10 Consequences Of Our Modern World

Thanks to technology, things are changing around us daily, but I wonder if we yet realise the consquences for us if they are not addressed? A brief snapshot of current attitudes reflected within British society is outlined below:

* The basis for remaining faithful in marriages is changing and seems unrealistic;
* The choice and type of partners required are changing too;
* Many people are deeply unhappy in their relationships which negatively affects other aspects of their lives, impacts on their health, and often rob their children of loving, attentive parents;
* Thanks to mobiles and the Internet far more people are having external relationships with greater ease;
* More children, especially younger ones, are being affected by breakdowns in relationships;
* Fewer people are marrying while more are opting for single sex relationships;
* More people are becoming single parents or living alone;
* Far fewer people are religious;
* Expectations of life, longevity and achievement are significantly increased;
* Our attitude to age and being older is changing too, becoming less predictable, as we compete with our children for scarce opportunities and resources.

Having acknowledged these stark facts, we are now ready to ask where we go from here, because we cannot ignore them. They have to be addressed in some way. Otherwise people will just continue to behave as they like on a private level while publicly ignoring anything they perceive to be problematic for them, or which flies in the face of their own perception and reason. When the laws or customs are fair and reasonable, we will abide by them and take pride in upholding them. When they become crass, difficult or unworkable, we simply ignore them or replace them with something with less dissonance, one more convenient or appropriate for us.

Currently, there is a lot of debate about "family values", with an emphasis on the old style of doing things, without much acknowledgement for the ongoing changes in our society, teenage sex and pregnancy being a case in point. But if people felt happy with the old systems and ways, they would not be changing at all. It thus becomes rather pointless harking back to them. Marriages need women and men in order to function and it is the women who are currently voting with their feet because to be married is no longer the attractive form of security and domesticity it used to be. Most women now prefer to be independent, as many can now afford to be, and with relationships on their terms. The Men Not Included service, for women wishing to have children, is an extreme case in point where women do not have to deal directly with men at all, only with their sperm! But, it takes more than just the sexual mechanics to bring up well-adjusted offspring.

Rejecting Commitment
Confused and left in limbo, many young men are increasingly unsure of what they should do now. Some reject commitment in order to have further control over their lives while others cling to parents until they cannot do that anymore without looking childish. Furthermore, the task of looking for partners has been made more difficult by the ageist approach to people we tend to encourage in British society. Men, in particular, are always seeking someone much younger, while older women complain that they are ignored, regardless of how good they look and how young they feel.

It seems women are written off the minute they reach 50, which is a pity, because the majority of the British population is now over 45 years old, with a diminishing percentage of youngsters to go round. It stands to reason that men will have to change their own perception of women, if they do not want to start a family. They would need to be less insecure and less ageist to take advantage of the obvious talent among older women who are getting more confident, more experienced and far less inhibited!

In the face of these dramatic changes in society, we need to put away our individual fears and prejudices and face the issues head on, not be constrained and immobilised by them or to try to use past solutions in a changed society. Whether we like it or not, life"s relentless changes will always carry us with them. We might as well be prepared for a rocky journey, the effect of which we can lessen through our own influence on it.

Keywords: