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Better Together
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In response to Ronald Reagan's famous question, "Are we better off than we were 40 years ago?" The answer would have to be "materially yes, morally no," writes social psychologist David Myers. "Therein lies the American paradox," he continues. "We now have, as average Americans, doubled real incomes and double what money buys. We have espresso coffee, the World Wide Web, sport utility vehicles, and caller ID. And we have less happiness, more depression, more fragile relationships, less communal contentment, less vocational security, more crime (even after the recent decline), and more demoralized children."
Myers shuns the label of conservative or liberal, preferring to see himself as a social ecologist who abhors the dominance of material values. In fact, Myers is a visionary who asks important questions, such as why is marriage so difficult to maintain in our culture? Why are so many fathers abandoning families? Are rich people happier than poor people? What is the price we pay for radical individualism? He answers these questions with persuasive statistics and sound advice that cannot be neatly pigeonholed into one political camp or the other. As a result, this is a author with credibility, as he covers crucial chapters such as "The Past and Future of Marriage," "Money and Misery," "Educating for a Moral Compass," and "America's Children." --Gail Hudson
From Publishers Weekly
Echoing cultural critics of the 1950s, Hope College psychology professor Myers observes that America's economy is booming but our society is crumbling. Despite a high Standard & Poor's 500 rating and a low unemployment rate, America is, he argues, beset by problems, from increasing materialism to a climbing divorce rate. Myers calls for a renewal of society and an abandonment of consumerism and individualism; citing his own Christian faith, he points to religion as one possible antidote to many of society's ills. Myers is particularly passionate about marriage: rehearsing familiar statistics, he reminds us that people marry later and are more likely to divorce than in previous generations. He writes approvingly of innovative legislative attempts to make divorce less appealing, such as Louisiana's institution of covenant marriages, and cites studies that demonstrate that people who live together before getting married are more likely to divorce. Another bee in Myers's bonnet is individualism. He bemoans weakened "social connections": because of ATMs and drive-through lines at McDonald's, we have less eye-to-eye contact with other people than ever before. And we have no sense of community responsibility, he says, pointing out that, in 1994, Americans were 42% less likely to work for a political party or serve as an officer in a club than they were in 1973. Few readers will disagree with Myers's call for strong families and his denouncement of materialism, but many may wish for a more stimulating discussion as to how we can get from here to there. (Apr.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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