NationStates

So if we look back in history, we see our ansestors as savage idiot barbarians. If something is described as "Mediaeval", it's mostly viewed as savage and/or idiotic. Mediaeval medicine, for example, is nothing to marvel at, and Mediaeval punishments, they were barbaric and horrid. And if you go back even further, things only got worse. Slavery was seen as perfectly acceptable till not too long ago

However, in this period, we went through significant change. If we consider the current era to be from the beginning of WWI onwards, we have seen significant change. The last of the jurisdictions with legal slavery were starting to abolish the practice, we had two world wars, horses started falling out of favour for the car, the invention and widespread adoption of air travel, space travel, the digital age, the decline of usage of a millenia old system- cash, a global cold war, nuclear weapons, two massive global pandemics and several smaller ones, mass adoption of atheism, multiple genocides (Armenian/Greek/Assyrian, Holocaust, China's oppression of Uyghurs), mainstream women's rights, vicious war lords in an unprecedented period of peace, global warming, an idiot in charge of the most powerful country on Earth (Donald Trump), the end of feudalism, widespread adoption of modern medicine, universal education, global terrorism, globalisation, the internet, mainstream veganism, the decline of eugenics, and many many other such things. This all begs the question- what do you think the future generations will think of us? Will they think as stupid barbarians the way that we think of Mideveal people? Will they think of us as a great civilisation, the way that we see the Romans and Greeks? How will they see us?

Many people think that we will be seen as barbarians because we eat animals, but I don't think so. I think that as long as people continue to eat solid food, then we'll continue to eat animals. And if technology evolves beyond eating solid food (say for example, we get our nutrition from a pill or IV drip or something) then meat eating will be seen as something that had to happen before moving past food (the way we view riding horses today), the way that all carnivores and omnivores have to eat meat. And even the most ardent meat eaters (such as myself) are against cruelty and factory farming, and more into free range farming. (I personally have signed many a petition to have caged eggs banned in Australia, which is really the only widespread form of factory farming that exists here)

Some individuals may be seen as evil, but overall, I think we'll be painted in an okay light. I think we'll be viewed more as pioneers. Pioneers in technology, pioneers in medicine, and pioneers in mental health, pioneers in environmentalism, and pioneers in ethics, transitioning from unethical to ethical, and from more nationalist to globalist. But then again, who's to say that people won't become more Mideveal and more aggressive, maybe would be seen as too nice, or perhaps even evil against victims of crime for failing to prosecute criminals. After all, if moralism is really subjective, who's to say that Mideveal people were any less moral than we are today?

Or maybe will look back at this period in envy, as we were amongst the last generations before some major global apocalypse (e.g. a war or disease or something) that wiped out all technology, leaving us to start over again in a post-apocalyptic hellscape, or having to start over again as agrarian farmers on new planets (as we couldn't bring our technology with us), living just above the standards of the standards of prehistoric agrarian society.

What do you guys think? How do you think we'll be viewed in future generations?

IMO, the future people will judge the people from 2010s to now, maybe even a few years further, as unproductive and maybe even cringe, considering I can't even remember the last major good thing that was unleashed onto this world since Youtube, or the iPhone. But the 2000s, I think they'll think it was a very great decade, one of creation and pioneering.

Envy and hatred for living in a world of such abundance and technological progress while doing nothing to protect the world or the long-term viability of advanced civilization.

Like all history: however the government of the day tells them to.

But also extremely obese. That bit can’t be hidden.

Future generations shall see this one as the most brilliant ever, and shall think to our times as an incredible true story with real dragons, magic beasts and hordes of undeads: the generations of tomorrow will study in school all the clickbait news, dreaming about a mighty time when the rulers dominated harshly a land in tumult, and the possible and the impossible were merging together to create the impossimple!

Wow!

I can only hope to God that people centuries from now see us exactly like we see witch-burning savages who think dinner forks turn men into homosexuals.

Because if we're not seen as savages then that means humanity has stagnated, and this is a horrible time for us to stagnate because we are fucking garbage.

We lock people in cages for consuming plants we don't like. We stand by apathetically while thousands of babies have their genitals mutilated every day (yes, I'm including male genital mutilation). We have judges ruling that because a 12 year old rape victim lacks the capacity to make decisions about her pregnancy that she should be forced to give birth. It is still to this day legal to subject minors to torture to change their sexual orientation and gender identity in the majority of US states! Health insurance. Health insurance is itself an abomination. And even when a country makes a national health system its people eventually elect conservatives and neoliberals that deliberately starve it of funds to collapse it so health care can be privatized again. We put spikes outside of buildings to prevent homeless people from sleeping there.

We suck. We really, really suck.

Dust bin of history

I think it's obvious future gens will envy us for the sheer amount of stuff we'll experience in our lifetimes

Well hopefully things that we do or have would be seen as a predecessor to futuristic stuff, but otherwise, I think we'd be seen as stupid, you really can't deny the amount of obtuse shit that has popped up on the internet since it's inception (e.g., Devious Licks, Milk Crate Challenge, Tidepod Challenge, Tiktokers cosplaying as Holocaust victims, THIS, anything related to Florida man, Dream Stans, K-pop Stans, etc. etc.)

Western media (e.g., TV Shows, Cartoons, Comics) would probably be viewed really poorly imo, at best it'll be viewed as an indication of how dated it was/it was clearly a product of their time (not saying all media made in the 2010s are, but probably more of an umbrella view of stuff released in the 2010s) Anime or K-pop though I'm not sure about.

But then, if we're looked back on as cunts, well tbh, humanity (regardless of time) is just a bunch of cunts in general so yeah, they're fair in a way.

EDIT:
Also forgot to mention that we might be viewed as some sorta technological interim period (sorta like the 80s/90s with the internet) with stuff liek AI, but you know, we're also gonna look like 1984 cause of the constant dystopic references (particularly by conservatives) and also the democratic backsliding in countries like Hungary and the Jan 6/9 riots in America and Brazil. (oh and a lot of historic shit happening to, e.g., Queen Elizabeth dying, India overtaking China as No.1 most popular country (not now, but later in 2023), 8 billion people milestone reached, Saigon 2.0 but in Kabul, Climate Protests ig...)

But hey, at least we're all in this together

What future generations?

Rusozak wrote:What future generations?

Honestly if Climate Change gets us, I'd say that we as a society deserved annihilation.

Now if Vladimir Putin his nuclear codes... Well I'd say that we probably also deserved annihilation. hahaha I am such an edgy nihilist gib me updoots

Rusozak wrote:What future generations?

That's what I was gonna say

depending on the results of the 2024 election, we will either be viewed as the generation that gave the radical leftist marxists a decisive victory that subjected all americans to enslavement and as the reason for extreme enslavement, homelessness, and starvation, or as the generation that saved the country and bought back true conservative national values and stopped degeneracy and bought all patriots to prosperity

If we manage to prevent climate-change from destroy the human race, then we will be judged as the foolhardy idiots who dared extinction. If we don’t manage to do so, then there will be nobody left to judge us.

Supposing that other issues are examined, then we will certainly be regarded as morally incorrect, but how depends on the shape of future civilisations. There’s no way for us to predict the ethics of future societies, so what we think will be judged harshly might be regarded as a step forward. What we think is entirely innocuous: will stand the test of time, might be seen as irredeemably evil. Speculation on anything other than the existential risk that we take daily is bound to have inevitable inaccuracies.

Free Algerstonia wrote:depending on the results of the 2024 election, we will either be viewed as the generation that gave the radical leftist marxists a decisive victory that subjected all americans to enslavement and as the reason for extreme enslavement, homelessness, and starvation, or as the generation that saved the country and bought back true conservative national values and stopped degeneracy and bought all patriots to prosperity

A right wing president will definitely be more life saving than a left wing

Guilty for letting ww1 and ww2 happen and likely guilty of starting ww3 and devastating half of the world resources for our own greedy

It is difficult to predict what the consensus of these recent generations will be among generations in 25-50 years’ time or later. There are a multitude of factors that could affect the general opinion, both now and in those generations’ time. This question, and responses to it thus far, also presupposes a more Western, cosmopolitan and liberal perspective from those future generations, which is not guaranteed, especially when one considers Africa, South America and Asia; even the West itself may not reflect those assumptions.

To be frank, it’s a moot exercise beyond it being some ideological guilt-trip or something within that vein. I don’t care much for it myself; I only care about doing my best to secure what I consider to be a healthy, safe environment for my future family and children, and their own as well.

Depending on what happens in the next decade it could go one of two ways.
If the "You will own nothing, You will eat ze bugs, and be happy" crowd wins future generations will view us as cowards who let our freedoms be taken without a fight.
If the Freedom Crowd wins future generations will see us similarly to how we view the Greatest Generation (IE Had. A back bone and fought for what we believed in.)

Culturally the first 20-30 years of the 21st century will be viewed as a period of great triumphs and trash at the same time. As Future Generations watch Films like Spiderverse, Up, Wall-E, How to Train your Dragon, Shrek, etc they'll Marvel at how amazing it must have been to live during such a major important part of film history. Then they can see the pure trash we made and realize we're not perfect and Culture could have went a totally different way.
Depending on how the Culture War ends future generations will eather have good media or the box checking crap coming out of modern Hollywood.

Demographically Future Generations will be more conservative bassed on the simple statistical fact that conservatives have more kids. If they stay conservative depends on if our generation can remove the leftists from Education. Future generations will also be more diverse if current trends continue, Whites will no longer be the Majority and most would probably be mixed race.

How future generations view us intends entirely on what we do today and who holds power in future. I don't know about you but I intend to be on the side that writes the history books and holds power, Not the side that fails to take power and is viewed as the villains by future generations.

It would depend on how cultures and their associated societies evolve into the future, along with specific events which would shape it.

My best guess though is probably disgust at how wasteful we were, with our specific period being a brief era of unparalleled prosperity enjoyed by certain regions of the world at the expense of others, which in of itself isn’t unusual apart from the sheer scale of it. They may also judge us barbaric for practices such as factory farming, our specific brand of capitalism, infant genital cutting (female and male), etc.

That assumes an evolution in morality which follows what’s been going on for the past century or two though, which is easily liable to change.

If we are talking about far into the future (e.g everyone now has passed away) then the only information these people are likely to have is recordings. So they'll probably watch things like YouTube or TikTok and depending on how the culture of western civilisation goes they will either see us as pioneers or morons. (personally I hope morons)

I think we'll be viewed as a generation of guinea pigs as today there has been a massive and unprecedented paradigm shift. The two main ones that come to mind are (1. large swathes of the population prefer online communication rather than in-person and the dangers of being born and raised using technology like social media, (2. the absolute dumpster-fire hell that is modern dating as a result of the rapidly changing gender norms and dynamics between men and women.

We can all agree that it will get much worse before it gets better, but the manner in which it will get worse is up for debate. My money is on the burgeoning dating crisis.

Even if humanity fails to combat climate change, I highly doubt humanity will be wiped out, we are far too resilient for that. Sure, you, me, and everyone reading this may not survive, but at least a few pockets of humanity will.

Assuming that the rapture or nucelar warfare, or climate change, doesnt have god reset the earth severs and see the human build banned. I'd say they will see us how we saw the people from 100-200 years ago. Depending on how things go. Religion may collapse in the following years. Maybe in that time there will be space travel or other cool things. There could even be the possibility that religion still remains, and some of the issues that we see today still exist tomorrow, when everyone is gone. It all depends on what happens in the present, what happens in the future, because there are so many possibilities that pinning it down is impossible. The same with looking at alternate history scenarios. They can view us as the people who saved them from the actions of those in the 1800-1900s or they can view us as the people who failed to do so. There are so many pathways to the future.

They'd all but definitely view today as being the height of human civilization and as humanity's golden age, given that future generations will live in Victorian-level squalor at best (save for the billionaires, of course). They'd probably a bit disgusted as to how much waste we have produced, but it might be a good thing for archaeologists wishing to study our time.

However oral tradition tells them. Posterity won’t be able to read any history books because they will be illiterate savages after apocalyptic changes.