Wonderful article, thank you! It brought to mind a quote I heard once: “Nostalgia is a seductive liar.” We tend to remember things as better than they were. You’re right, the golden age is here, and now.
Thank you my friend! Love that quote. It also brings to mind the difference between history and heritage, with heritage being that warm, fuzzy, nostalgic version of the past that a person prefers. I have to admit, I like it all. As a historian I'm fascinated with the past. As a human I believe in relishing the now. As an optimist I'm hopeful for the future :)
It’s not that the past was a golden age but rather that we are so extra miserable now, especially women.
The family unit is what makes people happy. Women without husbands and children are especially miserable. We do need to return to the past. Do more physical labor. Have more children. Align ourselves with our genetics and biology
Thanks and point noted. As a historian I'm very familiar with the fact that essentially every time in history some people think their time is the worst, so I acknowledge some people are miserable now but I'm not convinced we are extra miserable compared to other times in the past. It's all relative. I do agree with you that we need simpler, more physical lives, including basic things like eating real food, getting out into nature, and socializing with real people whether that's family, friends, or both. All of those things are good for mental and physical well-being and are definitely in tune with our biology.
You make a good argument in the second paragraph. I'm very close to 60yo, so some of my grandparents were literally born in the 19th century. They ate bacon almost daily, then fried their eggs in the grease, and mopped it up with carbs. Three of the four lived to see 95 years of age.
The key (in my non medical professional opinion) was what you said, labor. The worked their butts off from a young age and well into the elder years. Our generation sits in the air conditioning and types.
You said:
The truth is we will always have both Dark Ages and Golden Ages — oddly, often at the same time.
I think that is clearly true. Take Al-Andalus as but one example. It was a Golden age for Moors, and a Dark age for Hispania.
Yes, you are correct. Thanks for reading and the comment!
Wonderful article, thank you! It brought to mind a quote I heard once: “Nostalgia is a seductive liar.” We tend to remember things as better than they were. You’re right, the golden age is here, and now.
Thank you my friend! Love that quote. It also brings to mind the difference between history and heritage, with heritage being that warm, fuzzy, nostalgic version of the past that a person prefers. I have to admit, I like it all. As a historian I'm fascinated with the past. As a human I believe in relishing the now. As an optimist I'm hopeful for the future :)
It’s not that the past was a golden age but rather that we are so extra miserable now, especially women.
The family unit is what makes people happy. Women without husbands and children are especially miserable. We do need to return to the past. Do more physical labor. Have more children. Align ourselves with our genetics and biology
Thanks and point noted. As a historian I'm very familiar with the fact that essentially every time in history some people think their time is the worst, so I acknowledge some people are miserable now but I'm not convinced we are extra miserable compared to other times in the past. It's all relative. I do agree with you that we need simpler, more physical lives, including basic things like eating real food, getting out into nature, and socializing with real people whether that's family, friends, or both. All of those things are good for mental and physical well-being and are definitely in tune with our biology.
You make a good argument in the second paragraph. I'm very close to 60yo, so some of my grandparents were literally born in the 19th century. They ate bacon almost daily, then fried their eggs in the grease, and mopped it up with carbs. Three of the four lived to see 95 years of age.
The key (in my non medical professional opinion) was what you said, labor. The worked their butts off from a young age and well into the elder years. Our generation sits in the air conditioning and types.