Moral decline

[Dave Spence]

I have been visiting the politics room a bit just lately and have been following the free school meals thread. A lot of people were stating how much better it was in the old days with people looking out for each other, being too proud to claim benefits etc etc. and young parents who would not put their childrens needs first were in the firing line for most of the posters. @crackatoa made the point that it was our generation that had spawned this generation of scroungers. I think that mine and crack's political views are probably at opposite ends of the spectrum but i think he was bang on with that observation. The moral decline has been huge in the last 40 or 50 years or so, I remember telling my parents that I was going to Ibeza with my girlfriend in 1976 and my dad asked who would be chaperoning us! He didn't try to stop me going but he was not happy at all. 10 years prior to this a young girl on our estate got pregnant, OMG, the tongue wagging, dirty looks etc were unbelievable, nowadays no one would care. My question is, what caused this lowering of standards? Obviously it has been exacerbated with the power of the internet, but it was in decline way before this.

The internet has been responsible for a massive improvement in peoples lives, imagine being in lockdown without it, even typing this thread would not be possible without the www. However, I was talking to a school counsellor at an Academy where I was doing a short term contract, it was one of the roughset schools I had worked in, she told me that 90% of the year 8 girls (12 and 13 year olds) were sexually active. The problem was, they had derived all of their sex education from the internet and they thought that the things they had seen were 'normal' sexual activities, some of the things she told me that these kids had tried almost had me in tears; that is the downside of the net.

Will it get any better? I doubt it, I fear we are still only part way down a very slippery slope.

 

[spanky]

When I was at school one of the smarter teachers reckoned the world was just starting to change for the worst. He blamed the 1960s/70s with the driving forces being the pill and more widespread drug taking. He reckoned that once that generation grew up and had kids of their own we would be on an unstoppable course of decline, where the parents would not discourage their offspring from following in their footsteps.

In some ways, it looks like he may have been correct.

The internet and social media has been revolutionary in many ways, not all for the better. But there is no way you will get that genie back in the bottle.

 

[Lee Richards]

And now the world is a smaller place and many more people can travel to see its wonders and live experiences they would never have had before.

The only real restrictions on life are those that people impose upon themselves.
It is what you make it and your life choices are your own responsibility.

 

[Dave]

The one thing I've noticed over the years is there is an awful lot of what I call 'angry people'
Not people angry with me, mind you , but the type who must wake up angry, live their lives angry, never have a nice word to say about anyone or anything, stomp around as though they're angry, and so on.

The written language - angry, profanities, people calling others present or not in the conversation angry
In public - they can't look at anyone unless they do so angrily, no pleasantries, always trying to look/act hard, angry
Sad lives really, sad angry lives that take over their personal space and world

 

[commieboy257]

my old man always blamed Wilson and the 'permissive society'. reckoned the world was on a downward path ever since.

 

[TrickyD]

The moral decline has been huge in the last 40 or 50 years or so

Would that be the early 70's ? What momentous thing happened to us then ?

 

[commieboy257]

The one thing I've noticed over the years is there is an awful lot of what I call 'angry people'
Not people angry with me, mind you , but the type who must wake up angry, live their lives angry, never have a nice word to say about anyone or anything, stomp around as though they're angry, and so on.

The written language - angry, profanities, people calling others present or not in the conversation angry
In public - they can't look at anyone unless they do so angrily, no pleasantries, always trying to look/act hard, angry
Sad lives really, sad angry lives that take over their personal space and world

back in the mid-late 80's me and the wife got a council flat at Dronfield. virtually EVERY bloke in the age band 16-40 would size you up at every opportunity to see if they fancied a go.
you get the same sh1t now wherever you go, and as I edge towards 60 I notice more and more young 'uns fancying their chances. 'tis a bad world we live in.

 

[Dave]

Yeap, it makes me laugh when you get a gobby teenager/young man effing and jeffing, Mr Angry from Angryville

 

[Total]

The one thing I've noticed over the years is there is an awful lot of what I call 'angry people'
Not people angry with me, mind you , but the type who must wake up angry, live their lives angry, never have a nice word to say about anyone or anything, stomp around as though they're angry, and so on.

The written language - angry, profanities, people calling others present or not in the conversation angry
In public - they can't look at anyone unless they do so angrily, no pleasantries, always trying to look/act hard, angry
Sad lives really, sad angry lives that take over their personal space and world

^^ I'm angry about that! .....But you're dead right....

Just one of the reasons I can never take forums seriously....And often the 'angry people' wouldn't say it to ones face.....Sad sods....

 

[Scribe]

There is an recent trend of parents trying to be their childrens best friend, wanting their approval and to be liked, rather than doing what is best for thier child, even if it makes them unpopular.

That said I think it's easier to focus on the worse kinds of behaviour / attitudes, it does seem to be a particularly British trait to look on the bad side. This could explain why there is very little good news on TV or in newspapers.

You only have to look at the big charity events 'Children In Need' or 'Comic Relief' that break the amount collected year on year, to realise that there is a bigger majority of moral people, than one would suspect.

There will always be a core of people young & old that do have a moral compass and steer by it.

 

[Dave]

There will always be a core of people young & old that do have a moral compass and steer by it.

Except @sly

 

[Pompous git]

Had the morals of an alley cat as a teenager.

Scribe is quite right regarding parents treating children as their friends rather than children, see it with my kids and grandkids.

Not for me to interfere but they are making a rod for their own backs.

 

[wayne_uk]

In the late 80's early 90's with the introduction to "every child matters" program,
giving the child a right to security, freedom of speech, personal space etc, the young people found out they could be as bolshy and argumentative as they liked and if they were told control their behaviour they would spout out "i have the right" move this forward a generation and you have youth bought up with the same beliefs only more exaggerated, so brings out the angry, don't get me wrong it is not all young people just the ones who really took advantage, but once in that mindset it was hard to get out of it,
I was a youth worker for 30 years and could see it happening, sad times.

 

[sly]

Except @sly

har har,lairy northern git

 

[biggsy]

Would that be the early 70's ? What momentous thing happened to us then ?

Didn't Ted Heath remove the cane or slipper in schools

 

[lp1886]

If you let the 3rd world in, you soon become it.

 

[Arry]

"Spare the rod spoil the child" is a mantra I heard a lot as a lad... (usually whilst getting a hiding off one o me parents) its never been more true today... and it applies to a lot of the last 2 generations.... some blokes need a good kick inna nuts to make sure they never breed again and some lass's need their fannies sewn up for exactly the same reasons... If I had my way Faeces book would never have seen the light of day and kids would learn respect and compulsory manners and social skills at school... I despair... old gimmer I may be, but I have manners, respect my elders, and know right from wrong... summat deffo wrong in this world....

 

[angel]

The rot had definitely started but Maggie Thatcher had a big hand in it.
Promoting the message you can have it all, family, career, whatever.
A lot of latch key kids left to their own devices, parents wanting all the latest tech, no time for raising the kids, leave that to teachers, grandparents and the child minder.

 

[Arry]

This isn't about political blaming Angel... its about parents not being able to control children its about removing the ability to punish or educate them in the home because thats where parenting and good behaviour starts...
Yes subsequent political parties did not help with some poor policies... but the majority of the blame lies with parents not caring or engaging with their kids and allowing them to grow up with almost feral attitudes... christ my old man used to give me a right hiding if I cheeked him or my mum... now kids blackmail the parents by saying "I'll tell social services you touched me"
Little gits like that need touching... across the arse with a soddin belt

 

[Dave]

When they have 'Childline' on speed dial you know you've lost the battle