[ido]

I wonder if it only seems more dramatic because you are more familiar with the 50s and 80s than with the 20s and 40s? E.g. in many ways the 20s was a lot more liberal/"modern" than the 40s in a lot of places. I think a European going from the roaring 20s to the fascist/nazi 40s would have a hell of a shock.

[qw]

I think the numbers refer to age and not decade. If you are 50 years old and wakes up at 80 your quality of life has dropped dramatically.

[ido]

Ah, in that case that's true!