> One possibility is that morality has, in fact, been declining worldwide for millennia—declining so steadily and so precipitously that people in every era have

> One possibility is that morality has, in fact, been declining worldwide for millennia—declining so steadily and so precipitously that people in every era have been able to observe that decline in the brief span of a human lifetime. The other possibility is that the perception of moral decline is a psychological illusion to which people all over the world and throughout history have been susceptible. What about a 3rd possibility that moral decline is like a barberpole; it really is constantly declining, but as it's doing so new moral standards replace the ones that are falling away at the bottom. For example, we might see people becoming less friendly with their neighbours, but they've also stopped hitting animals and their children.