Would you rather be born in the past or future?

I don't want to hijack the live forever thread but another interesting question would be given a choice would you have rather been born in the past or in the future? In the past the earth was cleaner, things less complicated and there was no danger of a renegade nation perhaps having the capability of blowing up the world or a country. Of course for various reasons, the life expectancy was much lower. In the future, who knows, maybe due to scientific and medical advances you will be able to live forever or certainly healthier for a longer period of time. But will we even be here in the future or at least for the surviving, will life as we know it now be the same? A nuclear holocaust or someother means of mass destruction will continue to get more real and readily available for those that desire such a thing. There is little to suggest that countries that are warring with each other is going to stop.

But I guess I'd take my chances in the future.

Basically, it comes down to the fact that the past is a known while the future isn't. In the future we may indeed extend life indefinitely, end war, clean up our air and water, make the earth a paradise. Or we may end up with a Mad Max scenario. Or something in between (think Starship Troopers). I honestly couldn't answer this without knowing what future I would be living in. A nice compromise might be living in the past but getting to take your 21st century technology along. For sure I wouldn't want to live without the comforts and conveniences I've come to rely on such as electricity, climate control, some mechanized transportation (I could get by fine without cars but not without public transportation), computers, and of course artificial light besides candle light. What I wouldn't miss about the 21st century would be the materialism, superficiality of many people, big intrusive government, environmental pollution, and mechanized warfare.

This is really a difficult question. I suppose since I'm more comfortable with technology than without, and since living in a past where I already know exactly what will happen would be boring, I would take a chance that the future would be utopia instead of hell.

The PAST! And here is why:

"Boy, the way Glen Miller played. Songs that made the Hit Parade. Guys like us, we had it made. Those were the days! Didn't need no welfare state. Everybody pulled his weight Gee, our old LaSalle (a car) ran great. Those were the days! And you knew where you were then! Girls were girls and men were men. Mister, we could use a man like Herbert Hoover again. People seemed to be content. Fifty dollars paid the rent. Freaks were in a circus tent. Those were the days! Take a little Sunday spin, go to watch the Dodgers win. Have yourself a dandy day that cost you under a fin (five dollar bill). Hair was short and skirts were long. Kate Smith really sold a song. I don't know just what went wrong! Those Were the Days!"

I was born in 1946; the transistor was invented the following year. There has been an incredible number of inventions flowing from that, including transistor radios, affordable color TVs, satellites, computers, powerful and useful software, and to me, the most important invention: the internet which we're enjoying here. Were I to pick a time to be born, it would be about 1990 so that I could enjoy the fantastic rush of hi-tech invention to the fullest.

On the downside, I'm sad to see developing problems such as over-population, peak oil, pollution, global warming, terrorism, loss of thousands of species of plants and animals, deforestation and rising sea levels.

I certainly won't miss A-bombs, H-bombs, strontium-90 and the fear of global nuclear annihilation.

I don't think I would like to live without the advances in modern medicine, as a person on dialysis I have been dependent on the medical profesion and would have been dead 15 years ago if I had had this condition prior to about 1960.

we were all born in the past.... :laughing:

I would have loved to be able to enjoy the 60ies and 70ies with all that change, spirit, music etc.
There was hope, there was a common spirit, there was liberation and new territory.
Whereas nowadays ... :sick2: ... forget it.
I am sad that I wasn't born 15 years earlier, really sad.
bernie

Kiessling said:

I would have loved to be able to enjoy the 60ies and 70ies with all that change, spirit, music etc.
There was hope, there was a common spirit, there was liberation and new territory.
Whereas nowadays ... :sick2: ... forget it.
I am sad that I wasn't born 15 years earlier, really sad.
bernie

Click to expand...

You know what they say, "if you can remember the sixties you weren't really there".

... true. I was born 1971 ... and I really can't remember the 60ies ...

i will like to be born in the future only if the future for me is bright.

be born earlier to enjoy more of this whole flashlight thingy earlier.

but hey, i will not exist and maybe, all the things in the world will change, e.g. no CPF!!

can you imagine that?

so i rather stay in this time

in some ways the 60's ended just as I was born, in 70... So I missed out on the whole free love thing but while not everyone in the world has yet been lifted to the same point, it is without question that we live better and longer now than anytime in the past. There where no "golden ages" where people lived in some mythical perfectness with nature. There are some times that I would definitely like to visit, some historical figures it would be interesting to know... but no, I'll avoid the past. Mostly I'm happy with where I am (good thing since I can't really change it any faster than we're all moving in time) but the future would be cool

I might agree to go back and do high school again if I could do it knowing what I know now I'd have a lot more fun and tell off a lot more teachers at the end of it...

I'm just waiting for Doc to get back here with the damn DeLorean......

dragoman

Past, Definitely.

1870's -1880s in this general area. (American West). I'd risk getting scalped and lack of medical care just to be able to see it when it was still pretty much 'virgin territory' and plenty of 'free' land.

I'm more than a tad worried if there will even be a future....I'll take the past--least I know what would be comin' down the pike...



Karl

I was designed for the past. Certain traits of my behaviours and expectations would be much more suitable if I were an adult before I was born. (Daddy wasn't young.) BTW. I'm 30

The past, but not too distant past.

Let's say, post WW2 California.

Perhaps I was born at the right time. I experienced the excitement of the beginning of the space race, rock & roll, the sexual revolution, good home music systems, drugs, environmental awareness and action, political revolution and change, great medical advances.

Then my generation became the establishment and stopped fighing for just causes, the world got hot and polluted, we ceased to vote or vote intelligently, and became obsessed with money and status.

Now, I fear, the s**t may be about to hit the fan in so many ways and I'm afraid our collective standard of living may be reversing. The roads are very crowded with poor drivers, my neighbors took down most of their trees and replaced them with fences and three car garages. I can no longer swim in Lake Michigan because it's choked with algae and invesive species, can't xc-ski because it's too warm to snow (I live in a former snow belt area). One out of 137 people are in jail or prison and more laws and civil liberties restrictions abound. The rich are super rich and many of us cannot afford health care. Our savings is negative, our indebtedness is unbelieveable, our infant mortality is of the lowest for developed countries. There's efforts throughout the country to return to the death penalty. There's too much intollerance, hatred, and fear.

The 50's, 60's, and 70's had an easier, friendlier, happier, atmosphere than what exists now.

I hope this nation can supplant politics, bigotry, racism, sexism, and nationalism with clear thinking, and scientifically supported remedies to our mounting problems. If we can't and this is the beginning of the end of the USA's greatness, then I was lucky to be born in the 50's