Nostalgia for the ’90s and ’00s is at an all-time high these days. Though folks often look back on those decades fondly, there are definitely some behaviors and activities that were societally normal back then that would seem SUPER weird and out of place today. Recently on Reddit, Traditional_End_233 posed the question, “What was normal in the 90s/2000s that would be considered unacceptable today?” and these 23 answers had me nodding along in agreement:
1.
“AOL chat rooms. ‘A/S/L?'”
2.
“Everything had solvents in them that made people high: markers, Wite-Out, glue, and let’s not forget that plastic you could blow bubbles with.”
3.
“Leaving your 10-year-old to watch your 5-year-old for an evening.”
5.
“Watching music on television for hours and hours.”
7.
“**Errrrrrrrrrrrrchkkkkkkkkkkk** **Pshhhkkkkkkrrrrkakingkakingkakingtshchchchchchchchcch** **Boop beep bop beep boop bop beep boop ppprrrrrrrrrrrrrrttttttt** **Skreeeeeeeeet, diiiiiiiiiiiiiing, be dom be dom. Pwissssssh.** **Wee ooo wee ooo wee ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff**”
8.
“In the summer, letting your 9-year-old son roam free unless it’s lunch or dinner. I would be told to get out, and I was enthused.”
9.
“Smoking inside most restaurants, until the late 2000s or so, depending on when individual states began banning all smoking inside. Restaurants had those dumbass smoking or non-smoking sections, and it all smelled because the smoke doesn’t stay on one side of the building.”
11.
“A 150lbs/70kg, 31-inch TV.”
13.
“Children having paper routes, ringing doorbells to collect money, and talking to the adults who answered the door.”
15.
“Getting into a back-and-forth with ‘Yo Momma’ jokes with your buds in good fun.”
17.
“Ordering a pizza by calling the place, and they send one of their delivery boys to take it to you.”
19.
“Using a phone that was attached to the wall.”
20.
“Taking the bus or being dropped off at the mall by someone when you are 12-15 years old. We used to spend the weekend at the malls and never had any issues.”
23.
And finally, “Literally the top-rated shows on TV. Seinfeld and Friends had some quite questionable episodes and jokes.”
What do you think? Are there other things that were totally normal in the ’90s/’00s that wouldn’t be acceptable today? Let us know in the comments. And if you’d like to remain anonymous, you can use the form below.