The spoiled under 30 crowd (humor)

[Trogdor]

* Do you kids know what a Gameboy is? I mean a real Gameboy, about the size, weight and entertainment value of a brick. Black and whiite, no backlight, you could barely see Link on your screen.

The Gameboy was still fun.

[trish]

When I was a kid (okay maybe when great grandpa was a kid):

1) The U.S. tortured neither combatants nor non-combatants (or if they we did, no one of any political persuasion would dare publicly argue in its favor as military policy).

2) We never dropped bombs on a city to preempt a war (back then dropping bombs on a city was thought to be one sure fire way of starting a war).

3) The audiences for presidential speeches were not screened to filter out people of opposing points of view.

4) Politicians wrote their own speeches.

5) People read newspapers, often twice a day; newspapers that run regular op-eds by people of opposing interests and points of view. This instead of picking and choosing just the slant that suits you best from the media that requires the least of your divided attention.

[eggbert]

Kids have it much tougher today than we did (I'm over 50). Other than in medicine, advances in technology have done nothing to make the quality of life better. Yes, you can microwave your meals and have them in seconds, but is it as good as if you had cooked a "real" meal, and didn't you miss out on the enjoyment of cooking the meal. Instead you're rushing to cram some food down your throat because you're running to get something else done that has to be done NOW. This is just a microcosm of many daily occurances cauing stress in todays kids.

[Edmund]

I dispute the microwaves one. Those have been widely used since the mid-70s. Other than that, hilarious.

[McB]

I’m over 30 and I can add my spin to the list.
1. We didn’t have cable TV. We had local broadcast only with rabbit ears for an antenna (and yes sometimes we added aluminum foil for better reception).
2. We didn’t have an Atari 2600. We had Pong.
3. We listened to actual albums, 33’s and 45’s. When cassette tapes came along and walkmans where the rage, we taped from the album to the tape.
4. We sent away for whatever piece of trash they where selling and the end of the comic book and it took 4 to 6 weeks to get.

[Trogdor]

I dispute the microwaves one. Those have been widely used since the mid-70s. Other than that, hilarious.

Microwaves kill enzymes in food.

[will802]

I’m over 30 and I can add my spin to the list.
1. We didn’t have cable TV. We had local broadcast only with rabbit ears for an antenna (and yes sometimes we added aluminum foil for better reception).
2. We didn’t have an Atari 2600. We had Pong.
3. We listened to actual albums, 33’s and 45’s. When cassette tapes came along and walkmans where the rage, we taped from the album to the tape.
4. We sent away for whatever piece of trash they where selling and the end of the comic book and it took 4 to 6 weeks to get.

ah yes 33's and 45's... playing the 33's at the 45 speed to hear the chipmunk sound, and trying to spin the discs backwards to see if there were any hidden messages. Such as The Beatles and the Paul is dead Paul is dead myth.......

[tstv_lover]

When I was a kid (okay maybe when great grandpa was a kid):

1) The U.S. tortured neither combatants nor non-combatants (or if they we did, no one of any political persuasion would dare publicly argue in its favor as military policy).

2) We never dropped bombs on a city to preempt a war (back then dropping bombs on a city was thought to be one sure fire way of starting a war).

3) The audiences for presidential speeches were not screened to filter out people of opposing points of view.

4) Politicians wrote their own speeches.

5) People read newspapers, often twice a day; newspapers that run regular op-eds by people of opposing interests and points of view. This instead of picking and choosing just the slant that suits you best from the media that requires the least of your divided attention.

In some countries that's still the norm.

[tgirlzoe]

I don't own a microwave. So yes, popcorn (which my roommate's favorite snack) does involve a pan of hot oil. Works and tastes better than microwave popcorn anyway. I use a toaster oven for toasting bread or tortillas, as it's cheaper than the gas broiler (I think).

I don't own a dishwasher. When I lived with my ex-girlfriend, I did all the dishes and just used the dishwasher as a drying rack. I don't like them. You have to half wash everything anyway and one dirty thing plasters specks on all the glasses. Even with seven people in the house (five adults, two kids), we still hand wash.

I rarely eat pre-processed food. Earth Balance margarine (the only non-hydrogenated kind) is my only big exception. Essentially everything is organic and comes from the produce or bulk goods section of the local food co-op. We also get food from the farmers' market seasonally and, of course, from our own gardens.

Food is very important to us. We have two open community meals per week where friends, family and the homeless join us for soup or pancakes. We also cook about once a month at church mid-week for 75-100 people (dinner is after Eucharist and before classes). Food often forms a focal point of community.

Community is the reason that I am not putting computers so high as a great advance. My computer rarely computes much of anything. It is mainly access to the internet (and is 10 years old, BTW). The internet is a communication tool and that can be helpful if you are transsexual, because 99% of the people we are around can't relate. But for general community, I find that the Internet distracts, not helps. I was more social when I didn't have a computer.

The washing machine, however, is a great invention and I couldn't live without it. I could probably live without a refrigerator, but then my beer would be warm (which is why we need a root cellar). I am also glad for gas stoves and crock pots, cooking my food over wood would be good but tiring (my grandma had a real wood stove to cook on). I do not own a car, nor have any desire to. Sometimes I walk because my bicycle is too fast. We all just bike everywhere. I am happy for indoor plumbing and electric lights.

Technology should be used where it helps but sparingly. There is great value in doing things the way our parents, grandparents and ancestors did them.

[Tomfurbs]

My older sister fucking loved ' My Little Pony' when she was growing up. She collected the dolls and everything.

'Care bears' was seriously messed up.

I'm 22 and I remember Gameboys. My dad once threw mine out the car window on a car journey once. Couldn't take the rinky-dink sounds anymore.