Is Western Society Slipping?

[Vaskez]

Is it just me or are other people noticing the trends? One example is university and college studies. Each year they make the exams easier because students work less and less. On the signal processing course at my uni, for the last 15 years, every year they have made the exam simpler becuase otherwise not enough students pass. But why? They are teaching less at A-level? What was GCSE material (before last 2 years of high-shool for americans) slips onto A-level(ages 16-18) in things like maths and science. What was A-level material slips into first year of university. And so the standards drop. I shouldn't complain as a student cos I get easier exams but this is still worrying over all. When you look at the chinese and other far eastern students that come to england to study they work really hard while english students go out and drink every night and study only before the exams in the last week (I don't study enough either ).

Also, look at the transformation of all polytechnic colleges in england to universities? How is this possible? Simple, the status of university is worth less. All over the country and all over Europe and America as far as I know, the standards are slipping. People know less and less in a world where they should know more and more due to increasing complexity of daily life.

My dad runs a research group at a university in england. Of 40 people in the group only the secretary is english. This is the university of southampton, the top university for communications research in the country. Nearly all the PhD students are chinese or far-eastern.
My dad predicts that in 10-15 years they will have the same opportunitities at home as they do here. Then they will develop and research there. Western society is on a downhill spiral and due to its decadence the economic and technological power will slowly shift away from the west.

Does anyone have any thoughts? Agree? Disagree? Am I too pessimistic?

[ 01-21-2003, 02:13 PM: Message edited by: Vaskez ]

[/)eathKiller]

Thats why Online Uni is the way to go! They dont personally care about the students and therefore pile tons of work on us
works out great *thumbs up* ^_^ i've learned more in a few months than I did in all of High-school...

[Timber Loftis]

I agree with the decadence notion. I think Western society is on a collision course with a debauchery-driven fate akin to what happened to the Eldar in WH40K.

But, give us credit where credit is due -- we will certainly take the other cultures on the planet with us. You mention the Asian students for instance. Well, in the last decade Japan has seen a 6000% rise in the amount of time executives take off to play golf. Westernization will make sure we sap these other cultures of their energy and drive so they may suffer the same fate we do.

[ 01-21-2003, 03:01 PM: Message edited by: Timber Loftis ]

[Vaskez]

Originally posted by Timber Loftis: I agree with the decadence notion. I think Western society is on a collision course with a debauchery-driven fate akin to what happened to the Eldar in WH40K. But, give us credit where credit is due -- we will certainly take the other cultures on the planet with us. You mention the Asian students for instance. Well, in the last decade Japan has seen a 6000% rise in the amount of time executives take off to play golf. Westernization will make sure we sap these other cultures of their energy and drive so they may suffer the same fate we do.

Japan is an exception. Japan is already a "western" nation in economic and technological sense. I was referring more to China, Malaysia and other upcoming nations.

[Timber Loftis]

Fair enough, Vaskez, but I think the trend will persist and will apply equally to other Asian countries as well. Let's not forget that until recent history Japan was not an exception.

Ahhh yer all goin to hell in a handbasket!!! The only good thing is that I won't be around to see the big crash!

Ok that was depressing. I personally think the sane people will take back society from the headonistic, liberal left and we will continue our ascent.

Cheers

[Djinn Raffo]

Originally posted by Timber Loftis: Fair enough, Vaskez, but I think the trend will persist and will apply equally to other Asian countries as well. Let's not forget that until recent history Japan was not an exception.

Depending on how far back recent goes.. Japan did industrialize at lightning speed and was at par with the western powers by the turn of the nineteenth to twentieth century. Though that is recent yeah.. and before that they were still a power as was China.. They just weren't expansionists per se nor were they a bunch of barbarians before european ships came sailing in..

offtopic: EDIT>
One thing to take note of is Shenzou.. The Divine Ship.. Chinas ventures into space because they do not want to cede space to the west.. This is great imo and hopefully a space race will ensue.. As well as the best thing i have heard Bush associated with .. he was going to announce maybe that NASA would put men on mars by 2010.. awesome..

EDIT again> by at Japan being at par with the west by the start of the twentieth century i mean in terms of production and industry..

[ 01-21-2003, 03:01 PM: Message edited by: Djinn Raffo ]

[Timber Loftis]

Originally posted by MagiK: Ahhh yer all goin to hell in a handbasket!!! The only good thing is that I won't be around to see the big crash! Ok that was depressing. I personally think the sane people will take back society from the headonistic, liberal left and we will continue our ascent. Cheers

Are you SURE the hedonistic liberal left are the decadent ones, MagiK. Let's take Republican and conservative incomes and expenditures and hold them up against all those unwashed liberal left broke-ass college kids and see how much water this theory holds.

Is the broke college kid scrounging for a joint or hit of acid more hedonistic than a $5mil./yr. corporate exec. with 15 cars, 11 of which are 10 mpg SUVs, and a rack of golden parachutes who steals from elderly clients so he can invest their pensions in Ponzi schemes?? Lemme think on this.... Hmmmm.... NOPE!

I'll let the democrats go toe-to-toe with the repugs anyday on amount of $$$ wasted, lbs. of trash per year per person, lbs. recycled per year, and $$$ per capita per income level - and I'll take the bet that the Dems look better ANY DAY.

BTW, some issues transcend these somewhat simplistic liberal/conservative lines we try to draw. Our kids are obesse disgusting little f-ers - both Repug kids and Dem kids. Plates of food at any restaurant are 250% the size of any reasonable meal. Cars are at least 3X the size on average they need to be. We (westerners) produce more trash per person than anyone in the WORLD - by a factor of at least 3 !!!!!!! It is a cultural problem - not a political party or ideological sect problem.

Slaanesh is coming, my friend. Hear the prophecy!

[ 01-21-2003, 03:02 PM: Message edited by: Timber Loftis ]

[Vaskez]

DUDES! This is a discussion about standards of knowledge, learning, and hard-work slipping in "western" countries not about american polotics! [img]tongue.gif[/img]

[Djinn Raffo]

Well i'm not sure if it is a case of the west slipping.. or everyone else catching up.. India and China in particular.