Bringing reality to the dream - the myth of decline

Paul Flatters and Charlotte Cornish

Argues that the pessimistic view of the future prevalent in many current academic and sociological books is mistaken.

Bringing reality to the dream the myth of decline

Charlotte Cornish & Paul Flatters The Future Foundation

Introduction The myth of decline

There is a perception of decline and malign nostalgia today which overlays much intellectual comment about changes in society and in markets. In the US , for example, a wave of scholarship has claimed that misery and isolation are on the rise. Robert Putnam, with his book Bowling Alone, contends that there has been acollapse of honesty and trust - a collapse so...

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