> True, it may no longer be easy to do that passively - it now requires active action, like refusing to watch TV.
For sure. I don't have a TV personally, but it's interesting to go to a developing country where they are desperately trying to get things like TVs, iPhones and shiny cars. By definition that's an increase in standard of living, so of course they want it.
> I wouldn't say they are happier than you : they seem to be, but they have their own problems.
That's the big one. Hollywood is an excellent marketing dept., but it's not even close to the truth. Funny how you never see a blockbuster movie about the millions living in America below the poverty line, or those that have lost their houses etc.
Once again, when you're on the other side of the world watching Jennifer Anniston, how can you know it's not reality?
You can't, unless you are either a) not trusting anything foreign (I don't know how this is linked to happiness, but I'm more and more interested in what's called parochialism- I wonder if on a large scale it usually makes people more happy or less - if it has some protective power) or b) you've had the experience for yourself and noticed happiness was not exactly correlated with standard of living.
But I guess the majority will fall in the trap and be miserable since they can't know it's not reality.
[I also made the choice of cutting TV a long time ago, only recently introducing a fraction of old series I watched before and new shows that enjoy high rating, watched on the computer - it was an experiment that I started when BSG was first airing.]
At the moment, I believe "standard of living" in a low amount can raise happiness, but that it's highly addictive and suffers from hugely decreasing marginal returns - so you have to control the increase very carefully.
For sure. I don't have a TV personally, but it's interesting to go to a developing country where they are desperately trying to get things like TVs, iPhones and shiny cars. By definition that's an increase in standard of living, so of course they want it.
> I wouldn't say they are happier than you : they seem to be, but they have their own problems.
That's the big one. Hollywood is an excellent marketing dept., but it's not even close to the truth. Funny how you never see a blockbuster movie about the millions living in America below the poverty line, or those that have lost their houses etc.
Once again, when you're on the other side of the world watching Jennifer Anniston, how can you know it's not reality?