Have You Noticed the Difference?

~~Have You Noticed the Difference?
By Duke Montana

I’ve experienced five decades in this country, with each one being a little different than the previous. Some of this comes from what a person notices at various ages and of course as we age we see things differently and in some cases we grow, mature and even think differently during this aging process.

Proof stares at me in the mirror. Although I have the same values and dislike most of the same vegetables as when I was young, I look at many things differently than I did as a youth. I listen to AM radio now along with many different news broadcasts and I don’t shy away from a conversation of religion, politics or sex.

I bring this up because I have noticed many differences within our society and sadly I don’t think they are for the best.  For example, why do many people walk down a hallway or sidewalk with their faces pointed down, as if they were in shame?  I don’t remember this being the case as a child. Is it just me or do more people slouch (meaning they don’t sit up straight) now than before?  Of course there is the obvious use (addiction) of cell phones like nothing before.  Anyone born after 1998 doesn’t know what life was like before cell phones. And anyone born after 2008 doesn’t know what life without apps is.

All this would make us appear to be dependent on technology more now than ever before, and I don’t see how that is a good thing. Have you noticed how people communicate less now more than ever, yet we’re supposed to all be “connected” via our devices.  We’ve lost how to give simple instructions and forget the art of anyone giving directions… those days are gone.

Now a days, if you imagine the most bizarre or strange outcome of a situation, you have a better chance of predicting it correctly than if you tried to use some sort of common sense theory.  I reside in a small Midwest town that 25 years ago most people who had tattoos were over 40, had a Harley, a rap sheet or in some cases, all of the above. Now, if you smoke and drink alcohol often, you’re more likely to have several visible tattoos and in most cases this is for people under the age of 25.

I have family members who are gay, or have multiple children with a person/partner they are not married to… while still being married to a person they don’t have kids with.  Of course I have family members who are normal as well. They marry or breed with people who they think they can fix, only to find themselves five (or 25) years later miserable and wondering why their life sucks.

So when did our society fall apart?  Was it when we demanded immediate gratification, when everyone got a trophy for just showing up or perhaps it was when the most important thing was to impress the stockholder?

Depending on what TV you watch, you may see things very differently than some of us did 25 years ago. There was once a time when networks like HBO, Cinemax, AMC, and Showtime only played movies. But then they found out there is more profit in commercials, and in one-hour shows where sponsors will pay out the nose for commercials to a show with the best ratings. And speaking of commercials… if you don’t have cable/satellite and are forced to watch “free TV” you’re smothered with ads from injury lawyers, pharmaceutical or insurance companies, with a close second to auto manufacturers not to mention 30 minute infomercials on countless products or services. Obviously I’m sure these patterns may be different throughout the country, but it’s what we see in my neck of the woods. 

Something else I don’t see much of anymore are family traditions being passed down from one generation to the next. I don’t mean where you spend a particular holiday, but I’m not seeing the grandparent sharing stories or particular crafts and skills with young kids like they once did.

Before I knew what real news was, I was guilty of watching the Today show on NBC, mostly because I enjoyed the cast of people who brought me the news. But something (about four years ago) I started to notice was they were giving me less “news” and more “feel good” info that I felt was worthless. One thing they seemed to always tell me was who made the top ten party schools each year, along with the most popular spring break destinations (as if they were promoting them). Never did they tell me who produced the smartest students, or the schools with the lowest drop-out rates.

Does is seem a bit crazy that the only people who are benefitting from college are the folks at the top of the payroll of a university? In the last two decades there are more stories of rape, drugs, debt or shootings than stories that paint a promising future after spending up to $100,000 and more on an education. More than once I’ve seen interviews where some are saying it doesn’t pay to go to college anymore because the job market isn’t what it used to be and doesn’t look promising in the time the loan would need to be paid off.

My final point comes from that 1% that has grown by leaps and bounds just since 2008. Last I heard there were just over 1,800 Billionaires and in order to make the Forbes rich list you had to be worth at least 1.4 Billion. How is it that since the recession, most of middle-class America has had fewer raises, yet rising expenses, while the richest of the rich group is increasing. We need help, and I don’t think it’s going to come from a smart-phone AP.   

Of course this is all just my two cents… I could be the odd ball and the rest of the world is perfectly normal.