I think you have reversed the cause and effect. People before us lived far closer to the brink of destruction, and endured actual hardships, which I think made

I think you have reversed the cause and effect. People before us lived far closer to the brink of destruction, and endured actual hardships, which I think made them less anxious. Our current anxious, no-risk state makes us much more prone to fatalism, and nihilism, making the environment the perfect end of days thing to feed that anxiety.