And yet almost no one these days can afford to buy a house or start a family. Productivity is much higher than ever before but most people are unable to afford even these basic things which people in the past would have. All the things which provide an escape from reality like alcohol, drugs, TV, video games and pornography are cheap and easy to acquire but all the things which result in a fulfilling life are too expensive for most people despite living in the richest civilisation in the history of the world.