Well? Are We Really Better Off Today?
We have taller buildings today, but shorter tempers, and wider highways, but narrower viewpoints. We spend more money, but enjoy it less. We have larger houses, but smaller families, more conveniences, but less time. Today we earn more degrees, yet have less common sense.
We acquire more knowledge, but use less judgment, have more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less wellness. We spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get angry too quickly, stay up too late, get up too tired, rarely read, watch too much TV and pray too seldom. We multiply our possessions, but reduce our values. We talk way too much, love way too seldom and lie much too often.
We’ve learned how to make a living, but not a life, and we’ve added years to life, not life to years. We’ve been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the driveway to meet a new neighbour. We have learned to rush, but not to wait. We have higher incomes, but lower morals, more food, but less satisfaction and more acquaintances, but fewer friends.
We exert more effort, but have less success. We’ve become long on quantity but short on quality. We preach world peace, but practice domestic warfare, have more leisure and less fun, have more kinds of food, but less nutrition. We have two incomes, but more divorces, fancier houses but broken homes. We live in a time of quick trips, disposable diapers, throw-away morality and self-indulgence.
So, given all our technologies, sciences and social awareness, are we really better off today?
