Dumber in total? I'd say no. Dumber relative to how much previous generations have advanced compared to their predecessors? I'd say yes.
We are by far more knowledgeable...no doubt about that. But in this gathering of knowledge we are forgetting our history. So to answer your query, yes and no.
We're less thoughtful, but more knowledgeable. Once white guys had to get degrees to stay in the middle class, white chicks couldn't rely on marriage in their early-to-mid 20s for economic enrichment; and minorities couldn't get factory or low-end retail jobs without a high school diploma, basic academic achievement became a necessity.
I remember there's a quote used a lot by scientists. That the more answers we get, the more questions they open up. Basically, being more knowledgeable shows us how little we know. For example, hundreds and thousands of years ago, most people lived on farms. Their entire lives were on farms. They know everything they need to know very well. Yet they were infinitely less knowledgeable, and intelligence is partially based on knowledge, than people today. A fifth grader today probably know more about math, science, history, writing than your typical adult from a couple of hundred years ago. But today with more knowledge comes more responsibility. We actually have to elect officials. Whereas it used to be just a king sitting on a throne far away. We need medical knowledge to keep people alive, when we used to just have infants die at a high rate. We need to keep safe from the world around us like crooked people, crooked corporations, crooked government, etc. when there was a time when you didn't need to lock your house. Are we smarter? Yes. But relative to the necessities of our society, it's probably a wash.
lazier with a false sense of entitlement. You can't just breakdown the human brain into simple descriptions like smart and dumb, it's far too complex.
I think we are less patriotic. It used to be country, then party. Now its party, pocket book, then country. Reagan would be branded a borderline liberal in this day in age since he raised taxes twice. Same with Bush Sr.
The first thing people satisfy is the pop culture requirement. I think that's what makes the public look pretty dumb from an outside looking in perspective. We are less patriotic, but does that matter? People are less of individuals when they are overly patriotic. They follow pop culture instead though, so there are no individuals anyway. We need individuals
Depends. In what sense Also . . . Century was ridiculous compare to the rest of history . . as far as tech. As socially speaking. .. . we might be better Could Obama happen any generation previous??? Rocket River
i think the problem is that our hate is spread out all over the place and where it was once focused outwardly, we now hate each other. this is bad for our country individually and collectively.
I see quite a bit of truth in many of the statements here. I especially think we are lazier. Also, the Internet has provided us with greater access to information, but Internet discourse has made us less civil and seemingly more prone to extremes and hyperbole.
