WE ARE NOT HAPPIER THAN OUR FOREFATHERS
This article gives 11 main problems that make our lives not as happy as our forefathers'.
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We are not happier than our forefathers.
We are happier than our forefathers.
11 reasons why we are not happier than our forefathers:
1. People are now facing with the lack of natural resources, more severe environmental issues and natural disasters than ever before.
With the world’s population rapidly increasing, natural resources have been greatly exploited. Therefore, it comes as no surprise to learn that humans will be likely to run out of those resources in the future. According to the International Energy Agency, the amount of petroleum has become exhausted; and the situation is getting worse because very few oil wells are found each year. Besides, people are also struggling against environmental problems from air, water, soil to radioactivity and noise pollution. Nowadays, global warming is a serious problem for which many nations are trying to find a common voice. What’s more, natural disasters are another worry for people. According to the Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA), there were about 100 natural disasters each year in the 1980s. However, this number has multiplied; and it is estimated that there are about 300 natural disasters each year on average. In short, people have to think about the next generations by finding a solution to these above issues.
2. Unemployment has been a constant source of worry to people.
Continuing high unemployment is not a problem of any single nation anymore; and people have had to live in fear of losing jobs or not being able to find jobs. According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), it is reported that the unemployment rate of the developed countries increases each year; for example 5,8%; 8,4%; 8,8% in 2007, 2009, 2010 respectively. In 2012, it is forecasted that the rate will increase by 3%. One of the reasons is that the labor market is now much harsher compared with the previous generations’, which means it is going to be more difficult to have a job, and thus makes us feel worried.
3. Modern technology has made our lives worse.
There is no doubt that the standard of living has been improved thanks to the advent of technology such as washing machines, air-conditioners, cars, computers, or cellphones. However, people, especially young people, have started to depend too much on technology. To some an extent, they cannot live without it and sometimes feel depressed when not using it. According to a survey conducted by the Yours Magazine (UK), the youth spend at least 3.5 hours a day on chatting, blogs or Facebook. Besides, the report also shows that the youth grow lonelier because they just want to make friends in the “virtual” world rather than meeting friends in person. This is the serious problem since they will gradually have little time to interact with their family and friends.
In addition, technology is sometimes considered as a contributing factor to unemployment. For example, the invention of robots used in the manufacturing process has put a large number of people out of work. Therefore, today’s life is not as happy as we expected.
4. The Internet is causing people harm because of the unreliability of information.
It is indubitable that the Internet plays an essential role in today’s life. Nevertheless, there is a deep anxiety over the fidelity of the online information. Newspapers have shown many cases in which people ended up suffering because of the misleading information. This is extremely dangerous for young people who are not taught sex education in schools. For example, for students who are curious about sex but do not know how to get information, the Internet is one of their first choices. Unfortunately, not all the online information is right; and it can mislead them about sex, especially when these students happen to click on “black” websites. Moreover, if a female student is not aware of the consequences of unsafe abortions or get wrong information about it from the Internet, she may be a victim of it in future.
5. More people are victims of modern illnesses.
In today’s fast-paced life, we are having a plenty of work to deal with. Consequently, we are living under stress. According to a research conducted by researchers at Queensland University (Australia), one out of thirteen people is suffering from stress and depression. Besides, we have not paid enough attention to our health because we are now busy with work. Therefore, we are suffering from many illnesses. A report by Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) shows that the number of Australians diagnosed as diabetics has doubled since 1990. According to this report, besides having illogical eating habits and doing less exercise than before, they are also easy to gain weight. Unlike our forefathers who lived a healthier life decades ago, we are suffering from modern illnesses which makes us not happy anymore.
6. Poverty has posed a major threat to our society.
There are many factors contributing to poverty such as diseases, wars or unemployment. According to Oxfam, there are one billion people suffering from poverty due to the high prices of food. In addition, statistics of the Caritas organization show that poverty has caused approximately 7000 children deaths everyday. Furthermore, the food crisis is getting worse in Western Africa, Yemen and Eastern Africa according to the report also conducted by Caritas Charity Organization in June 2012. Even though our forefathers experienced poverty, the situation we are undergoing now is getting worse and worse than before. Briefly, people will have a long battle against poverty ahead.
7. Ethnic conflicts and territorial disputes are now more serious.
It is thought that ethnic conflicts only happened in the past. However, it still happens even in today’s life, even more seriously. Newspapers have published many articles about this issue. For instance, according to CNN, in July 2012, there were 32 people dying and at least 150000 residents being evacuated because of the ethnic conflict in Assam, Northwest Africa.
As for territorial disputes, this is also another hot issue these days. Examples are the East Sea dispute between China, Philippines and Vietnam or the Senkaku Islands dispute between China and Japan. These disputes can result in more serious consequences in the future.
8. In developing countries, the mismatch between the infrastructure and the urbanization speed is making our lives more difficult.
This phenomenon is usually seen in developing countries in which people are facing up to serious issues such as traffic jams, flood tides or serious damage to streets. In the past, when the population was not dense, our forefathers could hardly think of the above-mentioned problems with which we now are dealing.
9. Regardless of morals, some people are trying every way they can, even illegal one to have money.
There is no doubt that money plays an essential role in today’s society. Sometimes, people just think about how much money they can get rather than considering their actions good for others or not. For example, the 2008 Chinese Milk Scandal is a vivid illustration of how money can affect people’s conscience. They did not care about the health of babies but only wanted to earn more money by adding Melamine – a substance forbidden in food – to milk powder to fake the protein content. It seems that some people are living selfishly; and it definitely does not make us happy.
10. The gap between the rich and the poor is wider than before.
Since the world’s economy is quite unstable, people, especially the poor, are put at a disadvantage compared with the rich. According to CNN citing news from Economic Policy Institute (EPI), the gap between the rich and the poor in USA has increased about 300 times since 2010. It results in the Occupy Wall Street incident (OWS) that took place in New York City’s Wall Street financial district. In this protest, many Americans expressed their dissatisfaction with the income inequality between the U.S wealthiest 1% and the rest of the population. Even though many nations have been trying to solve it, the poor are still struggling to slave away everyday; hence, we cannot feel content in the unfair world like this.
11. Gender imbalance is an issue in modern society to which we have to find a solution.
This has been the most-talked-about issue recently, especially in developing countries. The reason lies in the long-term belief that sons are better than daughters in some Asian countries such as China, Korea and Vietnam. Despite the fact that the governments have been attempting to fix the problem, it has shown no sign of positive effect. According to China Daily Newspaper, it is estimated that in 2020 there will be 24 million Chinese men in their marriageable age who cannot get married because of the lack of women. All in all, we are not happier than our forefathers because if this scenario is real, we cannot find our true love, which can lead to more complicated social issues such as “brides export”.
