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Society is an ever-shifting landscape of trends, traditions, rituals, and norms. Change is the name of the game, but for some people, change doesn’t happen fast enough. Redditor Jimjoe1 asked people what modern social trends anger them the most, and they couldn’t wait to share their real thoughts and feelings about what they feel is wrong with the world.
We’ve collected the best responses below, so have a read through them and tell us what you think, dear Pandas. Remember to upvote the ones you agree with and be sure to drop us a comment with how you’d personally answer Jimjoe1’s question.
Pssst, spoiler warning, plenty of these people think that social media and attention-seeking are some of the fundamental ills of the times that we live in. Read on for Bored Panda’s interview about our desire to be seen and adored on social media with an expert in history. If you think our fascination with wanting attention is something new, you’re in for a rough awakening.
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#1
Treating opinion as fact and fact as opinion
Lauren Caswell 3 years ago
Awesome court ruling here recently: judge deemed a mother's own 'googling and internet research' was not sufficient to deny her children vaccines, esp measles after a 2019 outbreak (NB this parent also rejected haircuts and dental care for kids until forced to[free of charge of course]). Judge basically said if I allow your (mum) opinion to be equivalent to that of a genuine specialist witness, then what is the point of these special experts? Anyone could start to claim to be an expert, too dangerous a precedent. Kids are getting vaccinated. Awful that it had to be done like this. She said they had natural immunity and didn't need vaccines, as her kids hadn't ever gotten the illnesses, and had been given 'holistic vaccines' whatever the hell those are 🤦♀️
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#2
The whole instagram influencer thing. Why are we following these people??
Monic Krugell 3 years ago
Exactly, what made them experts to give healthy informed advise on how to live your life?
#3
Playing music or watching videos in public without headphones. If I go to a park or the beach I want to be able to hear the wind and waves and birds singing, not whatever obnoxious s**t you feel you have the right to subject everyone to.
Jimjoe1’s thread was incredibly popular on r/AskReddit, getting over 64.4k upvotes at the time of writing and being the top-awarded post on the site. Other redditors gifted the user more than 340 awards and we can definitely see that number getting higher as the thread continues to get more and more attention online.
Bored Panda spoke about social media, people’s desire to look beautiful and ‘perfect,’ and how this is commodified with historian Dr. Jane Nicholas from St. Jerome’s University at the University of Waterloo.
According to Dr. Nicholas, seeking perfection isn’t a new idea: it’s long been sold as an attainable ideal. Something that’s within our grasp and could be ours if we just tried harder (or… spent more).
#4
Gender reveal.
Especially when people react badly. Imagine being a kid and coming across a video of one of your parents having a tantrum because you aren’t they gender they wanted you to be.
#5
People recording themselves doing “charitable acts” like buying a meal or giving money to a homeless person. I can assure you that person does NOT want their face all over social media so you can get clout for being a “good charitable person”. Sure do a good thing like helping the less fortunate but you don’t need to record it and have their face all over social media.
Monic Krugell 3 years ago
Charitable act: A charitable organization or activity helps and supports people who are ill, disabled, or very poor. ADJ n. ...charitable work for the handicapped. 2 adj Someone who is charitable to people is kind or understanding towards them. -- What they are doing is self public relations and not a charitable act at all.
#6
Worshipping billionaires.
troufaki13 3 years ago
Worshiping influencers,/actors.. I just don't get it. It's fine when somebody likes them, but idolizing them? Too far imo
“Many cosmetics, for example, promise the ability to achieve a certain look with their use. Social media is driven by different, more individual forces than traditional media, but it is caught up in many of the same patterns, specifically selling goods,” she explained that there’s a (hidden) economic aspect to social media that drives it forward. So what we’re seeing with influencers and their fixation on making a profit shouldn’t surprise anybody.
The history expert noted that even if we’re smart enough to know that an image posted on social media is “highly manipulated,” this doesn’t mean that we can easily identify it with our own two eyes. “It’s difficult now to distinguish real people from the highly curated image presented on social media,” she said.
#7
"Don't forget to like and subscribe" or "1 like = 1 prayer" just please f**k right off with that.
Andrew Gibb 3 years ago
thoughts and prayers? How about something that will make a real difference?
#8
Making young children into social media stars. It’s fine to share pictures of your kids with friends, but aggressively documenting and marketing your family life for the public at large is... creepy.
Lauren Caswell 3 years ago
Awful. These posts and pictures are there forever. The child isn't old enough to consent. Protect their identity, they have rights too! Some sick buggers just use or even adopt children in order to make the videos.
Dr. Nicholas believes that our inability to distinguish between real and highly curated images on social media “reflects something of our true selves now,” implying that things are here to stay. At least for the time being.
But for those of you lamenting that modern society is a nightmare, wishing to go back to the good old days, ask yourselves this: which days exactly are the so-called good old days? Dr. Nicholas told Bored Panda that we’ve all lived with various images of beauty since at least the 1920s, and “these have become parts of ourselves.”
Our modern focus on social media is merely an extension of a long historic fascination with beauty. Similarly, other trends could be seen as continuations or reactions to previous trends once you dig a little deeper. That’s why having a solid foundation in history is vital if you want to make more accurate guesses about the future.
#10
How quickly misinformation spreads through social media. It’s seriously a dangerous thing in society and it’s pretty terrifying
#11
Toxic positivity
“Just be positive!”
Yeah thanks Carol I didn’t realize just staying positive would cure my chemical imbalance
#12
anti-vaccination. When vaccines were first discovered or developed or however you want to say it, they were mostly seen as a scientific break through. A great success. The wonders of man kinds great power and ingenuity. Polio? What polio? But now, it is trendy for many to be now smarter than several years of research and hard work. To know more in 10 minutes on YouTube then someone who has dedicated years of their life to study what other people before then also studied for years of their life and so on and so on. Years of human evolution, growth, study, break-throughs, accomplishments, ground to a halt by some jack wagon with a social media account.
Angela Brisebois 3 years ago
I had a stroke because I caught whooping cough in an area where there was an outbreak and anti-vax cluster. I can't express how angry I am, years later, at people who refuse to believe that vaccines work/help. I would not wish what happened to me on anyone...how can people take such a stupid chance on themselves/kids/family/friends/strangers? The mind boggles.
Are the internet and social media to blame for what’s wrong with society? I like to think that they’re merely tools and aren’t inherently good or evil, but we make them so with how we use them. Or, to put it a tad more poetically, they’re funhouse mirrors that reflect and amplify our inner selves.
Social media can be a way to get in touch with long-lost friends and to give a platform for your art. Or it can be an excuse to post endless vapid selfies and to advertise products for monetary gain.
#13
Food blogs for a simple recipe. I don’t give a f*** about reading a story before reading a recipe
#14
Family vloggers horrify me. The concept of exploiting your children's lives for views is particularly awful. And because it's a relatively new concept there are no real laws around child labor or exploitation concerning it. There are youtubers out there right now who live in mansions worth millions of dollars that they got from shoving a camera in their toddler's face and demanding them to perform for strangers. I can't even imagine the psychological repercussions this will have on these kids in the future.
Friday 3 years ago
I read today about that awful YouTube couple who put their healthy dog down, they apparently backed out of a Thailand adoption because they were forbidden to discuss or show the baby on social media for 12 months. These type of people do not care about children, only chasing money.. https://amp.nine.com.au/article/c2ff7936-818b-47e6-9332-09361787befe
Similarly, the internet itself is both a vast repository of painstakingly verified knowledge and funny animal videos, as well as a seemingly endless archive of half-truths, rumors, fake news, and gossip. You can’t have the good without the bad. Though it’s always healthy to sit down and think about what you’d change about the world if you could. And then, perhaps, even go out and make those changes into reality.
#16
How almost every article is a video rather than an article. I can get to the main point faster reading than it takes for the video to get there.
Andrea Purzycki 3 years ago
This! Especially when I'm looking for a video game walkthrough. I just want to know where this one chest is. Show me a picture, a few sentences about how to find it, and maybe a map. I don't want to scroll through a 20 minute video to find out where this one stupid chest is.
#17
The overgrowth of identity. There’s nothing wrong with being any race, gender or sexuality (or any other thing), but it doesn’t make you any more ‘legitimate’ or more of an authority on anything. I guess I’m just tired of all the deepening divisions. If you get too engrossed in your ‘tribe’ you’ll lose sight of all the other people out there.
#18
The instagram Kardashian body image crap. Those bodies are unachievable without surgery, money, trainers, chefs, etc. Cellulite and love handles exist. Eat healthy, exercise and love who you are with confidence.
#19
Basing your entire identity around political parties that don't even represent your interests.
Thorfin Wolfsbane 3 years ago
what's actually worse is people exchanging their religious beliefs for political identity. yes, i'm looking at you conservative christians!
#20
Influencers. I can't stand the term, it gives whatever dickhead thinks they are famous a feeling of superiority. Plus everyone seems to be an 'Influencer' and not actually engaging in proper life. Grrr
#21
The idea that every one of your hobbies needs to be turned into a side hustle. No one is allowed to simply have hobbies that they love, you have to strive to be good enough to monetize it
Nat Hedley 3 years ago
"If you enjoy something, why not make it a stressful obligation upon which you're financially dependent? Suck all the joy out of your life today with Side Hustle "
#22
When people see someone in distress, instead of helping they whip their phones out and film. Social media and smart phones have absolutely messed this world up.
#23
Mommy wine culture. The normalization of needing to drink to tolerate your kids. As a mom who doesn't drink it seems like there is so much normalization of alcoholic behavior that it makes me sad.
Kathryn Baylis 3 years ago (edited)
Sad and frightened. Parents are the ones who drive their children wherever they need to go, and monitor their activities to ensure they’re safe. Mothers are also the ones who need to be careful about Fetal Alcohol Syndrome in any children born after they become alcoholics because they’re dependent on wine—-or whatever alcoholic beverage they move on to—-just to get through the day.
#24
Letting little kids have social media (unsupervised). They are not equipped to handle any of it. So many conflicts spawn out of it.
Lauren Caswell 3 years ago
Never ever. I check all apps for chat functions in any capacity, I know my kid isn't ready. But I know kids around his age (8-12) that use it 🤦♀️🤦♀️🤦♀️🤦♀️
#25
Without a doubt, I can't stand cancel culture, gaslighting and the insane oversensitivity shown in social media. I'm going to write it clearly........"If you don't like something, don't watch it, interact with it or have anything to do with it." Just because you don't appreciate what someone has created, it doesn't mean it's your right to remove them and their art entirely. John Cleese said it perfectly "From the point of creativity, if you have to keep thinking which words you can use and which you can't, then that will stifle creativity"
#26
Public shaming. Terrifying how the blind rage of an anonymous crowd can ruin your life in hours.
Truth Monster 3 years ago
They used to call these lynch mobs. They used to let you die with some dignity by hanging you and be done with it. Now they ruin your life and salt the earth. In some cases, death might have been a mercy.
#27
Words like "victim" and "survivor" being thrown around so much to the point where they are losing their meaning.
#29
Social media influencers asking for free items unsolicited, then when of course they decline they threaten to (and in some cases do) leave bad reviews forcing the company to have to respond to false allegations for no reason.
Ick Villiams 3 years ago
It’s almost like Bored Panda have done a posting about this very issue
#30
Glorifying celebrities and treating them like gods. Like, I understand being a fan of someone, but you don't have to create an entire livelihood around them or try to emulate them. This is also how people get into positions of power when they shouldn't be.
#31
Modern people (including most the people I've dated) getting pissed that I don't reply to them immediately. "Why were you ignoring me bro?!" I wasn't. I'm just not addicted to my phone. People will b***h and moan about how I don't reply to them immediately, but if you put them all in a room, they can't look up from their phones to have a real conversation. Why did they ever invent active statuses?!?! It's so goddamn annoying to have people get mad at me because I used the calculator on my phone at work, and then people look to see that you were on your phone, and immediately think you're ignoring them. I'm at work. I didn't even notice your STUPID. BUBBLE.
#32
Doing a stupid "challenge" that will end with one or more people injured, imprisoned, or worse.
Esther (she/her) 3 years ago (edited)
one word: Tiktok. Why? The (pretty sure it’s called)skull breaker challenge and many more
#33
Woke culture. It doesn't allow for people getting better. If you have to dig 7 years to find something bad someone said on twitter they maybe a improved person now. I care about how people are now not 7-10 years ago or that they say something stupid in high school.
#34
That people think their lives need to be viewed to be lived- it’s like privacy and being private are considered repressive. People are always online, posting about their lives, and everyone wants validation about every aspect of their lives. Just f*****g live ‘em!
#35
Narcissism. Everyone has to livestream their trip to the grocery store, or sits in front of a beautiful natural site and never turn around and look at it, because they’re obsessed with themselves and creating this false narrative about their life. Everything is all about “living their best life”(usually at the expense of others) or “living their truth”(complete BS not remotely based on reality). It’s all about them, and only them. F*** I hate these people...
#36
You can't just buy something now. Everything is a subscription. First it was just Netflix, then it was dollar shave club. Now every TV channel is a separate subscription, every household item wants to send it to you over and over again. Nothing is released physically, so the only way to watch a movie or check out a new album is to pay someone monthly. Services that were offered for free or one-time purchase are rescinded and now offered as subscriptions. It's so obvious that everyone and everything just wants to milk you as long and for as much as possible. And people just buy into it willingly. I know people who spend like $200 a month on stuff that was free like, 10 years ago. People are even offering themselves on a subscription base now. I can't believe how cool everyone is with watching all their money disappear all the time.
#37
Plain articles of clothing like a t-shirt where the only thing on them is a large graphic of the logo of the brand that made it. See it a lot with “Gucci”. People are literally paying hundreds of their own money to be a walking advertisement for a company.
#38
I'm exhausted with how vapid and fake social media is.
Monic Krugell 3 years ago
Jip, when everyone I studies with now on social media "looks younger" than what they did when we studied 14 years ago!!!
#39
Recording people in need for clout.
Lauren Caswell 3 years ago
Never. And dont force it on them, or act like they owe you in any way (ie for clout etc) i know ppl say beggars can't be choosers but that's dehumanising esp when in literal examples of beggars like this, rather than a metaphor
#40
Public grieving. And berating those who don’t grieve publicly. When Chadwick Boseman passed away, people were hounding his co-stars regarding their responses. When Malik B of The Roots passed away, Questlove actually found out by being spammed on Twitter by a bunch of strangers. Imagine finding out one of your closest friends died, because random strangers wanted an immediate response from you.
troufaki13 3 years ago
I hate public grieving too. I mean... how do you even have the strength to think about your social media when you grieve??
#41
The fact that if you don't have Instagram and don't document your whole entire existence you're a nobody and don't have a life and live under a rock??? Excuse me but since I deleted social media accounts my life seems way more fulfilling and enjoyable than having to worry about how many people views my story and liked my photo of what dirt i ate for breakfast.
#42
Couples recording pranks on each other that are so painfully staged. It’s the same super popular trends that are reproduced. Like do you really need to act so shocked the tenth time your girlfriend pretends to strip in front of the camera but actually has clothes underneath her towel? Are you really THAT shocked? At this point I just block but I just can’t imagine people have that much time
Lauren Caswell 3 years ago
The giant fake open mouth grin smile faces, oh god it's second hand cringe, just so fake
#43
How people try to destroy you or simply frown upon when you don’t join whatever bandwagon they’re on.
Pamela Blue 3 years ago
Well, they TRY to destroy you. If you don't give a rat's a$$ what they think, then you just ignore them and carry on with your life. Too many people make social media/the internet the total sum of their lives, which is very VERY sad. If someone tries to be pushy with me, they're blocked - simple as that.
#44
Everyone acting like experts on crazily complex topics because they either read a headline or one article that agrees with what they already believed.
#45
I'm just so glad the "licking things at the store" trend is over. It is over, right? Please tell me that's finally done.
What do you think ?
Serbob 3 years ago
Here's one that's missing and applies to a specific commenter in this post. Trolls. No forum or post exists without one or two people who intentionally post asinine comments for their own amusement. Like a pitiful child who cries for attention. The idiot who exists mainly to scoff at anything or anyone whether they believe it or not. Because even a downvote is confirmation that someone read their garbage.
RiaDeCaterpillar 3 years ago
My friends made an insta where they run around in dino costumes and goof of. It is SO MUCH better than watching Kim K whine about how hard her life is.
Mark Fuller 3 years ago
Blimey. This post just made me feel normal for hating such I crap. I feel validated! Thank you Bored Panda!
Serbob 3 years ago
Here's one that's missing and applies to a specific commenter in this post. Trolls. No forum or post exists without one or two people who intentionally post asinine comments for their own amusement. Like a pitiful child who cries for attention. The idiot who exists mainly to scoff at anything or anyone whether they believe it or not. Because even a downvote is confirmation that someone read their garbage.
RiaDeCaterpillar 3 years ago
My friends made an insta where they run around in dino costumes and goof of. It is SO MUCH better than watching Kim K whine about how hard her life is.
Mark Fuller 3 years ago
Blimey. This post just made me feel normal for hating such I crap. I feel validated! Thank you Bored Panda!
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