The good:
- not always being reachable. Less immediacy. More self discipline without instant answers
- 3rd spaces caused people to mix who wouldn’t otherwise. There are fewer these days. It also kept people more civil (in one way or another). Likewise, it provided a buffer against disinfo in some senses since people would call BS on something that was wrong. Contrast this to life today on the internet with weird bubbles and conspiracy theories spread like crazy
- more togetherness and hopefulness. Some of this is probably because I was younger, but even in my really rural, conservative US town, no one was against conservation, not wasting water, being more eco-friendly, and trying to help stop the acid rain and ozone hole. That somehow became very politicized and hopelessness has taken over
- people were in the moment, not filming the moment. This especially sucks at live shows compared to the past. Also people doing dumb shit in public for an internet audience didn’t exist for obvious reasons.
- the entertainment was what was on or what you made. No endless distraction or scrolling. More imagination, more involvement in things rather than just posting about it online.
- More privacy, fewer devices constantly sending any telemetry or personal data
The bad:
- not being reachable has consequences in terms of emergencies
- it was easier to get stranded in the past
- things that were missed by forgetting a schedule at home or not knowing it and not being able to look it up
- learning languages was worse IMO. Certainly less variety where I was
- much more casual sexism, homophobia, racism, etc.
- navigation was sometimes harder since maps needed to be updated and one needed to know and to buy the new one. Not a big deal, though, in most areas
- obvious things like medical and other sciences being much more behind. More death.
- HIV/AIDS scare and its consequences on people
I’m sure there’s more that will come to me later.
Hrm. I have a specific email address for udemy and it doesn’t show up on haveibeenpwned so far.