Is the world really getting worse? Or just bigger and connected now?

This may be in the wrong forum....

I'm wondering...we hear so many terrible things today.....like that nut job father that threw his child off a of a bridge into traffic! Do you think the world is really getting that bad off, or is it that there are more people now, and we hear about it all because we are in an age of communication? I remember when I was a little girl......loooooong time ago. There was a family that the mother had died and the father was left with 4 girls....he sexually abused those girls ....they were taken away.....those types of things have always happened, but you didn't hear about it so much.....I dunno what to think about this anymore!

IMO the world has never been safer or more stable. Of course that's a hard lump to swallow if you listen to the evening news or read the papers. Unfortunately, the media is driven by ratings, and good news just doesn't get the draw.

Amazing advances are being made in all areas of human life - medicine, human rights, 3rd world relief, education, etc, etc. You have to look at it on a global scale, but they're there. More people are living better lives in more countries than ever before - despite what we see and hear about.

I'm of the opinion that bad stuff has always been happening.
People a long time ago, had more fears of discussing "taboo"
subjects, too I think. We pretty much discuss anything now.

And you're right we are in an age of communication where we
can hear about and discuss current events alot better than ever
before.

Originally posted by LadyV
I'm wondering...we hear so many terrible things today

Alot of people that usually don't notice how bad things are getting are starting to notice. I think it's because the frequency of atrocities is becoming overwhelming. You mentioned a father throwing his child from a bridge and it reminded me of a Native American end-time Prophecy:
The end-times will come when "children are killed like dogs". Most people interpret this to mean abortion, but with the terrible frequency of tragedies aformentioned I think this prophecy holds greater meaning.

I realize that over the very last few years, seems like there's been a huge movement of people converging towards networks of many kinds, that are not formal but not really personal either. And this can be observed at most levels and in most classes in our society. I think this has somethign to do with the rise of the Internet, but it's not limited to this. These networks are spreading in real everyday life too... So the thing is that the more people get closer into networks of relations of many kinds (political, sexual, cultural, economical) the more the information would circulate everywhere, so everything will become more accessible in a way, and clearer. But madness will also be a lot more public and, more importantly, more contagious... which means that peaople will be more exposed to the dirty things in other people's behavior, while you'll have more difficulty restraining your own dirty side from being exposed to others.

Bigger, more connected, and the media have a wider selection of really really bad things to talk about to generate ratings

With things like Wi-Fi Remote-Access at coffee bars or over crowded tech stores selling top of the line electronic goodies etc..... One can find almost anything or anywhere one wishes.


Things like... corporate media pushing other people lives on to us and making it part of our lives....... Michael Jackson or the BTK Killer, Dennis Rader!!!

I really don't care about these two people, but everyday thanks to technology they become a part of my life. and many more etc.... It is really annoying...its really hard to get away from it all....

Maybe it is just me but I tend to view the world as progressively more civilized. Not that the usual ancient curse of greed and power has abated.

I think for the most part, people who tend to view the world as being "worse" off than before are those who watch too much television, eg.. the 24 hr CNN and Fox. It's a growing madness sewn by the corporation. Security sells, big time.

We are getting more connected and incidents of bad news are getting reported(or Fabricated) more often to sell "News". It's a business after all.

I can remember when the only news that you would see was 1/2 hour of local news at 6:00 and 11:00 PM and 1/2 hour of national and world news at 6:30 PM. Now you have from 3 to 5, 24 hour news channels plus 2 to 3 hours of local news. They have to fill all of that time with something. I actually think that the world is getting to be a better place. Look at the statistics for violent crime, the majority of catagories have been showing declines for years, but all you hear about for the first fifteen minutes of a news broadcast is roberies and murders. Twenty years ago you would only hear about a murder if it happened near by. Today a guy kicking his dog in Seattle makes the news in Pittsburgh!!

"out of these troubled times a new world order can emerge"
-george bush sr

the world is advancing at a rapid pace technologically and intelectually. the troubling aspect would be those who have not the ryhme, reason, or ability for advancment. if we continue the way we are i see nothing but tyranny for everyone below the curve. human life loses its importance when your own survival is in jeorpordy. with peak oil, outsourcing, over population, and consoldation of national corperate interest, the quality of human life will face some very signifigant challenges in the years to come.

I agree with most of you guys in that nowadays, when a Tsunami hits Sri Lanka, you can hear about in Tucson Instantly which might explain why we think the world's going to hell in a handbasket. There's also an old theorum in the media that, "if it doesn't bleed, it doesn't lead." which makes it all look even worse!

Why does the press do this? Simple! As long as people think they and the world are screwed, they will stay glued to their TVs and newpapers to find out what to do next! Bingo, the press has a captive audience!

No, it's not the world coming to an end...just a press that wishes it WOULD so they could cover the Ultimate Story...blame somebody...and of course give updates and instructions.



[edit on 8-3-2005 by Toelint]

Originally posted by Justanotherperson
I think for the most part, people who tend to view the world as being "worse" off than before are those who watch too much television, eg.. the 24 hr CNN and Fox. It's a growing madness sewn by the corporation. Security sells, big time.

I don't watch TV and can still sense our world declining. Like I stated before, we've made a mess of this planet... physically, mentally, and spiritually. Hopefully we'll do better the next time around...