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Listen "“The Revolution of Rising Expectations” by Zvi"
Episode Synopsis
Internet arguments like the $140,000 Question incident keep happening.
The two sides say:
Life sucks, you can’t get ahead, you can’t have a family or own a house.
What are you talking about, median wages are up, unemployment is low and so on.
The economic data is correct. Real wages are indeed up. Costs for food and clothing are way down while quality is up, housing is more expensive than it should be but is not much more expensive relative to incomes. We really do consume vastly more and better food, clothing, housing, healthcare, entertainment, travel, communications, shipping and logistics, information and intelligence. Most things are higher quality.
But that does not tell us that buying a socially and legally acceptable basket of goods for a family has gotten easier, nor that the new basket will make us happier.
This post is my attempt to reconcile those perspectives.
The culprit is the Revolution of Rising Expectations, together with the Revolution of Rising Requirements.
The biggest rising expectations are that we will not have to tolerate unpleasant experiences or even dead time, endure meaningful material shortages or accept various forms [...] ---Outline:(01:34) The Revolutions of Rising Expectations(04:37) The Revolution of Rising Requirements(06:52) Whose Line Is It Anyway?(09:17) Thus In This House We Believe The Following(10:21) Real De Facto Required Expenses Are Rising Higher Than Inflation(12:04) Great Expectations(15:41) We Could Fix It(16:52) Man's Search For Meaning(20:06) How Do You Afford Your Rock And Roll Lifestyle?(22:41) Our Price Cheap(27:34) It Takes Two (1)(30:09) It Takes Two (2)(30:45) If So, Then What Are You Going To Do About It, Punk?(34:29) The Revolution of Rising Expectations Redux ---
First published:
December 22nd, 2025
Source:
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/RN58van9PQBGqPxHf/the-revolution-of-rising-expectations
---
Narrated by TYPE III AUDIO.
---Images from the article:Apple Podcasts and Spotify do not show images in the episode description. Try Pocket Casts, or another podcast app.
The two sides say:
Life sucks, you can’t get ahead, you can’t have a family or own a house.
What are you talking about, median wages are up, unemployment is low and so on.
The economic data is correct. Real wages are indeed up. Costs for food and clothing are way down while quality is up, housing is more expensive than it should be but is not much more expensive relative to incomes. We really do consume vastly more and better food, clothing, housing, healthcare, entertainment, travel, communications, shipping and logistics, information and intelligence. Most things are higher quality.
But that does not tell us that buying a socially and legally acceptable basket of goods for a family has gotten easier, nor that the new basket will make us happier.
This post is my attempt to reconcile those perspectives.
The culprit is the Revolution of Rising Expectations, together with the Revolution of Rising Requirements.
The biggest rising expectations are that we will not have to tolerate unpleasant experiences or even dead time, endure meaningful material shortages or accept various forms [...] ---Outline:(01:34) The Revolutions of Rising Expectations(04:37) The Revolution of Rising Requirements(06:52) Whose Line Is It Anyway?(09:17) Thus In This House We Believe The Following(10:21) Real De Facto Required Expenses Are Rising Higher Than Inflation(12:04) Great Expectations(15:41) We Could Fix It(16:52) Man's Search For Meaning(20:06) How Do You Afford Your Rock And Roll Lifestyle?(22:41) Our Price Cheap(27:34) It Takes Two (1)(30:09) It Takes Two (2)(30:45) If So, Then What Are You Going To Do About It, Punk?(34:29) The Revolution of Rising Expectations Redux ---
First published:
December 22nd, 2025
Source:
https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/RN58van9PQBGqPxHf/the-revolution-of-rising-expectations
---
Narrated by TYPE III AUDIO.
---Images from the article:Apple Podcasts and Spotify do not show images in the episode description. Try Pocket Casts, or another podcast app.
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