[rayiner]

We’re talking about the fact that people in Asia who are a lot poorer than lower middle class Americans manage to have much better social indicators of family stability and crime. And when those people come to America, even the poor kids have much better income mobility than their white American counterparts. So blaming social dysfunction on wages not keeping up with productivity growth is a bunch of baloney.

[hotpotamus]

Ok, then what changed in the last few decades?

[rayiner]

The social indicators started going sideways in the 1960s. Lots of cultural change since then. Much less focus on religion, tradition, and obligation, and much greater focus on individualism, self expression, self determination and “finding yourself,” and sexual fulfillment.

[burntoutfire]

Globalisation, the rest of the world slowly catching up to the United Stattes, which slowly stops being the singular land of milk and honey it was in the 1940-1970 era?

Up until 1970, Europe was still catching up after the destruction of the war and the rest of the world was either completely mired in communism's stupidity or undeveloped rural societies. Fast forward 50 years and the communism is almost gone and a lot of those rural societies (i.e. South Korea, China etc.) are now leaders in high tech that successfully compete with the US.

[hotpotamus]

And that changed American working class culture such that the men no longer want to work?