I have a hard time with this as well. I do get the feeling that we're looking at KPIs that, if not rigged/manipulated, perhaps aren't terribly relevant. RFK fam

I have a hard time with this as well. I do get the feeling that we're looking at KPIs that, if not rigged/manipulated, perhaps aren't terribly relevant. RFK famously said that the GDP doesn't capture the character of a nation, and I doubt he was the first to realize that. I don't feel like my parents really lived it up when I was a kid; we lived in a modest house and drove modest cars and went on vacations in-state at the largess of my Grandmother plus the occasional road trip. My mom said that only rich people flew. Before them, I have no actual experience of how people lived. I think a lot of families only had one car or no car, for instance. It's just hard to compare without having lived it myself. I will say that I'm over hearing apologists for the current situation say that because we have smartphones, we're richer than ever. An iPhone SE is like $400 and a smartphone is essentially a requirement to participate in modern society (not really a development I'm thrilled about either). Shitty food is quite cheap, so if all you want is calories (turns out you need a bit more nutrition than just carbs, but I guess you can live off it for awhile), then you are indeed in boom times. Housing seems like a nightmare though it's calming down a bit lately. Paying for education would scare the crap out of me if I had kids or if I have to go back to school; my cousin's daughter's 3rd birthday is coming up; his ask - no gifts, only money for college please. At 3 years old, but I can't blame him. And healthcare is it's own nightmare - the costs stagger belief. I may need a hip replacement (I'd like to hold off, but the pain might force the issue), and I'm wary of every aspect of the system. Amazingly, I could fly to Lithuania and have the surgery plus a few weeks in rehab for maybe a quarter of the cost in the US. Hopefully I don't get laid-off before I can work up the courage to do the surgery and lose my health insurance, because then Lithuania might be the best option. So yeah, if you like empty calories and whizbang tech (and I mean, I can enjoy those in moderation), then I think the economy is doing better than ever. But I (and I think most) feel less secure than ever as forces far beyond my control conspire to extract every dollar I have to my name and put me into debt for the dollars I don't.