Abundance rarely breeds thrift, modesty or prudence and affluent societies almost always overreach their bounds and means. The plenty creates the illusion that the means are inexhaustible and the ability to do things unlimited. Of even greater concern is the fact which has been often observed that plentitude and easy life tend to breed moral loosening, especially in those who did not have to work for their comforts. People who are born into ease do not need to grapple with the world in order to survive or live well, and as a result they have a surplus of time and energy. Since there is not much to worry about externally, such people tend to direct their attention inward to themselves and become self-focused and self-absorbed. And from there is only a small step toward self-indulgence, self-seeking and selfishness.
Not surprisingly, these qualities became evident across the swathes of the baby boom generation. Perhaps the most cuddled and sheltered young cohort in America’s history, they grew up in the post war boom of prosperity, watched over by their dotting and increasingly affluent parents who sought to insulate their offspring from the hardships of life they had themselves endured during the Great Depression and the War.
Feeling secure from birth, the boomers did not inherit the work ethic, modesty and moral restrain of their parents. Quite the opposite, many of them openly rebelled against it and instead made the satisfaction of their own desires the goal of their lives.
~ Vasko Kohlmayer, "
America in Crisis: Correcting the Narrative,"
LewRockwell.com, July 2, 2020
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| Time's 1966 Man of the Year |
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