3 ms·

Ha, more people live better now, both absolute numbers and percentage of global population, than ever before in human history.

shard972 9y ago
Tell that to the crackhead living in the rustbelt with no job. I know you can make the stats look like living standards are on the up and up but you would be ignoring the huge issue of income inequality which is root cause of the political instability the west is experiencing. The OP's point in this context is spot on, positive psychology not only has nothing to offer this growing lower class but it's more and more looking like it's a net negative to them.
- meri_dian 9y ago
  Just because income inequality is up from the 50's doesn't mean people are worse off. For $70 a month an entire family can have access to the internet, Netflix and Spotify. Food is cheaper, more plentiful and comes in more variety now. Healthcare is much better and more people have access to more treatments than ever before. You really could go on and on. Even if real wages have stagnated for the working class, modern technology and the convenience that comes with it has made life soooo much better for the large majority of people. The can buy more with their wages, stagnant or not.
  - lucideer 9y ago
    > Food is cheaper, more plentiful and comes in more variety now. There is more variety, with more of a spread of quality over price points. Lower quality food is cheaper, higher quality food is less accessible. > Healthcare is much better and more people have access to more treatments than ever before. Healthcare is better if you can get it. Yes, there are more treatments available, for some, but there are more without access.
- IanCal 9y ago
  > Tell that to the crackhead living in the rustbelt with no job. People addicted to drugs or without jobs are not new issues. > I know you can make the stats look like living standards are on the up and up That's a bit unreasonable, suggesting any and all statistics that disagree with your view are not trustworthy. > you would be ignoring the huge issue of income inequality which is root cause of the political instability the west is experiencing. Inequality and living standards are significantly different things. Do you have statistics to support the 5 decades of falling living standards claim?

shard972 9y ago

Tell that to the crackhead living in the rustbelt with no job. I know you can make the stats look like living standards are on the up and up but you would be ignoring the huge issue of income inequality which is root cause of the political instability the west is experiencing. The OP's point in this context is spot on, positive psychology not only has nothing to offer this growing lower class but it's more and more looking like it's a net negative to them.

meri_dian 9y ago
Just because income inequality is up from the 50's doesn't mean people are worse off. For $70 a month an entire family can have access to the internet, Netflix and Spotify. Food is cheaper, more plentiful and comes in more variety now. Healthcare is much better and more people have access to more treatments than ever before. You really could go on and on. Even if real wages have stagnated for the working class, modern technology and the convenience that comes with it has made life soooo much better for the large majority of people. The can buy more with their wages, stagnant or not.
- lucideer 9y ago
  > Food is cheaper, more plentiful and comes in more variety now. There is more variety, with more of a spread of quality over price points. Lower quality food is cheaper, higher quality food is less accessible. > Healthcare is much better and more people have access to more treatments than ever before. Healthcare is better if you can get it. Yes, there are more treatments available, for some, but there are more without access.
IanCal 9y ago
> Tell that to the crackhead living in the rustbelt with no job. People addicted to drugs or without jobs are not new issues. > I know you can make the stats look like living standards are on the up and up That's a bit unreasonable, suggesting any and all statistics that disagree with your view are not trustworthy. > you would be ignoring the huge issue of income inequality which is root cause of the political instability the west is experiencing. Inequality and living standards are significantly different things. Do you have statistics to support the 5 decades of falling living standards claim?