Best Defense
Thomas E. Ricks' daily take on national security.

How America changed in the last 30 years: We’re not so angry, but a lot meaner

I’ve been reading an advance copy of my friend Timothy Noah’s The Great Divergence, about the growth of income inequality in our country over the last 30 years, and what to do about it. It’s a terrific book — he writes about economic issues with an enviable ease and clarity. It comes out in a ...

Amazon
Amazon
Amazon

I've been reading an advance copy of my friend Timothy Noah's The Great Divergence, about the growth of income inequality in our country over the last 30 years, and what to do about it. It's a terrific book -- he writes about economic issues with an enviable ease and clarity. It comes out in a few months, but you can order now on Amazon.  

I’ve been reading an advance copy of my friend Timothy Noah’s The Great Divergence, about the growth of income inequality in our country over the last 30 years, and what to do about it. It’s a terrific book — he writes about economic issues with an enviable ease and clarity. It comes out in a few months, but you can order now on Amazon.  

But I also was struck by an aside of his: “America was an angrier place during the 1960s and 1970s, but it’s a meaner place today.”

(HT to Molly R. for fact checking)

Thomas E. Ricks covered the U.S. military from 1991 to 2008 for the Wall Street Journal and then the Washington Post. He can be reached at ricksblogcomment@gmail.com. Twitter: @tomricks1

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