What do you notice, if anything, as the biggest changes between life and society in the prepandemic era vs the postpandemic era?

I notice of course, persistent inflation but more so in the areas of meals and travel. In some parts of the US such as FLA, housing prices soared but now have been falling in many places.

People in general seem to me, to be much more tribal in their words and actions, but I am still undecided about the timing of that shift....may have started years earlier.

Your thoughts?

I only see a title, but I'll bet I get this spot on...

Pre: Normal mental health issues in society.

Post: Progressive increase in mental illness. (Key word here is progressive.) New leadership takes over sleepy dereliction of duty. Economy improvement. Stock market improvement. World conflict improvement. Border control improvement.

Summary: You just have to WANT to implement improvements and then take action. Not speak with word salads, errect impediments with no actions.

I may be narrow-minded and singular-focused, but flexibility and opportunity professionally. Work-from-home arrangements and access to top-tier companies without having to relocate.

Large-scale, whole-world sociological commentary? That is too large for me.
Mostly, there were changes for me. Venturing farther into e-world, I found abundant iffy information along with opportunities to enjoy being at home while spending less for certain things. For example, no library visis? No problem. Use the library e-resources as much as possible. This, along with other online resources, is why I have so many entries in the reading and listening threads...

Here's another pre / post observation, both personally witnessed and in print...

Needless to say, in many places across America, there are an increasing number of abandoned buildings dotting the landscape. That’s not surprising when you learn that the total amount of retail space that has been permanently shuttered in 2025 has reached a staggering 120 million square feet. We suspect the primary reason for this is not a sharp decline in economic activity. In fact, it can be explained in a single word: Amazon. For many people, allowing Amazon to become the behemoth it is today has been a rotten deal, but they’ll learn to like it.

Have you noticed this too?

Yup. Fiy, there are youtubers who use their video skills to document changes in the retail landscape. We can "see" the dead and dying malls. Sometimes, they show us details . For example, someone found the alleged mats that were used in the alleged massage parlors which probably were not the subject of certain mystery shops. Shoppers doing massage gigs would know more about that.

I would say that Amazon per se was not enough to topple the once-traditional retail operations. Rather, companies that failed to switch soon enough to e-business missed years of opportunity to learn and grow their e-business operations.

Can Amazon give me a fabulous facial and a massage that makes me purr? No. It can only sell me stuff for diy service. We still need some people working in real places.

OTOH, we need more information. What do the alphabet Gen people want now? This becomes the subject of my "today's trivia." What is the utilization rate of legitimate personal services? What services are most and least utilized?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/17/2025 06:13AM by Shop-et-al.

@Shop-et-al wrote:

Yup. Fiy, there are youtubers who use their video skills to document changes in the retail landscape. We can "see" the dead and dying malls. Sometimes, they show us details . For example, someone found the alleged mats that were used in the alleged massage parlors which probably were not the subject of certain mystery shops. Shoppers doing massage gigs would know more about that.

I would say that Amazon per se was not enough to topple the once-traditional retail operations. Rather, companies that failed to switch soon enough to e-business missed years of opportunity to learn and grow their e-business operations.

Can Amazon give me a fabulous facial and a massage that makes me purr? No. It can only sell me stuff for diy service. We still need some people working in real places.

OTOH, we need more information. What do the alphabet Gen people want now? This becomes the subject of my "today's trivia." What is the utilization rate of legitimate personal services? What services are most and least utilized?

Speaking of social media, have you also noticed that minors are restricted to certain hours and other criteria at malls and fast food establishments?

There is also a focus in some small towns where social media flash mob disturbances took place to enact parental responsibility over said minors.

Furthermore, I've read statistics where today's teenagers have the lowest summer employment rates ever (since records have been kept).

All interesting pre / post pandemic data

I believe it can be summarized in one word; accountability. Or the lack thereof.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/17/2025 09:14AM by maverick1.

So today is hymns day for me. Listening to ".... it is well, it is well with my soul...." prompted me to wonder about mental illness that maverick1associates with the pandemic. Was it the pandemic alone? Or, was the long-standing deterioration over time of faith, belief, and practice a prominent factor in mental problems for some due to isolation, loss, change, and other experiences associated with the pandemic? We know that faith did not prevent or stop the covid. Covid exists to this day. We might not know so much about the role of faith in acceptance and coping... and the absence of faith in dealing with the changes wrought by the pandemic...

[Don't worry. The seemingly obvious and scripture-supported homily will not appear here.]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/17/2025 02:10PM by Shop-et-al.

I think its a combination of things.

With regards to the lowest rate of unemployment, is that really summed up with accountability, or is another word, (like automation), partially responsible?
I recently took my kids to the new Taco Bell that opened up in town and instead of a cashier (used to be a teen or young adult in this type of position) to take your order. Instead, they have a kiosk. I told the employee I wanted to pay cash and they told me that I could put the order in and then pay with cash at the counter.

I believe some jobs are going away and that leads to a decrease in being able to afford services like a facial and massage.

I also think some companies that are closing stores (Walgreens for example) went through a phase of buying land and building just to be able to knock out competitors moving into a location. I can't recall the book but I believe it was described as a "spiderweb" approach. Then stores were sharing the same customers, and now, they are closing stores.

I also watched a really fascinating documentary on how Dollar General moving into communities hurts other retailers (like a small local grocery store). If I dig it up, I'll post it here, but long story short, people used to go to town to grab milk and would grab a few other things while they were there. Now, instead of making the 8 mile drive to the grocery store, they make the 2 mile drive to Dollar General.

I agree, it is a combination of things. Like most big problems. If it was simple, the problem would be fixed almost immediately.

I had a college professor in an Engineering Ethics class start a discussion on healthcare issues and the conclusion was just that, there is no simple solution. And here we are many years later.

Regarding the Dollar Store...if someone is buying groceries there and consuming it, um, okay, I'll stop there. Oh, I can't...how is it different from dumpster diving? ROFL

@joanna81 wrote:

I think its a combination of things.

With regards to the lowest rate of unemployment, is that really summed up with accountability, or is another word, (like automation), partially responsible?
I recently took my kids to the new Taco Bell that opened up in town and instead of a cashier (used to be a teen or young adult in this type of position) to take your order. Instead, they have a kiosk. I told the employee I wanted to pay cash and they told me that I could put the order in and then pay with cash at the counter.

I believe some jobs are going away and that leads to a decrease in being able to afford services like a facial and massage.

I also think some companies that are closing stores (Walgreens for example) went through a phase of buying land and building just to be able to knock out competitors moving into a location. I can't recall the book but I believe it was described as a "spiderweb" approach. Then stores were sharing the same customers, and now, they are closing stores.

I also watched a really fascinating documentary on how Dollar General moving into communities hurts other retailers (like a small local grocery store). If I dig it up, I'll post it here, but long story short, people used to go to town to grab milk and would grab a few other things while they were there. Now, instead of making the 8 mile drive to the grocery store, they make the 2 mile drive to Dollar General.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/18/2025 05:55PM by maverick1.

@maverick1 wrote:

I agree, it is a combination of things. Like most big problems. If it was simple, the problem would be fixed almost immediately.

I had a college professor in an Engineering Ethics class start a discussion on healthcare issues and the conclusion was just that, there is no simple solution. And here we are many years later.

Regarding the Dollar Store...if someone is buying groceries there and consuming it, um, okay, I'll stop there. Oh, I can't...how is it different from dumpster diving? ROFL

@joanna81 wrote:

I think its a combination of things.

With regards to the lowest rate of unemployment, is that really summed up with accountability, or is another word, (like automation), partially responsible?
I recently took my kids to the new Taco Bell that opened up in town and instead of a cashier (used to be a teen or young adult in this type of position) to take your order. Instead, they have a kiosk. I told the employee I wanted to pay cash and they told me that I could put the order in and then pay with cash at the counter.

I believe some jobs are going away and that leads to a decrease in being able to afford services like a facial and massage.

I also think some companies that are closing stores (Walgreens for example) went through a phase of buying land and building just to be able to knock out competitors moving into a location. I can't recall the book but I believe it was described as a "spiderweb" approach. Then stores were sharing the same customers, and now, they are closing stores.

I also watched a really fascinating documentary on how Dollar General moving into communities hurts other retailers (like a small local grocery store). If I dig it up, I'll post it here, but long story short, people used to go to town to grab milk and would grab a few other things while they were there. Now, instead of making the 8 mile drive to the grocery store, they make the 2 mile drive to Dollar General.

LOL well I'm in a semi-rural area and now they're building DG Market which actually has some fresh food but if I look at the ingredients of most dollar store processed food...it is mostly chemicals.

This is the link to the documentary if you're curious: [youtu.be]

I'm in the suburbs, but mostly see Dollar General in the more run-down areas here. Some have closed. But near me, it's weird that they turned a CVS into a DG in a more affluent area. Between a Super Target and Walmart. It used to be a bank. Free-standing building with its own lot that's in a prime area, but looks out of place. A lot of these buildings have been turned into emergency care centers.

However, the pOpshelf locations here have been more popular and successful, carrying more home and goods and arts and crafts items.

@joanna81 wrote:

@maverick1 wrote:

I agree, it is a combination of things. Like most big problems. If it was simple, the problem would be fixed almost immediately.

I had a college professor in an Engineering Ethics class start a discussion on healthcare issues and the conclusion was just that, there is no simple solution. And here we are many years later.

Regarding the Dollar Store...if someone is buying groceries there and consuming it, um, okay, I'll stop there. Oh, I can't...how is it different from dumpster diving? ROFL

@joanna81 wrote:

I think its a combination of things.

With regards to the lowest rate of unemployment, is that really summed up with accountability, or is another word, (like automation), partially responsible?
I recently took my kids to the new Taco Bell that opened up in town and instead of a cashier (used to be a teen or young adult in this type of position) to take your order. Instead, they have a kiosk. I told the employee I wanted to pay cash and they told me that I could put the order in and then pay with cash at the counter.

I believe some jobs are going away and that leads to a decrease in being able to afford services like a facial and massage.

I also think some companies that are closing stores (Walgreens for example) went through a phase of buying land and building just to be able to knock out competitors moving into a location. I can't recall the book but I believe it was described as a "spiderweb" approach. Then stores were sharing the same customers, and now, they are closing stores.

I also watched a really fascinating documentary on how Dollar General moving into communities hurts other retailers (like a small local grocery store). If I dig it up, I'll post it here, but long story short, people used to go to town to grab milk and would grab a few other things while they were there. Now, instead of making the 8 mile drive to the grocery store, they make the 2 mile drive to Dollar General.

LOL well I'm in a semi-rural area and now they're building DG Market which actually has some fresh food but if I look at the ingredients of most dollar store processed food...it is mostly chemicals.

This is the link to the documentary if you're curious: [youtu.be]

Yeah, I get it. The name on the building denotes an attractive price point. But I've been in these stores to get a single item like a turkey baster to extract brake fluid from a vehicle.

I'd never ingest anything from a "dollar store." Do you recall there was a recall of toothpaste from dollar stores because the ingredients were contaminated from a China source?

"In 2007, the FDA issued warnings and advised consumers to avoid toothpaste made in China because it might contain diethylene glycol (DEG), a poisonous chemical used in antifreeze. DEG was found in various brands sold in discount retailers, including dollar stores. This ingredient was sometimes used as a cheaper substitute for glycerin, a thickening agent in toothpaste."

And then there was this..."There were also recalls of counterfeit Colgate toothpaste that contained DEG, sold in some discount stores in the U.S. East Coast states."

Counterfeit toothpaste!!!

No. No. ...and NO! LOL

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/18/2025 08:47PM by maverick1.