IIRC the areas where things are getting worse, or at least, not getting as good as the GDP statistics would lead one to believe, are: [edited to incorporate so

IIRC the areas where things are getting worse, or at least, not getting as good as the GDP statistics would lead one to believe, are: [edited to incorporate some stuff from downthread] - people with only a high-school education don't have the same job opportunities as they used to - the employment sectors with the highest job growth are those that don't pay very well, e.g., janitorial work rather than automotive plants - a lot of people who want full-time jobs can only find part-time work; people with full-time jobs are working more hours with less or stagnant vacation time - more families in which both the husband and wife work out of economic necessity rather than choice - the housing bubble caused many people to treat the appreciation in their home's value as a substitute for saving, and now that the bubble has burst that "wealth effect" is operating in reverse - cost of health care rising significantly faster than inflation; higher premiums and copays for those with insurance, more economic risk for those without I think some of these are 40-year trends rather than 20-year trends, but if you drill down into the quality-of-life statistics, I think these are the kinds of things to look for.