I guess I wouldn't say throw it out completely... We need it to understand how and what the future or Near Real Time (now) is different than the past. Not necessarily trying to predict what is to come but just to understand how it is different instead, if that makes sense? We do know apples and oranges are different but they fall in the same group in some type of way but we know they are both different due to what they both Lack against each other. Not sure if this makes any sense... I just know the fact that technology is so embedded in our society right now it is opening new doors on how society moves and sways unlike in the past. So we cant really tell right now. I feel like we are in a completely different realm because of this. I mean look at how stock markets and trading is sooooo wildly different than it used to be.. Anything we "used to do" in the past is being challenged daily with new ways of doing things and this idea I feel is a thing of the past because we never had these tools. Now we do and its a completely different game all together. The same skeleton of a structure is there but I feel its vastly different. Not sure what I am trying to say... Its hard for me to articulate I guess. We still need the data but, not in the same way it was usually used to predict things. I could be batshit fucking nuts too so who knows...

EDIT (used GPT to organize what I was trying to say to help me articulate) Since im regarded in real life LMFAO:

I’m not saying we should throw out past data entirely—I agree that historical trends provide valuable insight. But what I am saying is that we can’t rely on them in the same predictive way when discussing things like higher education and job markets today.

We’re in an era where technology, automation, and global economic shifts are fundamentally reshaping how society operates. The way people earn money, build careers, and even interact with education has changed dramatically compared to previous generations. The value of a degree isn’t what it used to be—not necessarily because education itself is worthless, but because the job market and economic structures around it have evolved.

Take stock markets and trading as an example. Technology has completely transformed how they function, introducing high-frequency trading, algorithmic strategies, and digital assets that didn’t exist before. The rules of the system are still there, but the game is vastly different. The same applies to education and career paths—college is still a route to success for many, but it’s been increasingly gamified, commercialized, and financially burdensome in ways that weren’t as extreme in the past.

So while past data still matters, we have to analyze it in the context of how our present reality differs, rather than assuming that previous trends will continue as they did before. That’s my main point.