And then in what felt like not long even at the time we went to button phones.

Everyone had the same Telstra phone at one point

Also remember the little brick that my first mobile was

Mine had a fancy pull-out antenna!

<I sometimes (okay often) feel like there's a willful ignorance going on here. Because if you did know, then you would have to act because you know better, and that's way too hard and requires too much effort, ignorance is bliss

Yes, I agree. People avoid having to take responsibility for themselves.

One of my brain glitches makes me almost automatically ignore things the more they scream for attention/try to tell me what I should be doing/feeling about something.

Exactly. It is like a desperate person at a bar - they are going home alone

Also sounds like a conspiracy theory :D (I did actually read something about keeping people in a permanent state of crisis so they didn't have time to think and reflect but do you think I can find it now)

It does, doesn't it? ;D I suspect that intentional or not, the incentives of media and entertainment is to have people not think what is best for them.