on this — my reasons are too illogical to be worth discussing. Suffice it to say that they were great because I was a child.
It feel as if the world is a worse place now, but the difference may be a mix of my perspective and the fact that we now have 24/7 news coverage. The world may not be worse than it was; it may simply be closer. Everyone now has a voice via social media, so we’re also more privy to the opinions of others — and some of those opinions are…very different.
The world is in our face for hours each day. Most of us don’t even remember how to unplug.
And there’s always a crisis — but maybe there always was a crisis. Maybe the crises of the past were simply relegated to paper newspapers and print magazines and an hour’s worth of news each night.
Or maybe the world seemed better because I was a child, living an all-expenses-paid existence in my parents’ house. We were poor, mind you, but I rarely worried about that. I was busy playing, and I was certain my future was bright. I had no political opinions, really, and I didn’t pay taxes. My job was to do my homework — and homework was easy for me. I was very good at school, and I guess I assumed I would always be very good at whatever I chose to do in the future. I had not yet experienced failure.
What do you think? Is the world worse now than when you were a kid? Or is it better? Technology has certainly changed — and some things are easier as a result. But technology has a downside. Has technology made the world better, or has it made it worse? Or are “better” and “worse” too subjective to argue logically? I want to hear your thoughts.
