The rational optimists are correct in a sense. People SHOULD be happy. The prosperity and safety we experience should provide more for people than humans have ever known. Part is what we’ve lost, as you say. The other part is what’s replaced it—grievance culture promoted by the ruling class. The very people we’ve (nominally) chosen to lead us are telling everyone how unhappy they should be. People are indoctrinated to suffer and the things we’ve lost—patriotism, soul, community—would have stood as a bulwark against the pessimistic brew distributed by the overlords. We’ve lost much of what gave us optimism but we’ve also gained a class of people who have the largest platform and a desire to see us as demoralized as possible.
2 great comments here (unhealthy diets and an elite class promoting victim mentality). Also we’ve arrived at the pinnacle of the hierarchy of needs with too much time and enough resources. Perhaps this is nature’s way of taking us down a few levels so we’re back to striving and surviving where it seems humans are at their happiest, even if they aren’t living in the best conditions. But this would not address the transfer of wealth from the middle class to the elite corporate and govt classes that I think drives a lot of the existential angst of many who see themselves losing ground, while others accelerate into very desirable lifestyles.
I’ve met former police driving Porsches in their retirement, they told me they could pull off over $200,000 a year in Canada with overtime. And teachers travelling the world to golf having retired at 52. There are severe imbalances in our society when people who worked in private sector marketing retiring at 65 only with their CPP. Or others having to work into their 70s until they no longer get hired just to buy adequate food and pay the rent.
In Canada we are over taxed in order to pay exceptional salaries to the public sector, a source of irritation, for those who have experience in both sectors who know the imbalance of salary and benefits is not commensurate with effort or skill.
The rational optimists are correct in a sense. People SHOULD be happy. The prosperity and safety we experience should provide more for people than humans have ever known. Part is what we’ve lost, as you say. The other part is what’s replaced it—grievance culture promoted by the ruling class. The very people we’ve (nominally) chosen to lead us are telling everyone how unhappy they should be. People are indoctrinated to suffer and the things we’ve lost—patriotism, soul, community—would have stood as a bulwark against the pessimistic brew distributed by the overlords. We’ve lost much of what gave us optimism but we’ve also gained a class of people who have the largest platform and a desire to see us as demoralized as possible.
You're missing one crucial aspect, unless I missed you taking it up.
Much of the diet in the USA consists of seed oils and is severely lacking in minerals & vitamins that are essential for a stable and healthy mind.
2 great comments here (unhealthy diets and an elite class promoting victim mentality). Also we’ve arrived at the pinnacle of the hierarchy of needs with too much time and enough resources. Perhaps this is nature’s way of taking us down a few levels so we’re back to striving and surviving where it seems humans are at their happiest, even if they aren’t living in the best conditions. But this would not address the transfer of wealth from the middle class to the elite corporate and govt classes that I think drives a lot of the existential angst of many who see themselves losing ground, while others accelerate into very desirable lifestyles.
I’ve met former police driving Porsches in their retirement, they told me they could pull off over $200,000 a year in Canada with overtime. And teachers travelling the world to golf having retired at 52. There are severe imbalances in our society when people who worked in private sector marketing retiring at 65 only with their CPP. Or others having to work into their 70s until they no longer get hired just to buy adequate food and pay the rent.
In Canada we are over taxed in order to pay exceptional salaries to the public sector, a source of irritation, for those who have experience in both sectors who know the imbalance of salary and benefits is not commensurate with effort or skill.