Things you would never believe would become the norm

[LakeTiticaca]

The flip side of the other thread about the horrors that were acceptable 20/30/40 years ago.
Things that back then we would never believe possible . I'll start
Children carrying knives.
Children murdering each other
Children attacking parents and teachers.
Morbid obesity
The lax attitude towards drugs
The notion that you are not responsible for your own actions. It's always someone else's fault.
Smart phones and social media
The damage that smartphones and social media cause

Inept Prime Ministers.

Flying all round the world on holidays with no thought given to the damage it is doing to the planet. People seem to feel that their right to go where they want when they want overrides the future of our children.

I don't think this is in anyway the 'norm' in many areas of the country. Obviously there are places where this is more normalised but most teenagers aren't carrying knives or stabbing people.

I think there are positive and negative changes including:
Smoking and alcohol falling out of favour with the young (although vaping is on the rise)
More pressure to be better parents than ever whilst maintaing fantastic careers.
More acceptance of gay people but the blurring of the sexes.
More awareness of the environment and people trying to make more sustainable choices, yet many things seem more disposable than ever.

@3DayStockpiler I like the positive list. It's a shame the OP only opened with the negatives. There are many great and positive things that we would never have expected to become the norm.

People being cancelled, ostracised, hounded out of employment for expressing perfectly legal opinions. Weak, woke police forces looking on while protestors disrupt peoples lives, sit in roads, climb bridges, occupy universities while students are trying to take exams.

Being arrested for stating biological facts.
Even 10 years ago people would split their sides laughing if they were told this would be happening

And many of those people actually have children. I don’t understand how they’re not joining the dots! I’ve seen it here on travel threads: ‘DS is only 3 but has already flown to ten countries’ as if it’s something to be proud of 🥴

The public pleading for their own government to oppress them more and more, under the guise of “protection”.

Discriminating against people based on vaccination. We came dangerously close to this.

Satnav and Google Maps to easily get around, whether by car, public transport or on foot. No having to carry maps everywhere and being stranded with no idea where you are or how to get somewhere.
24/7 phones - some people may not like the 'intrusion' but it's so much better for safety reasons and being able to get hold of people in an emergency than having to find a phone box and spare change.
Second hand shopping being perfectly acceptable instead of being seen as a pauper if your clothes or furniture aren't brand new.

The way we're more knowledgeable about layering to withstand the weather

You really think this is a new thing??!!

For me, it is that babies and young children have a screen in front of their face the whole time.
Everything has to be photographed or videoed.
Food banks are normal and a worthy charity cause in the uk, which is supposed to be one of the richest nations.

People being emboldened to spout their racism openly, and deriding being aware of racial, and social injustice, and inequality, as being "woke".

The rise in crime and anti social behaviour so that barely anyone bats an eyelid now (including the police) unless it's a very serious crime such as GBH or murder or the police/council can lazily issue a fixed penalty notice.

I grew up in a time when people respected rules and the law. Now it seems to be all about "what can I get away with" rather than "is it against the rules/laws?"

Very sad state of affairs and I can only see it getting worse.

*The way we're more knowledgeable about layering to withstand the weather

You really think this is a new thing??!!*

I think it's something that's become more accessible and clothing technology has improved. Lightweight layers vs the big bulky coat.

Was not expecting male lesbians to be a thing.

We all believed that technology would make our lives easier, which it has to a certain extent, but the fact that you can be always available for both work and personal purposes is so detrimental to mental health. Especially for younger people who have never known any different. The relief I feel when I go out and forget my phone!
And of course the fact that otherwise seemingly intelligent people believe that a nebulous ‘gender identity’ overrides biological fact is mind blowing.

The UK isn't one of the richest nations per capita. It actually stands in 31st place, behind countries such as France, Ireland, Iceland, Denmark, Malta, Belgium, Canada, Australia, USA, etc.

Food banks are normal pretty much everywhere now. I used to work as a grant manager for an international philanthropic foundation and we had at least one food assistance partner in every single country we worked in.

Trying to bring some lightheartedness here. So my parents generation would find it hard to believe that we buy water 💧 and lug it around in huge cup containers incase we get thirsty on the commute home from work.

• A tube of polos costing nearly £1
• People walking around with their face in their phone
• Kids feeling encouraged to harm their physical health to change sex at an age where they're in hormonal turmoil
• British rail service being completely unreliable and unaffordable
• Kids giving up all other life in run up to SATs to free them up for the exams
• The country's health service being decimated to potentially a point of no return
• Obesity being normalised despite the huge detriment to everyone's health

Definitely the knife carrying. There was alot of fighting in the 80s but people used their knuckles no knives at all. If you carry a knife you are prepared to use it it is so sad.

Dimwits thinking Brexit was going to work out just fine.

Yes, technology has given us lighter weight warm clothing, but the idea that in the past we didn’t know about layering and that a huge coat was your only option if it got cold.

Yep...

Regarding academic achievement, it seems like a child can't just be of below average IQ anymore; there has to be a label, ie cognitive delay, or a reason for why they're not achieving. Some people are just not that intelligent... It's mainly genetics!

People going to coffee shops rather than pubs. I grew up working class Irish and all the men I knew as a child went to the pub regularly regardless of income. I don't know a single person who does anything like that now. Most of the local pubs my parents generation frequented are closed down now.

Yes to the lack of personal responsibility and shame...

One example is the increased number of children going to school not toilet-trained (not withstanding any SEN). People actually used to be embarrassed if their child, for example, wasn't out of nappies by about 3. Now people don't care and just pass the problem onto someone else.

When parents done parenting instead of have sen as an excuse.
If you tell a child of now it's considered abuse.
Every thing seems to be seen as abuse now.
School gate mums I don't get the hype kids go to school now it seems more drama with the parents than the kids.
The time when the library was the place to learn.
The time when if you had a bad time you got back up not having years of therapy.
Talking to people face to face making new friends finding a boyfriend husband now its online creeps.
The list goes on.