In today’s NY Times, David Brooks reviews a variety of recent statistics about trends in family violence, drunk driving, teen pregnancy, and the like. He writes:
. . . The decline in family violence is part of a whole web of positive, mutually reinforcing social trends. To put it in old-fashioned terms, America is becoming more virtuous.
- Americans today hurt each other less than they did 13 years ago.
- They are more likely to resist selfish and shortsighted impulses.
- They are leading more responsible, more organized lives.
A result is an improvement in social order across a range of behaviors.
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. . . You want to know what a society looks like when it is in the middle of moral self-repair? Look around.
(Bullets added.)
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