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I'd say the first Gorbachev-Reagan meeting in 1985, which marked the turning point in the Cold War as well as when the US economy had fully shaken off the malaise of the 1970s/early '80s started the most peaceful period and happiest overall in recent memory, and this ended with Columbine in 1999, which opened the door for violence. Basically, the 14 years between 1985-1999 were the most prosperous in contemporary history, even though the end of the Cold War had some jitters. You had the right mix of social life and technology at the time. 1996 was probably the best year ever; it seemed like the end of history at the time and with the booming Internet, it seemed like everyone on the planet would freely interact with each other, learn their languages, trade freely, and understand how special everybody was. People knew their boundaries regarding race/color/religion/politics better, but as it turns out, this technology turned out to be the undoing for all this progress.
Suddenly, those uneducated fools could simply log on and shout their thoughts, causing more and more folks to tribalize among a certain ideal. All this tech has made many more people selfish regarding their choices, and the declining birth rate is another defeat towards products over people. There don't seem to be as many happy celebrations nowadays compared to past, and many today's so called "festivals" are all about getting high as opposed to exerting feelings of joy. Sadly, the U.S.'s overall global relevance is lessening with each passing year now, and I have never witness this country as divided since before the Civil Rights era. The 2020s are shaping up to be the most critical decade since the 1970s regarding the fate of America's reputation; the Nixon/Ford/Carter years really put a blow to their image and allowed for the Soviet Union and Iran to take advantage of our supposed weakened position. Religious participation/affiliation has cratered, with many churches closing in recent years. Competition in many industries is getting less and less, forcing a lot of innovation to stall and be more expensive. And the wealth gap/homeless situation keeps getting worse.
It will take a lot of courage, sacrifices, sharing, and commitment to improve America's brand to what it once was.
Back in the 80s/90s, you could buy a home for less than your income. Nowadays, homes are 2x or 3x one’s income.
But things like smartphones & gps, make things a lot easier. On the contrary tho, ppl are too attached to their phones & video games.
I liked how wholesome my childhood was then. We played outside. We rang doorbells of the neighborhood kids instead of texting. We played spud, drew hopscotch boards in the street witj chalk. We had video games but we didnt sit in front of them all day, everyday like kids do now
It was a more simple time. Everything now is much harder to afford. Many millenials are living with mom & dad well into their 30’s bc they cant afford housing.
That, and families continue to get smaller. A millennial with three kids is similar to a Boomer with five. With the US's share of global GDP continuing the dwindle (it was nearly half in the post-WWII period), the money has to go elsewhere. That said, up until this current inflation crisis, the quality of living in many developing countries (Latin America, south Asia, parts of Africa like Botswana, Kenya, the north coast, and Nigeria) was definitely an improvement for the first two decades of this century.
But people tend to focus too much on the money and not enough on where practicality can be found. The Midwest for instance is still very affordable for the average joe. I'll settle for a suburb on a rating site with straight B's over one with A's and a B/C or two with special qualifications that require to live the lifestyle reflected there.
Now is easily the best time in history to be a music fan with services like Spotify/Apple Music.
Having quick access to music has made life more convenient.. but it doesn't mean being a music fan is 'best' now.
My opinion, being able to find music at the click of a button is less interesting than going out and listening to/discovering live, local music scenes.. and perusing the bins at music stores..but no doubt it's more convenient.
You're defining the quality of music fandom by how easy music can be found.. I think the quest to find a band you like (& then hearing it live, etc) used to be more fun & then rewarding, but.. it's all subjective.
Health-wise, things aren't better, but in almost all other things, there is no comparison. I live near a river I love to fish, in a small town near the mountains in western Oregon. We don't get the fog that the valley gets. I have a well outfitted shop that i can putz around in to my heart's content. Did I mention, I'm retired now? I loved my career, but I got out just as it got political. I don't miss that at all. I've been with the same woman for 46 years, and she is my partner as well as my lover. Things are better then they've ever been!
You forgot your comparables
TV: Bridgerton
Music: BTS
...not saying one or the other is better
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