The needs of people change over time.
Sometimes for good, sometimes for bad.
Reddit user, LevengeLover, wanted to hear how you've been downgraded in society when they asked:
"what profession was once highly respected but is now a complete joke?"
Maybe the career isn't seen with much reverence anymore because something else has come along and taken its place, be it machine or people doing the work themselves.
What Was Once Common Is Now Luxury
"Milk man."
Remember_Poseidon
"Nah milk delivery is still a thing around me. The service was somewhat expensive but amazing overall."
cbrad1713
Dancing And Pushing The Logs Along A River
"Log Driver."
Degenerate_Saint
"Oh my god. This is true. Even in my country the old people would still say ‘I’m not a Log Driver’ meaning I cant afford it making it seem like Log Drivers made a lot of money last time"
frishavocadoot
Not A Lot Of Demand For Ship Sails Anymore
"Spinner. Not only is it not a job anymore, it's thought of as a dumb hobby. But, back in the day before the industrial revolution, spinners were a huge part of society. Spinners made the thread that wove fabric."
"Without fabric a lot of things wouldn't be possible in society, and I'm not just talking about clothes. Think about the sails for ships, think of how much time and effort went not only into weaving sails but into simply spinning the very thread that they were woven from!"
"That's what spinster used to mean. It was a woman that could financially support herself independently through spinning because the craft was so important. And now it's an insult and the profession is just thought of as a dumb hobby."
ClancyHabbard
The job used to define the person, but soon the kind of person came to define the job.
If you had a solid head on your shoulders, the profession kept its level of respect.
However, a lot of con men and untrustworthy individuals seemed to make their way in, making the professions less reliable.
They're More Than A Babysitter
"Teachers."
"I personally don't agree, but here in the United States of America(USA), most people treat teachers like glorified babysitters that "anyone can do", and literally believe their dishonest kids over their teachers."
MTVChallengeFan
"Came here looking for this. Unfortunately, this is the case not only in the US. I'm a teacher and half of the time I feel like I'm working a shitty customer service job. Answering complaint emails from parents who are not happy that their child forgot to bring his homework home, even though we reminded him."
"Well, we didn't remind him good enough, according to the parents. Oh, your kid acted out, flipped a table and broke expensive school equipment? I'm sorry, of course it is our fault. We should have found a way to prevent that from happening."
"Sometimes I teach too, though."
"No, but for real. It's become a joke, it's true."
i_am_chemistry
How Much Power Do You Think I Have?
"Bank Manager"
MystyMountainsPeak
"I was going to write this one. Spot on - back in the day they had decision making ability, now they are just any other store manager."
"To be honest, it's for the best."
sionnach
Not Naming Names...Tucker...
" News anchor"
SpicyMustardNoHotdog
"News actors are what we have now"
Seigmoraig
"I prefer the term "News Wanker"
TheGrenglish
Gotta Get Those Hate Clicks
"Journalist."
qbertisback
"I did a year of journalism at university, but switched afterwards. I thought my job would be to inform people and to expose injustice. Instead, it’s about finding the right events and the right words/format to maximise viewers."
"These viewer statistics are then showed to marketing companies to drown your article in ads and make money for the large company that owns your paper."
Guava_
And then there's these, professions which matter so little in the world anymore its a wonder anyone anywhere could make a living doing it.
The Stars Say...
"Astrologer. Henry VIII used to make huge decisions on the advice of astrologers, as did many other monarchs. More recently, Princess Diana also had an astrologer. Is astrology even a thing anymore?"
tommyhashbrown
"Nancy Reagan had an astrologer, too. Yeah, it's still a thing. When I applied for a visa to live in my husband's home country, astrologer's reports were on the list of "acceptable evidence" that our marriage was genuine."
44morejumperspls
It's Fun. It's Not Real.
"King or queen"
Good_Carrot_5089
"Probably closest to the right answer in this thread. Those other professions aren’t a complete joke just getting a lot of hate right now. A monarchy like in the UK is legitimately a complete joke now compared to how it used to be."
TheRavenSayeth
The Times Are A Changing
"I’m only 24 so I could be very wrong, but from my understanding, politicians at least had a baseline level of public trust and respect from the getgo, and rotten politicians were either just something you called the opposing party, or just bad actors."
"Now, I don’t care who you are. If you call yourself a politician, I don’t trust you, unless you really start putting in some measurable effort to gaining that trust back and never stop working for that respect."
"You’re a politician, which means in my eyes you work for me & my fellow countrymen and it should never have been any way else."
"Clowns, all of them, until proven otherwise."
Brotherbeam
Men Of The Cloth, Men Of Lost Faith
"Priest."
"Once a highly prestigious position, now still important in some quarters but does not command nearly the same level of prestige and respect."
epicurious_aussie
"What makes me sad is that even today there are some incredible priests. The pastor at my church makes me proud to be Catholic because he is so great at what he does. He is a friend and mentor even though he is double my age. If he was the standard I would be proud for either of my sons to follow him into the priesthood."
"But I've had terrible priests too, and they seem to be as common or more common than the good ones. So many pathetic men who preach hate and judgement instead of love and forgiveness. This is obviously without even getting into the rampant corruption that allowed systemic abuse of children for decades (or centuries), but that's a whole separate post I think."
PDGAreject