We haven't been this unhappy as a nation since before 1972, when "Jonathan Livingston Seagull" was the nation's most popular book.
According to a May survey taken by NORC (formerly the National Opinion Research Center) at the University of Chicago, only 14 percent of American adults consider themselves very happy, down from 31 percent two years earlier. Nearly one-fourth of people surveyed said they were unhappy.
Those figures are the saddest since the survey began in 1972, when Americans were reading a book about a seagull who was learning about . . . well, that's all I need to say. The protagonist in the top book of 1972 was a seagull. Yeah, Americans had reason to be unhappy in 1972.
We're sadder now.
In 1972, the Vietnam War was still going, Northern Ireland was in turmoil and the most popular song was the spectacularly depressing, "Alone Again, Naturally."
Yet we're sadder now.
More reason for unhappiness in 1972: On Christmas Eve, the 49ers and the Raiders each lost excruciating NFL playoff games: the 49ers blew a 28-13 lead to the Cowboys, the Raiders lost on the "Immaculate Reception" pass to Franco Harris.
In 1972, we were an unhappy nation. Yet we're sadder now.
We're past the "Alone Again, Naturally" level of sadness.
That's what a years of political hostility, a global pandemic, an economic collapse and unrest in the streets will do. They'll make you sad.
The survey also found that Americans are less optimistic about their children's future than they have been in 25 years, going back to 1994. To be fair, there was reason to think the future was dim in 1994: That was the year of the baseball strike and O.J. Simpson trial. Grunge music was at its peak, so parents envisioned a future of children wearing flannel shirts, torn-up jeans and long, dirty hair. Of course parents were pessimistic.
We're similarly pessimistic now.
Anger is also on the rise. More Americans (30 percent) say they've lost their temper than even after the Kennedy assassination in 1963 of the terrorist attacks of 2001. Presumably, that's due to being stuck inside with people for (checks watch) coming up on four months.
So what should we do? Did the convergence of a pandemic, social justice issues, an ugly presidential election and the rise of YouTube stars make it inevitable that we'd be unhappy? Is there a way out?
History suggests yes.
Just look to 1973 (although to be clear, we're sadder than we were in 1972).After "Alone Again, Naturally" was the top song in 1972, "Tie A Yellow Ribbon 'Round the Old Oak Tree" was tops in 1973. Happy enough for you? "American Graffiti" and "The Sting" were released in movie theaters in 1973. Secretariat won the Triple Crown. The Paris Peace Accords brought an end to U.S. involvement in Vietnam.
(Pay no attention to the oil embargo and the Watergate hearings. They mess up my point.)
Will Americans be happier again? I say yes. This is what we do. We bounce back. We face adversity, grovel in misery for a while, then rebound.
Things have to get better, right?
Right?
Our happiness level is at the lowest level in a generation, but like Jonathan Livingston Seagull learned, there's hope.
Things will turn around.
And if it doesn't get better, I call dibs on writing the follow-up to 1972's top book.
Jonathan Livingston Sequel.
Reach Brad Stanhope at bradstanhope@hotmail.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment