HAPPY DAYS HERE AGAIN
August 15, 2007 -- A surprising 94 percent of Americans say they are satisfied with their lives - although far fewer in New York and other Eastern states think they're better off than they were five years ago, according to a new survey.
The Harris Poll of more than 1,000 people reported the overall "satisfaction" level, defined as people who said they were either very or somewhat satisfied with their lot, was up 4 percentage points, from 90 percent two years ago.
But only 42 percent of people in the Eastern U.S. said things had improved since 2002. By contrast, 60 percent of Southerners and 62 percent of Westerners said their lives had improved.
I can only guess at the reasons. A loss of gumption? The North East, where I was born and raised, seems to be wanting to become more like Europe, which IMO, isn't a good role model for anything but self-destruction (see Paul Belien's article, Europe’s Dreaded Affliction). I do know that I'm happy to be living in the American North West, where at least in the rural areas, gumption is still valued and admired.
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