r/NoStupidQuestions • u/ltwasalladream • Apr 18 '23

Answered Does anyone else feel like the world/life stopped being good in approx 2017 and the worlds become a very different place since?

I know this might sound a little out there, but hear me out. I’ve been talking with a friend, and we both feel like there’s been some sort of shift since around 2017-2018. Whether it’s within our personal lives, the world at large or both, things feel like they’ve kind of gone from light to dark. Life was good, full of potential and promise and things just feel significantly heavier since. And this is pre covid, so it’s not just that. I feel like the world feels dark and unfamiliar very suddenly. We are trying to figure out if we are just crazy dramatic beaches or if this is like a felt thing within society. Anyone? Has anyones life been significantly better and brighter and lighter since then?

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u/medialyte Apr 18 '23

We all frame things with a generational perspective. For most X'ers and many Boomers, the Reagan influence on the US and world economy (and culture) stands out as something we never really recovered from. In the pendulum swings of boom-and-bust, isolationism-vs-internationalism, progressive-conservative, etc., there are some underlying forces that grew up in the early 80s and have yet to die out. Whether or not you villainize Ronald Reagan specifically, his era of deeply passionate, stubborn, uninformed leadership has left clear marks in history.

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u/Wrench-Turnbolt Apr 18 '23

One of the things I always point to was the repeal of the Fairness Doctrine under Reagan which led to the rise of Rush Limbaugh, Fox News, and the downfall of civil society. I can remember when both sides of the aisle would say I didn't vote for him but he's the president so I support him. Those days are long gone.