Technological and cultural stagnation of the middle ages

Ironically it's the opposite as the middle ages were a boom time for technological and cultural innovation.For example just off the top of my head technologically we have the invention of clocks, printing presses and farming techniques (horse collars, field rotations) which enabled greater crop yields. Culturally we have invention the concept of modern romance as well as the formation of modern European countries such as France, England,Spain etc.Prior to the middle ages if you wanted some book learning you had to find a dude to teach you, but then they invented the concept of the university. You're reading this post because of typographical innovations introduced during the middle ages, things like capital letters and full stops.The middle ages were a thousand years of progress but they still get a kicking today due the legacy of Renaissance writers thinking they were backward compared to the classical world of ancient Greece and Rome. (Sigh) Rant over.

They could complain about plague

There would also be no old people, the avarage lifespan was 35 years.