> and I can't imagine what I would have done without them.
You're falling into the trap of saying I could've only been happy if I did X. But humans aren't like that - even garbagemen find happiness in their work. The brain adapts to baseline no matter the field.
The second trap you're falling into is saying look how abundant things are compared to 1892. We have every statistic proven and locked down that abundance does not equal happiness.
Ages ago, I used to draw using pencils and having to ink drawings and then once 3 views were done, do all the work to make a 3D rendering --- while I appreciate Marshall MacLuhan's warnings concerning each technological advancement resulting in a matching amputation, the freedom and expressiveness which modern CAD affords is nothing short of miraculous --- it was pretty rare for there to be a draftsman whose artistic sensibilities allowed them to escape from the overnight drafting shift to making their own designs.
> Do you believe that, on balance, the world is no better today than in 1892? If so, that's where we disagree.
I think that the floor has been raised and the ceiling has been lowered for the typical person. There's far less suffering, but absence of suffering is not the same as happiness. In that respect I think a random 1892 person may have actually been happier. South Korea has 30x more suicides than Syria; the UK more than 3x Sudan; France more than 4x Afghanistan.
The lowered ceiling is much more within the agency of a person now than in 1892. That we are not is far more of a choice for most people now that so many more have food and shelter security, not to mention antibiotics.
No, certain people will be a good fit for most jobs, but many jobs would leave you miserable even if you never knew anything else. People born into slavery weren't happy about it. What we know is that there is an amount of money/possessions that people need to be safe, secure, healthy, and satisfied and that abundance beyond that does very little to improve their happiness.
But happiness wasn't mentioned. There was "fun", "I can't imagine what I would have done without them", and "preferable". If happiness is not the goal, your point about being happy with garbage is irrelevant.
The ones I know find happiness in their relatively high pay for an 8hr/day, no GED-required job, with the job security that the first few days are blindingly difficult for anyone to adapt to, even highly fit college athletes (source: 40+ garbageman whose son couldn't hack two days of it).
You're falling into the trap of saying I could've only been happy if I did X. But humans aren't like that - even garbagemen find happiness in their work. The brain adapts to baseline no matter the field.
The second trap you're falling into is saying look how abundant things are compared to 1892. We have every statistic proven and locked down that abundance does not equal happiness.