The times we live in
Grandad March 19th, 2008
I watched the news last night, which is a rarity.
One of the big stories of the day was the Heather Mills business.
Here we have a case where a woman is awarded £24.3m in a divorce settlement and is complaining. She has been given more money than anyone else will see in their entire lifetime. It’s not enough. One of her complaints was that the child’s allowance would force the child to travel B class when flying. The child is only four.
I don’t blame Ms Mills. I feel sorry for her. She is a child of our age, where consumerism and celebrity are more important than anything else.
Society now is radically different from the society of a few decades ago. The ultimate aim now is money and instant gratification, no matter what the cost. It has reached the stage where people actually feel it is their rite to have such things.
Young people today are running headlong on a path to self destruction. They want happiness and they want it now. They go out of a night, not to have a drink but to get smashed out of their skulls as quickly as possible. In my day, we went out for a few pints, and got merry. More often than not, we would overdo it slightly and end up a bit pissed. But it would take an entire evening to reach that state. Now the first thing they head for is the ’shots’ and the shorts. Get hammered NOW! Another item on the news was about the alarming rate of increase in alcohol related problems amongst kids in their teens. Kids are damaging their livers and kidneys before they have even started life.
The consumer society has also gone haywire. Manufacturers would have us believe that if we don’t have the latest gizmo, gadget or whatever then we are missing out on a life changing experience. We have to have the biggest, the best and the latest. Why? Why should we all drive SUVs? Why should we all have phones with GPS, instant TV and gaming facilities? Why should we all have bigger TVs than anyone else? Because we are told we need them.
So we have a culture of complete discontent. Those that don’t have it, want it, and those that have it, want more. No one is ever happy with what they have. We have bred a society of jealousy. People are jealous of other peoples possessions or success. They can’t handle that because it conflicts with their concept of instant gratification.
So, do you want instant happiness? Go out and drink yourself into a coma, or take drugs.
Don’t agree with someone? Kill them.
Do you want a few bob in your pocket? Go beat up an old age pensioner for their few quid.
Want a new phone? Find a kid with a better one and steal it. If you kill him in the process, then what the heck.
What the hell happened to decency and compassion? What happened to honesty and morality? What happened to tolerance and goodwill?
I won’t be watching the news tonight.
I’ll be dreaming about The Good Old Days.
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