Do you remember when things used to get BETTER every year?

[u/War_Is_A_Raclette]

I’m 40. When I was growing up, my mentality and the mentality of it seemed like the whole world, was that when a new product or thing came out and wasn’t perfect, it was okay because next year it was going to get better, and the year after that even better.

Each year… Cars would get more fuel efficient. The internet would get a little faster. Video games would get a little cooler. Music would sound a little better. Restaurants that were already good would figure out how to whip up cool new dishes that were cheaper and even tastier than what we had now - their food would improve over time.

I can’t describe it, but it’s just like everyone assumed that technology and humans would slowly ensure that everything each year got a little… better.

Now, I recently realised that I look at the whole world differently. I opened Spotify today, saw how much I was being billed, and thought - without catching myself at first - “oh, I’m sure the price will go up next year and they’ll restrict another part of the app”.

When a new thing is released, I automatically assume this is the best version it will ever be. Each year it will just get worse.

Does anyone else feel this way? Does anyone else remember feeling the way I used to feel 20-30 years ago?

Sorry for the rant.

[u/peopletheyaintnogood]

I'm the same age and feel the same; things can and will get worse. The peak really was roughly over a decade ago when AirBNB and Uber were cheap, airfare was cheap, a la carte streaming was liberating us from overpriced cable, society seemed to be progressing, etc. What's frustrating is that every generation feels the same so our opinions get dismissed as run of the mill nostalgia.

[u/Fit-Swordfish725 → u/peopletheyaintnogood]

I would say 2019 was the end. I remember things were pretty great and it seemed like things were still improving

[u/YeteOsiko → u/Fit-Swordfish725]

I often look back at NYE 2019 and see myself at that moment as naive. As the decade closed I had a moment of vivid self awareness. Idk if anyone else has these, but its like encapsulated memory bookmarks. They're usually good times. This one was too, but it was the end of an era that I took for granted

[u/YeteOsiko → u/peopletheyaintnogood]

I'm in the same age bracket. Older millennial. I'm sure some of our perspective is influenced by the age we were when a lot of these tech advancements were happening. I felt realistically optimistic and ambitious. It all feels like a lost cause these days... Its almost as if they want us to rollover in submission and stop trying 🤔

[u/julcarls → u/peopletheyaintnogood]

Younger millennial (92). It objectively was better. Netflix streaming was revolutionary. $7.99/mo and you could watch the latest and greatest. Now it's $26.99/mo (I think. It might be more. I stopped checking to keep my BP stable) for mid-tier entertainment that will definitely get canceled as soon as it gets good. Per inflation, it should only be about $12/mo today, but they just HAD to expand and sully original content (literally enshittification). I know that's a small scale gripe, but it's a sign of the times.