MM1970;
You concisely describe the inherent trade off of the 20th Century. In exchange for spending your days doing repetitive, meaningless, soul crushing work at the factory, you were given enough money to make your evenings and weekends enjoyable. Disposable income allowed a worker to pursue hobbies, travel, etc. that could provide what they could not get at work.
In the 21st Century, we see that trade off is beginning to change. Technology is blurring the line of where and how work is performed. For a variety of reasons, disposable income is not increasing at a level to allow people to pursue their after work activities as in the past. Unhappiness is the symptom of the broken system.
If we lived like people lived in the 1950's, we'd have quite a bit of discretionary income and perhaps a 50-80% savings rate. But few people are willing to give up their iPhones, 2nd cars, air conditioning, extra bedroom and bathroom, twice-a-week restaurant meals, large refridgerators, dishwashers, TVs and Netflix, etc. If a person lived our great grandparents' concept of the good life today, they would be considered some sort of extremist. All these extra "needs" are now factored into our cost of living and poverty indices.
Our lack of free time is related to long commutes, oversized houses, and suburban sprawl. It's also related to a healthcare insurance system that discourages companies from offering part-time positions. Thus, many families who wish they could have 1.5 jobs instead have two. Also, it's a workism arms race out there. The people willing to sacrifice weekends and work on vacations get the promotions, or at least get to keep their jobs. In a world whereso many people have college degrees, long hours are the differentiator.
Meh, I think you aren't being completely fair or reasonable, though I've made the same point myself. I grew up in the 70s (my sisters in the 50s and 60s). No cable TV, small-ish house, two cars, one job. No computer, no cell phone, no eating out, etc.
But...
- Smaller houses are harder to find
- Two jobs now almost always require 2 cars
- Lack of job stability means that you have less control and less flexibility. Are you going to buy a house and keep it forever? Are you going to avoid long commutes? Not if you change jobs. With 2 jobs to consider, it makes it even trickier.
Our grandparents' "good life" or even my mom's "good life".
- I don't want that. I want a job. I want financial control. I don't want to end up in a bad marriage with an abusive man because I cannot afford to leave. (It took a LOT for her to leave, it was not fun, and in the end her life was still not awesome).
- I don't even want the kind of jobs that were available to women back then. Bank teller. Lunch lady. A nurse here and there. I don't want to go back to where you could be fired for getting pregnant.
- I simply don't have the kind of job that I could do without internet. I don't want to live without plumbing either. Sometimes you make advances and they are good for all. My children require internet to do their homework.
- I don't want to go back to the medical care of the 1950s either. My sisters' mom died during surgery. They were kids. Kids!
(I live in a house built in 1947. 2BR, 1BA, no garage, no attic, no basement. I DO have a dishwasher, and you can pry it from my cold, dead hands. Have AC too but we didn't install it. Our 17 year old fridge is almost dead and do you KNOW how hard it is to find a 30" wide fridge? That's the space we have. We don't eat out except for special occasions and travel.)
There's such an interaction between 2 incomes and housing prices that it's hard to tell which came first, the chicken or the egg. The whole "Two Income Trap" and all...
