I was going to comment after one of the early paragraphs that perhaps a lot of the increased stupidity has to do with long COVID.

I'm constantly being tasked at work to straighten out a few folks missing really easy stuff. Every one of them were anti-vaxxers who got COVID, some multiple times, and bragged that they barely got sick.

They're just not right anymore. Their thinking is wildly off. They can't remember stuff. Basic reasoning is hard.

Not going to lie. They're wearing me out. Dealing with them is mentally exhausting.