Why were 90's cartoons so flippin good?

90's/early 2000's cartoons were the best. There's still good 'toons today (Young Justice, Adventure Time) but they are rare and a dying breed. I have no experience with the animation industry so I have no idea why I don't enjoy the majority of new cartoons anymore. Maybe I've just matured, but I don't think that's it. I think the economy has hurt animation a lot.

@ Danielle: Cut the false sense of entitlement, will you? Take a look at this clip from Bonkers: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fKbmrldkS2s 3:31-3:43, this type of 'telling kids what's safe' wasn't just a thing of today.

@Nikki: Tom and Jerry was 1940s-1960s, 90s kids need to stop acting as if every good cartoon AIRING on tv then was made in that decade, it's like you guys are trying to hog all the cartoons for yourself.

@ACE: Cartoons today are stupid IN YOUR OPINION, your opinion doesn't represent the mass majority of people, only YOUR'S, and possibly a few other nostalgia tinted adults who think similarly.

@Taylor: Same thing I told ACE, good cartoons aren't a 'dying breed', you've just outgrown the networks that air them. As for the 'economy hurting animation', that's only true in the sense that animation companies would rather create a show based on existing properties and toylines than try new ideas, but the economy didn't stop good shows from being produced (Korra, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Young Justice, Gravity Falls, Dan Vs., the new TMNT show, list goes on). Overall though, animation is in a better position now than it was 4-5 years ago (when the economy REALLY hit rock bottom, coincidence?).

Phew, sorry for going off in a tangent like that, but as for the question, it's mostly the nostalgia kicking in. I remember doing a count one time of 90s cartoons, while there were many MANY good toons, there were plenty of crap as well (Pinky, Elmyra and the Brain anyone?). Nostalgia tends to make us forget about the duds and remember the gems. Nostalgia also causes people (as the four other answers I replied to have shown) to act as if we're currently living in some corrupt video wasteland where almost everything is unwatchable and heinous, it's simply not true. Okay, while things have been a bit better in the animation world in terms of creativity (since as I implied to Taylor, it's hard to take risks in an economy that's still trying to recover), things have also been much MUCH worse, I'm looking at you 1970s and early 1980s.

2000 - present are really stupid

90's cartoons are awesome.

70 and 80 where a little to just for kids.

but the 20's -60's cartoons where great too

The 90's cartoons actually were good. I think the new cartoons are kinda lame, compared to our good old fashioned Tom and Jerry, and other cartoons.

Nope they were 100 times better back then! And we werent stupid and didnt need to be told dont try this at home!