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The Decadent Society by @douthatnyt got a lot of attention during its release and I just finished the book. Would love to hear more thoughts on the topic. (1/7)
tl;dr Clear picture of our society stuck. Scary argument for why we may stay that way. Desire for more new
tl;dr Clear picture of our society stuck. Scary argument for why we may stay that way. Desire for more new
The book fits right in with commentary from @tylercowen & Peter Thiel. He points to familiar data like the decline in entrepreneurship, birth rates & in-country USA migration and then points to new (to me) data like the decline in sex, romantic comedies & religious cults.
The example of Back to the Future & the radically different experiences as Marty McFly goes back & forward in time is a fun one. Douthat& #39;s point that an individual transplanted from 1990 into today not being as shocked is pretty clear. But his points on culture really stood out.
Compared to previous decades, our recent ones really stand out for the lack of new. New clothing styles, new social norms, new music genres & new political ideas. Marty McFly& #39;s dad is so shocked by Star Wars that it completely changes his life.
Even our remakes of movies from 30 years ago feel old. Star Wars: The Force Awakens in 2015 is pretty much the same story as the Star Wars: A New Hope released in 1977. (Gay rights is the big exception to all of this)
Probably the scariest part: Douthat makes a compelling case for why the decadent society may be here to stay. Disasters may only strengthen that position. Any real rivals become too attracted to the lifestyle to change it. His great hope, space exploration, seems too far out.
Maybe more than anything, it made me realize how much I would love to see more new. Fresh faces, shocking ideas, crazy styles & creative approaches. Would recommend picking up the book! (7/7)
One other idea from The Decadent Society @douthatnyt: the internet as a great moderator. Douthat connected increased video game usage w/ less violence & lower employment. Internet penetration w/ lower sex frequency & sexual violence
