I'm not entirely sure if the human race will ever be completely satisfied. There's a great old saying: “You can please some of the people some of the time, but you can never please all of the people all of the time”. This is so true. If it’s hot you will always have someone saying “oh it would be lovely if it was cold” and visa versa. Poor people wish they had money, rich people wish they didn’t have the stress that comes with the responsibility of having so much money. Students wish they were done with their pesky studies and out in the big bad world making a difference and business professionals wish they were able to kick back and live the chilled life of a student again (I'm sure it’s all about the weed). Young people wish they were older and able to do everything; old people yearn for their youth again. What we need to look for is the happy medium. My favourite is the elderly bless their hearts. You always hear older folk talking about how amazing the “good old days” were. A movie, a soda and popcorn was half a penny. Yes granddad but a house then was also only 500 pounds. They had a greater level of safety and good family units. Healthy home cooked meals and values. And then you hear them talk about how tough those “good old days” were: walking 25 miles to school in the pissing rain and snow; hand me down clothes; large families so 3+ children to a bedroom; stock market crashes; recessions and 2 world wars. “They don’t make things like they used to”. No shit. Back then you used asbestos and lead based paint. Cars went 20Mph and used 100 litres of fuel per mile. International transportation was 3 weeks by boat. 8 track tapes were hot shit! Slide rules and abacuses vs. the personal computer (no brainer). I know I haven’t been around for very long (sort of) but we have pretty cool stuff too. Open heart surgery and life support machines, supersonic travel (well we had it anyway), environmentally friendly fuels and alternate energy sources, 10000 channels of TV and as many radio stations, the internet, cats eyes in the road, woman’s rights in society and the work place and the ability to vote (one for the ladies), Xbox, PSP and 50” plasma and LCD screens (one for the boys). Today we have the Foo Fighers, you had Elvis – Debate over!
If you are open minded enough you will find pros and cons in any situation. The human mind likes to focus on the bad of the present and the good of the past and I firmly believe that bad shit happens for a reason. If it serves no other purpose, at least it helps us appreciate the good shit a lot more!
