Is it just me? Are "people" getting more useless and more stupid as the years go on. I am by no means a rocket scientist or professor material, but I find everywhere I go in this great country of mine ( GB ) "people" are incapable of the most straight forward tasks :confused1:

I sent the wife out to fill up a jerry can with petrol as she was going to town. For some reason she was unable to close the lid on correctly?? She asked 3 people ( all blokes ) to help her close it properly. None could work it out? So in the end the cashier said she could leave it in the shop - 20ltrs un-sealed can

She came home and sent me down immediately to sort it out.

All that was wrong was the pin that locks the cap on was in the wrong place stopping the cap from closing correctly VERY obviously in the way ??? I was stunned ! WTF ? My wife has been trained in jerry can usage, I gave her the extra intensive course. But I wonder what will become of the three grown men, who will train them? How will they cope?

There is a list of stuff which I have seen and heard and continue to see and hear every day of the week which is now causing me to stand still and stare, with my jaw getting even lower each time. It's starting to make me look like a weirdo. Am I "gifted" being able to open and close jerry cans? Or are people just too lazy to learn to do stuff? Actually I think Jamie Oliver has recently got into trouble for saying the same about his fellow countrymen/women

I do still think we are a great country and do some great stuff, but sadly I think it is done by a lot fewer people. I think the turning point was in a supermarket a few years back when I saw grated cheese in a bag for sale sale. It makes me angry !

Its probably a worldwide thing, as specialisation and technology have made things harder to fix and find someone who can fix it. I doubt that schools even teach the logic behind most maths/trig nowadays - I really admire the engineers in the 19th Century who built things without cadcam, calculators and even slide rules.

A few years ago I was a supermarket and the bill came to exactly $100, I handed over a $100 bill. The cashier then rang for assistance as the till did not show her how much change she should give me after keying in the $100.

Noticed how much a plumber cost these days? A leaking tap washer can lead to replacement of the tap - cheaper!

Problems solvers cost a lot more than pHds ... And the cost of new goods means less people are fixing stuff - too expensive to repair so throw it away.

The use of google to solve problems leads to a lack of developing the problem solving skill... lack of use of any skill sees its regression.

In Australia its been in a downward spiral for years.

15 years ago I had "words" with my daughters primary school about not picking up her spelling mistakes... their response was "it stifles their creativity".
Now I have a uni student who can't spell - and can't rely on spellchecker because she simply doesn't know which is the correct version.

If the schools stopped continually testing our kids (NAPLAN) and actually started teaching our kids - we'd have a fighting chance.

But alas - the gov't closes down the TAFEs and kids can no longer learn the basics of mechanics, carpentry, hairdressing, sewing etc

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Postie Notes - "you're not seriously going around Australia on a postie bike??"

They are just starting to reverse this trend in the UK with the re-introduction of apprenticeships, the government has finally realised that you need people with manual skills in order for a country to function.

Is this their way of saying "we don't know how to spell either"?

Most likely!
We set the bar high for doctors and lawyers but if the kids don't get the top marks they "just become a teacher".

So now we have mediocre teachers pumping out mediocre students.

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Postie Notes - "you're not seriously going around Australia on a postie bike??"

It's the same here in the UK. That's the problem with league tables and the relentless focus on results at the exclusion of all else. Yes, obviously we all want the kids to do well in school, but focusing purely on relentless assessment regimes without allowing time for any real depth or breadth in the curriculum has the nock on effect that practicality or common sense often goes by the wayside. In order to pass exams, many kids have their work scaffolded to such an extent that when it comes down to real problem solving, they don't know where to start, as they've never encountered it before.

Recently I was shocked to find out my new son in law did not know how to change a wheel on his car. had to call out to rescue services, everything was there just no idea

Just a few days ago I dug out my old Holbrook lathe and cleaned it up thinking I would get rid of it. But just seeing it has made me decide to recommission it.

Don't worry, you be finding out just exactly how stupid she thinks you are in a short while

I know what you mean about problem solving skills and we have a wide range of practical abilities within our household. The problem is that any "this doesn't work any more" issues that arise ultimately have to be resolved either by me or the dustman and when I emerged from under our Land Rover earlier this week after a day covered in brake fluid and gearbox oil fixing a problem for the MOT and then compared my wife's approach of buy a car and change it before the warranty runs out I wondered which of us was being the most sensible.

Sometimes the "I'll take it to bits and fix it" approach may not be the most cost effective in ways other than financial. I'll find out how cost effective shortly when I have to try and work out why my daughter's laptop is on the blink. Failure to fix it will "totally ruin her day" and she'll make her displeasure known vocally, whereas had I been a sort of ten thumbs bloke she'd have had to spend her own money getting it mended. Sometimes I think practical skills can be just a rod for your own back.