[Thorentis]

It's possible to long for one aspect of the past, without actually wanting to live in the past. If my kid decides that society is better without smartphones, I'm going to be quite proud, and saying "yeah but AIDS" will be the last thing on my mind.

[Broken_Hippo]

I don't expect everyone to think of AIDS specifically, but we all should be immediately reminding ourselves that the past was full of issues and injustices, some of which we do not have today. Long for x or y all you want - they come with the downsides. Were some things better? Sure, possibly. But at what cost?

My comment isn't really about smartphones, but the dangers of rose-colored glasses that tint the past in ways that obscure the downsides and make the positives rosier than they really were.