Fact ... if by " culturally, the old USSSR did NOT have pornographic T.V. and movies . Neither did it have " rap ", Brittany Spear and other 1/2 naked, gyrating kids doing XXX concerts. What it had, is what you want ; to whit ...a job for everyone ( even if they were only " make work ones ), free schooling through college, free health care ,housing for everyone, and loads and loads of protectionism. Did that make for a heallthy, profitable, happy society ? NO !
Historically, in the nonrevisionistic, factual, history of this nation, jobs have come and gone, American workers have been displaced by immigrants , and they just found something else to do, or starved.
You talk about the deterioration of our standard of living. You don't know history, you don't know anything about economics, and you know even LESS about the standard of living, in your own country, than someone from some other nation does ! Just today, in the N.Y. Post, there was an entire page article, about the living standards of today and just 30 years ago. More people have telephones, T.V.s, VCR, two story houses, 2 1/2 bathrooms, or more, in their homes, and on and on and on. If opne looks back farther, say 50 or 60 years, the differences, for the BETTER, are remarkable and astounding.
Tell me, should the government of the USA made certain that the whaling industry didn't go out of business ? How about bakellite ? Would you prefer to use a coal/ wood stove to cook on, a crank phone , a washboard to clean your clothes on ? NO ? Why not ? Those folks lost their jobs.
Don't forget the sliderule industry (remember those?). It has been completely wiped out. What a shame.
I am aware there was no pornography in the Old Soviet Union, and no Britney Spears or rap either, as those things weren't around yet, although pornography was underground where it should have stayed.
I think there are similarities in that our society and media is becoming more restrictive (except morally of course), freedom of speech is dying out, products have become junk, housing is becoming unaffordable, people are losing their connection to God, among other things.
Hey, as a kid in 70's and 80's, there was only 1 tv in our house. Today, I think that means you are poor. There was also 1 car, which mom and dad worked out use of. Just a little schedule jostling, and things ran smoothly. You are really poor if you only have 1 car to many nowadays.
What people classify as poor today is not even close to real poverty. Not being able to buy your kid a laptop is not poor. It's normal.
And their debt ratio is through the roof of that two story house. A stunning fact, is that most working class folks are in debt more than ever in history. Pay check pay check, are razor fine, economic line.