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Wednesday, May 10, 2023

Most Say Life "Worse Now" Than 50 Years Ago

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Pew Research has found that most Americans say, "Life is worse today than it was fifty years ago for people like them."

The survey showed that Americans hold a negative view of how life is for people now. 

They were asked, “In general, would you say life in America today is better, worse, or about the same as it was 50 years ago for people like you?”

Leftist ideas and policies have created an "age of pessimism"---A time of hopelessness. 

Can it be reversed?

Absolutely!

Be informed, not misled.

Most ordinary Americans have fond memories of gathering with family for holidays and special days like Thanksgiving and Christmas.

In fact, most Americans are telling Pew Research that their life is worse now than 50 years ago.

Pew asked this question:

“In general, would you say life in America today is better, worse, or about the same as it was 50 years ago for people like you?”

Over half, 58 percent, said they believe life is “worse” for people like them than it was 50 years ago. That reflects a 15-point increase from the 43 percent who said the same in July 2021.

We are on a steep decline regarding quality of life.

Only 23 percent said they believe life is “better,” and 19 percent said it is “about the same.”

Republicans and Republican leaners are more likely to say life is worse today for people like them than it was back in 1973, as 72 percent said life is “worse.” Just 14 percent said it is better.

A plurality of Democrats also believe it is “worse” today — 43 percent. That reflects a 13-point uptick from the 30 percent who said the same in July 2021.

Pew says, "While both older adults and younger adults are much more likely to say that life today is worse for people like them than to say life is better, there is a sizable age gap on this question. Adults 50 and older are 46 points more likely to say that life is worse today for people like them than they are to say that life is better (65% vs. 19%). Adults aged 18 to 49, by comparison, are 24 points more likely to say life today is worse (51% vs. 27%)."

Coinciding with that is the fact that Americans tend to have a pessimistic view of the future. Sixty-six percent believe the U.S. economy will be “weaker” in 2050, and 71 percent believe the U.S. will be “less important” in the world 27 years down the road.

Further, 81 percent believe that the wealth gap will “grow,” and 77 percent believe the country will be even more politically divided by 2050.

Additionally, a recent CBS News/YouGov poll found 97 percent of Americans viewed Biden’s economy as a top issue of concern.

Overall, Biden’s economy does not appear to be working for middle-class families. According to a recent Monmouth University poll,  American middle-class families, who are most likely to serve in the military and pay an overwhelming percentage of their income in federal taxes, believe they are not benefiting from the policies of the Biden administration. Only 10 percent of Americans believe the middle class has benefited a lot from them, while 51 percent say the middle class has not benefited at all.

Even Victor Davis Hanson is a little pessimistic

In his famous "The Wealth of Nations," Adam Smith observed that “there is much ruin in a nation.” He meant that a successful country can withstand quite a bit of bad governance because its basic institutions are sound and the people resilient.

True, but the ability to withstand bad governance is not infinite. In this article, Victor Davis Hanson reflects on the wrecking ball the Biden administration unleashed on us.

Among other reasons for fear, Hanson writes, “Our public schools and colleges are systematically downplaying meritocratic curricula and substituting ideological, racial, and cultural litmus tests. Admissions now often hinge as much on race, gender, and ethnicity as on quantifiable achievement. The First Amendment and Fifth Amendment, covering free speech and due process, have vanished from most college campuses.”

American leftists used to be content to siphon away some of the productivity of our mostly free society to lavish on their pet projects and constituencies. But within the last few decades, they have mostly been replaced by people so consumed with hatred against everything that’s part of our tradition that they desire to tear it down. Unless they are stopped, our future is bleak.

"A time for everything."

The Left's favorite word is "change." It lifted Barack Obama from a community organizer to a multimillionaire. 

"Change" covers a lot of failures. It has covered a tsunami of assaults on Truth.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8: A time to change.

To everything there is a season and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace."

The Prophet Jeremiah defined his country not unlike the comments of Hanson regarding this country.

Jeremiah 6:

Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said We will not walk therein. Also, I set watchmen over you, saying, Hearken to the sound of the trumpet. But they said We will not hearken. 

I believe we are reaching the end of our grace period. It is time to return to our founding principles, our first love, and the old paths. And I think a majority of Americans are sensing the same---The clock is ticking. Time is running out.

Be Informed. Be Discerning. Be Vigilant. Be Bold. Be Engaged. Be Prayerful.