To think the mood of the country is low level depression?

[AllThePogs]

I know individuals may feel optimistic at the moment or severely depressed, but I think the atmosphere in the country is of low-level depression.
I think countries often have an overall "feel" to them. I have lived through times that have felt optimistic that things are going to improve, and times that have felt happy and prosperous.
But at the moment the atmosphere just seems like low-level depression.
AIBU?

The only positive is that in some sectors employers are finding it hard to get staff. I see some employers complaining who have always been shit employers, and I think, bloody serves you right.

We're all fed up with Covid restrictions and the dark nights and cold. We'll perk up when the lighter nights and warmth come back and we don't have to wear bloody masks

Think you’re absolutely right. The world, probably.

@OldaRailer

The Londoncentricity of the news and GOVERNMENT RESPONSES to the pandemic are beyond a joke at this stage.

Yes, I get so fed up with this. Last night, countrywide news - hospitalisations are going down in the hospital. Local news - hospitalisations are soaring and hospitals are struggling more than at any other point. Army has been called in to help drive ambulances. And I see it on MN people declaring things are getting better in hospitals. I live in a City, not a rural place with a tiny population.

I also feel so sorry for all the teenagers who have been through exam years with two years of disruption of their schooling. I wasn't too worried about this at the beginning, but I had no idea it would go on so long.

I did hear about it this morning from a Bolton hospital iirc

Re exactly that - army etc

Same stage as we were earlier

It is tough though when it’s happening

@AllThePogs

The only positive is that in some sectors employers are finding it hard to get staff. I see some employers complaining who have always been shit employers, and I think, bloody serves you right.

I'm in one of these sectors, and the sad thing is nothing is changing. I'm in social care and it's always been on the edge wrt to staffing levels and service delivery. The only reason it's still limping along is the goodwill of the staff still working, because they care about the people they look after and know they'll go without. But goodwill available is getting less and less, and rather than looking at improving conditions for workers, improving levels of care for service users, we're having ideas like a volunteer army proposed, or immigration workers brought in to fill the gap.

The employers don't see it as their fault that they can't get staff, they blame the workers that are there for not being good enough, they blame the lazy and work shy for not wanting a job and living on benefits, they brand those who leave for better pay and conditions as selfish and disloyal. Because they're used to holding all the cards, to it being perfectly acceptable to exploit people in pursuit of making money and they refuse to acknowledge that we've reached a tipping point where there's little to nothing left to give from the workers side, they've had it all, and given very little in return, they want to take more and they want to give less, and they want to blame someone else for that.

@SweetFelicityArkright Yes it is appalling that care homes are not improving staff pay and conditions. It is a hard job for the level of pay. And no one is selfish to leave for a better job or to stay on benefits.
I would hope no one would volunteer to cover the gaps. Volunteers if they exist should be for the extras like doing a sing-song or visiting people who never get visitors, not doing basic care.

@AngelicaElizaAndPeggy that is sad that your colleagues wouldn't cover for you. I do feel at work though everyone is doing their job, no one is doing anything extra. And even though we are treated well, staff turnover is high. We keep getting offered extra little perks I think to try and keep us.

@AllThePogs that's an interesting perspective. Teachers are getting no perks. At my school were being observed and criticised more often than ever. Any minor perks like leaving after a late lunch break at Christmas have gone. I received a letter at Christmas notifying me of absence management with a Bradford factor of 16. There's seriously no goodwill.

@BitterTits I can understand they might not have money to give you perks, but they should at least treat you well. I am lower paid than a teacher. But my workplace has done things like an online Christmas Quiz during the working day, an extra day's annual leave given in November as a thank you for still being with them, a few yoga classes online you can attend during working time to boost our health and wellbeing. And all the managers seem to have been instructed to praise our work whenever there is an opportunity. I have really noticed that almost anything gets praised!
TBH its not a bad job. We are well treated, paid slightly above the average for our jobs and never get asked to do over our hours. So although I am not well paid, it is a pretty easy place to work. But still staff turnover is really high as people move on for promotions elsewhere as there is a shortage of experienced people. I don't want a promotion, I am finding myself plodding through the days so don't want the extra stress.

Yeah I agree with this, but I do think it's reflective of how the government treat the population too, the idea that if you have enough power (ie money) you're pretty much untouchable and that exploiting people to make more money is positively encouraged, thus gaining more power and round it goes.

I think this is why I’m rooting so strongly to bring Prince Andrew to justice. If he’s guilty I want to see him face the same consequences as an ordinary person would.

Ordinary citizens need to rediscover their sense of self worth: we deserve better. We need to find a way to heal to get to that point.

Yes, I agree. I think seeing the elite get away with so much basically is telling the general public they are plebs who don't matter.

The elite know that when we are further down the road, the plebs will get angry and demand change. Why do you think they are using this time to push through restrictions on peaceful protest?

I found out recently that when developers have to offset the environmental damage caused by their developments, that the offset schemes don’t have to be associated with the development. So instead of a new estate having allotments or a park associated with it to lock in carbon, the funding could be used to buy plantation woodland on a wealthy landowner’s estate miles away. And of course the landowner will be richly compensated whilst the housing estate dwellers get no benefit at all. We really must fight this stuff now.

A minor thing cheered me up yesterday - the first British daffodils on sale in the supermarket and snowdrops in our garden

@Pendolino

I found out recently that when developers have to offset the environmental damage caused by their developments, that the offset schemes don’t have to be associated with the development. So instead of a new estate having allotments or a park associated with it to lock in carbon, the funding could be used to buy plantation woodland on a wealthy landowner’s estate miles away. And of course the landowner will be richly compensated whilst the housing estate dwellers get no benefit at all. We really must fight this stuff now.

That's bloody awful.

It's the bastard winter and the bastard rolling news. Everything on the news is like the stuff of nightmares, people murdering each other, children being abused and neglected, Boris Johnson's hair, the terrible plight of refugees risking their lives in freezing channel waters to get here, babies being attacked by bloody bulldogs or Rottweilers (WHY the fuck anyone has those horrible, dangerous dogs I'll never understand - do people never learn????)

So just be aware that a constant drip of news can affect your mental health. make a conscious decision to stay away from it when you feel overwhelmed

The recovery from the Financial Crises of say, 2008-2011 has so far been without rises in wages and improvements to our standard of living. That is because our productivity is low. So much money is taken out in Taxation. Yes that is a bit of an exaggeration. But that is how it feels. It keeps so many of us on minimum wage or a little more.
The businesses are in broadly in good shape. Bankruptcies are low. Stock markets in UK are high, not at records as they are in USA. Main European Markets are similar to ours.
Our GDP or general level of all commercial activity is now above the level before the Pandemic struck. (Reported in Times today.)

@giggly

Does my bloody head in people using a clinical diagnostic disorder in a completely unrelated manner. How does one diagnose a whole nation eh op? Just to clarify there is no such medical term as mild depression. You and many others might want to check ICD 10 diagnostic criteria before stupidity branding medical terms about. Right as you were, Carry on with your Daily Mail journo

How is it completely unrelated? Depression is significantly characterised by low mood. The OP is asking if people feel that, generally, the mood of the country is low. A populace can customarily be defined by its mood, just as individuals can suffer from a depressed mood.

Your accusation is hypocritical - you're being proprietorial over the use of the term 'depressed'

I feel depressed about the state of the country. Partly covid and partly the fact that we have a corrupt, self-serving elite in charge. Plus a media that backs them and encourages many citizens to vote against their own interests. I honestly worry about the country my kids will live in as adults. Probably will involve unaffordable housing and healthcare, poor job prospects, little in the way of social welfare, and no retirement, just work till you drop.

It's about putting up with stuff as well, isn't it?

People are too scared to put their foot down about not taking their full lunch hour and leaving on time because they don't want to stick their head above the parapet. My Dad had great terms and conditions from his employer. He retired in his 50s on a very nice pension from a fairly average (and not highly paid job). I remember him laughing that his employer wanted staff to work on a Saturday unpaid to facilitate an office move. Nobody at his level or below did unpaid overtime. In fact, I think the Union got involved in that one.

It's the same with politics. Unless enough people decide that they have had enough of the sleaze and 'I'm alright Jack' attitude of politicians by voting with their feet then absolutely nothing will change. Not really sure what the alternative would be at the moment but hey ho!

@CaveWoman1

It's the bastard winter and the bastard rolling news. Everything on the news is like the stuff of nightmares, people murdering each other, children being abused and neglected, Boris Johnson's hair, the terrible plight of refugees risking their lives in freezing channel waters to get here, babies being attacked by bloody bulldogs or Rottweilers (WHY the fuck anyone has those horrible, dangerous dogs I'll never understand - do people never learn????)

So just be aware that a constant drip of news can affect your mental health. make a conscious decision to stay away from it when you feel overwhelmed

Completely agree.

Especially the one about avoiding having to look at Bojo's hair.

@Brindle88, I agree with much that you say. However I don't think there is much "leadership". It feels as if the main bodies are just carrying on with what they want to do.
Police - pick and choose who they will investigate
NHS - makes it's own rules on a departmental basis over all kinds of topics not just words to describe women.
Businesses - just keep going on. Mobile Phone and Internet companies keep offering poor service
Utility Companies - keep over charging
Banks - Keep on closing branches, refusing to engage with victims of scams.
Capitalism "red in tooth and claw" The Bodies that oversee the Utility companies are toothless.

It’s nearly blue Monday

Agreed. Various causes.

But one of them is that we were sold brexit as some fabulous new venture. We've invested huge amounts of money and political capital and time in it. And now most people are realising we were fooled, although probably don't really quite want to fully admit it yet.

It's a bit like taking out a big loan, studying something for three years at a dodgy uni, and then finding the people who promised you jobs and success just took their commission from the uni, buggered off, and you're left unemployed and in debt

YANBU and if this government think I am going to be cheered by the Queen's anniversary (so shortly after the last celebration) they have another thing/k coming. Local council have already started on the excitement-building planning (requiring people to do stuff for free mostly) and now I have that horror to get through as well as seeing a DC in one piece through A levels at same level as people took under normal circumstances and not having had 2 years of disrupted schooling, mostly being treated as walking health hazard so not given the usual careers advice and usual university application advice, with universities having the pick of this years and last years deferred students for 9k a year of very little contact teaching and often overpriced accommodation, relatives stuck treating unvaccinated highly infectious Covid patients in hospital so no end in sight on ever being safe from Covid, especially now the JCVI think people 4 months past their booster are currently totally A-OK safe in their high-risk working environments, not being able to meet family inside due to jobs working with highly infectious unvaccinated Covid patients (surprisingly able to overcome their reliance on their immune systems to instead accept the medical treatments and medical experts in hospital costing ££££s and with many many needles)...

Anyway TLDR: yes it's shit on top of shit and this enforced joviality of a royal bank holiday better be optional