You do realize that only 5% of the world's population is American, don't you? I take it that you have lived in enough countries in the world to realize just how different American culture is to that of the rest of the world.
Let me introduce you to Africa - where I am from.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjT2i0XeCeI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wp9167mBEmM&t=20s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uW0F2TN1snQ
Here's an international consumer survey.
QUOTE; Consumer values have fundamentally changed. Previous iterations of our Index have shown how deeply the pandemic experience has changed consumer values. In particular, people are now far more committed to living sustainable lifestyles and their interest in material goods has waned. Our latest data show that they are not willing to simply abandon their new values as their household budgets come under pressure. Rather, they are looking to express them in new ways – which we explore in more detail below.
https://www.ey.com/en_mz/consumer-products-retail/future-consumer-index-in-crisis-but-in-control
Here's something that would describe the society you live in. That's why you have said the things that you have.
QUOTE; So, how did we arrive at the point where we constantly need to consume, never satisfied, and become so wasteful and indifferent to throwing the stuff we buy away? Why are so many people today addicted to consumption, shopping, and buying new things? As Campbell puts it, the materialistic culture we live in today not only affects our desires but also our mental well-being. Indeed, in a culture that rapidly changes and products switch from “new” to “old”, it leads to an eternal dissatisfaction with what we have as we look towards what we do not have, and therefore a desire.
https://www.theclimatechangereview.com/post/consumerism-capitalism-s-climate-changing-child
I haven't worked for a decade. My daughter hasn't worked for two years. My sister hasn't worked for a decade either. Thanks, but no thanks. I cannot think of a worse thing to do than work. I'm not alone in that. Internationally, 75% to 95% of people, depending on which country they are in, hate their jobs.
In the UK, retirees are the happiest people - because they don't have to work, and they travel often.
I am 71 years old. I have lived in many countries, in many cultures, and the only people who speak about work and money are Americans. I cannot ever recall anyone in my life speaking to me about their experiences at work. Ever. These are not the stories we speak about to our children.
Here's a statistic for this year (2023).
QUOTE: The statistics on unhappy employees are alarming. According to Gallup, 85% of individuals worldwide are dissatisfied with their jobs. In addition, 70 percent of U.S.-based workers report feeling disengaged or unhappy at work; 89 percent of employers think financial reasons drive employee turnover when only 12 percent actually do...
https://blog.gitnux.com/unhappy-employees-statistics/#
There are people who are driven by their jobs. I think they must lack a lot of things in their lives.
As for things being more affordable now than in the 1950s? Were you alive? I was.
In 1970, rent was generally 25% of income, and things were a lot less expensive. We most certainly didn't pay banks in order to withdraw money from our bank accounts. And when we bought things, they lasted a life time.
Your experience appears to be strictly American. Perhaps, you need to go live in other countries for a while? For instance, in the last three years, I have live in South Africa, Germany, Portugal, and now Ireland. Between 2010 and 2015, I lived in America, Scotland (UK), and Spain.
In the rest of the world, many of us are more concerned about climate change than our own personal enjoyment. Neither individualism or libertarianism is much of a thing outside the USA.
You might also like to look at the per capita consumption of people throughout the world. America leads.
