Was life better in the late 90s?

I turned 15 in 2000, graduated in 2003. Hate to say it, but I think it was a lot better.

We didn't have to worry about Facebook, or social media. We had things like AOL instant messenger, and a few other social platforms, but it was anonymous. I didn't have to worry about cyberbullying.

It's a huge misconception though, that the economy was better. It wasn't. Look up the dot-com bubble. As to 9/11, there was still conflict in the middle east and issues with Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden.

Now, I think there are a lot better things about now than back then. Movies are a lot better in terms of graphics (however, I have to caveat that with *some* movies are better in terms of graphics), cars are better, computers are better, phones are better. Netflix. TV is waaaaaaaay better. Like, millions and millions times better, with a couple of exceptions (like Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Seinfeld, and Friends). TV has higher production value, way better acting, and better shows/concepts. Like Game of Thrones.

Music was great but there was a lot of crap. And there was that pop infestation starting in like 1999.

@safard

OP has some good points I grew up as a kid in the 1980s and as a teenagers in the 1990's it was definitely a different time for sure.

As the OP mentioned the economy was strong in the 90's it just seemed like everyone was spending money and doing well. You didn't even think twice about filling up your car with gas and it seemed you could keep driving and cruising all night with no worries at all. Now you got to calculate if the road trip and destinations are even worth the price of gas these days.

Music was definitely better in the 90's and 80's a lot more creative and artistic then the crap on the radio today.

As the OP mentioned there was no cell phone, smart phones or even internet really in the 90's so you had to actually go out take walks, hang out with other people and just chill without looking at your phone every other minute or surfing the net or social media.

Guys would have to win girls over the old school way with out all the advanced means of technology.

Over all things just seemed more affordable back in the 90's. Like if you had a part time job you could party and go on vacations or just hang out with your friends all weekend and actually be able to afford it.

As the OP mentioned you had to go out to acquire things instead of being able to stream everything from home. By going out you would meet or bump into people which made you more sociable and open to the community.

You could enjoy a private date with a girl you were feeling instead of it being broadcasted to the world on social media or you wouldn't have to worry about her or anyone talking bad about you or spreading rumors about you on blogs or social media.

It was just over all a more genuine, intimate, real time as OP pointed out there was no 9/11 so war seemed like a very distant thing that happened only on the other side of the world from us in America.

I would even argue that tv/movies/music/food were all better in the 90's. Now everything that is sold is made purely just to make money where back then things were about quality first.

The 1990's were exciting and optimistic since it was like oh wow it will be the year 2000 soon but it seems once we actually did hit 2000 it was all downhill.

Nostalgia is like picking through discarded sthings, picking them up, giving them a once over and sell 'em for more than they're worth.

I too have nostalgia for the 90's, they were my teen years and life as a teen is often pretty easy with adults doing all the hard and boring stuff - as a teen you just have to live. I miss the carefree life more than the 90's themselves.

I prefer the early-mid 1990s.

I was born in 73, so I was a teen from the mid 80's through very early 90's. I wouldn't change it for the world. The 80's was a fun time. The music -everything from the punk scene to the metal scene - was fantastic. We also had some great movies - comedies and horror - throughout the 80's. Those who say "but you didn't have cell phones or the internet." Guess what? We didn't miss what we never had.

The beauty is I'm learning how to face my beast ~ Blue October

IMO HELL YEAH!!!!!

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Johnny: I'm gonna kill a bunch of people.

I was a little kid in the 90's but I seem to remember that decade then the early 2000's. The 90's was the last decade of still believing in that American dream. Times have defintely changed cause back in the 90's there was no talk about drones, terrorism, Isis and fear of a nuclear disaster. A school shooting rarely made headlines until Combine and at that time people were at a loss for words. America was in it's last economic prosperity period in the 90's before jobs were oursourced and America did not have to look at China as an economic rival.

9/11 truly changed everything and made people more paranoid which enabled the goverment to do more crackdowns on private security. There was a time where you can go to the airport and not body scan check or jacked up TSA officer giving you patdowns.

I feel the same way about the 70's, actually, so I see where you are coming from! I will never know the 70's like a teen who lived through them. I love TV shows and movies from that era and most 70's music as well. Some of the fashions were gorgeous- think bohemian dresses, boots, long flowing hair, and Studio 54 type looks. I know there was tackiness during that tine too- but that's just funny to see in old shows and have a laugh at it all.

The 90's was in my opinion worthy of nostalgia. Movies had heart, and the music was awesome. i used to go to Lollapalooza each year, and loved going to concerts. Not as many cell phones as you mention. I had a young friend on Facebook recently comment on another friend's post about going clubbing now- he said it's a bunch of people sitting at a "table service" table of overpriced alcohol, and everyone's looking down at their phones. That was not how it was going out in the 90's and early 2000's at all- you would all joke around with each other, show off your dance moves, flirt with your guy friends, drink and do shots, the head off to a diner and talk for hours.

Someone else mentioned shows like Friends, I agree that was a great show and there will likely never be a show like that again.

All this said- the internet has completely improved the way I live- it makes work more profitable and I love looking stuff up- Google is the best. Also- things like GPS are super helpful. I often leave my cellphone at home when out with family but being able to reach loved ones at any time is great. It's super helpful when meeting up- just call and say where you are- couldn't do that then.