Sing it with me now "shiny happy people laughing....".. But wait a minute, what happened since that classic REM song? Where have all the good people gone (Sam Robert band)?
I say we blame it on the pandemic (hey, we can't blame everything on Justin Trudeau ..or can we?).
This is not just an impression or a personal perception of people post-covid lockdowns. There has been a lot of research, and many articles written these past 3 years about the change in the mental state of so many of us.
Angry people seem to be everywhere.
So I started asking myself, what specifically about the pandemic has led to such a frustrated, and heck (even more) divided world?
First off, there is no question that people are frustrated because of the lockdowns we were subjected to in 2020 and 2021. Some lost their jobs, their businesses, others were unable to be with and say goodbye to loved ones. That hurts. Big Time.
But this next group I have little sympathy for: the jabronis who took over the stock market. The redditers. The gamblers. Yes those with names like Chewbacca, Lady Gaga or KentuckCriedChicken began controlling the direction of some stocks, and making quick, easy money (hey they had a lot of time on their hands). Heck, anyone invested in tech or health care stocks (magic word even the most hopeless of biotechs would use was "covid research") made easy money (of course this game only lasted a few months- until folks began weeding out the fakes from the legits, but you get my point. Easy money, youngling suddenly driving with sports cars, when merely a few weeks earlier they were packing your bags at the local Walmart).
And then poof, no more magic, no more easy peasy money to be made a year or so later. The ones who had gone "All-in" into these bogus company's stocks (aka got in late in the game...people suffering from a horrendous disease we Finance people call FOMO- Fear Of Missing Out) had wiped themselves out. And the redditers/jabronis/early players had either already spent their mini fortunes or could not find as many stocks to provide them with the quick gratification of the past.
More Angry People.
The third group would be the ones who bought in, who truly believed employers who promised a work from home environment would be the way of the future. Oh come on you fell for it too didn't you? Well guess what, the great majority of employers this year have been asking their employees to come back to their non-virtual offices. Stress. Unexpected change of lifestyle. Put bluntly: hoodwinked, bamboozled and outright FOOLED.
Another new wave of Angry People added to the list.
And then there's the kids. More distracted, disinterested than ever. A couple of years of video game addiction, spending less time outdoors (remember when we thought it was transmissible even outdoors or via food- heck i would toss my takeout in the microwave to "kill the potential virus" ...ok perhaps it was just me) and we know have children who are more difficult than ever. Difficult children = angrier parents.
And then the List of Livid People grew even more.
And finally you have the politics. 2020 was not just the year of covid. It was a year filled with protests, civil unrest, and tension between those on the Right and those on the Left. Trump, the truckers, BLM protests, excessive amount of shootings, divisions everywhere. Your quiet, seemingly peaceful and fun-loving cousin, nephew, aunt, brother came out of the woodworks with hate-filled rhetoric, with political views that absolutely shook you. This was also a thing these past few years that created tension, frustration and led to...
More aggressive, angry people...
And here we are today. Fewer and fewer shiny, happy people....
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