I think many common US values are counter to happiness..the obsession to keep obtaining things, hoarding things, putting money first, buying huge houses, huge cars, being aggressive, standing up for your rights at all times, not letting anyone get away with anything, putting babies and kids into daycare, etc.

In Thailand, people seem very happy with much less, because that's taught in Buddhism. They usually stay healthy and active into old age, are constantly outside, raise most of their own food, make fresh food daily from scratch, instead of using refrigerators as storage-even in the city, live in extended family groups where people take care of each other, have a Buddhist minimalist attitude, so no clutter in their homes, women are seen in all job sectors, doctors, dentists, construction workers, engineers, almost as many as men in some cases.

The temple schools have the kids meditate together before class, and kids are allowed to play and roughhouse between classes, with frequent outdoor breaks. Students sweep and clean the school grounds each morning, and raise produce and chickens for food for the school.

I think many common US values are counter to happiness..the obsession to keep obtaining things, hoarding things, putting money first, buying huge houses, huge cars, being aggressive, standing up for your rights at all times, not letting anyone get away with anything, putting babies and kids into daycare, etc.

In Thailand, people seem very happy with much less, because that's taught in Buddhism. They usually stay healthy and active into old age, are constantly outside, raise most of their own food, make fresh food daily from scratch, instead of using refrigerators as storage-even in the city, live in extended family groups where people take care of each other, have a Buddhist minimalist attitude, so no clutter in their homes, women are seen in all job sectors, doctors, dentists, construction workers, engineers, almost as many as men in some cases.

The temple schools have the kids meditate together before class, and kids are allowed to play and roughhouse between classes, with frequent outdoor breaks. Students sweep and clean the school grounds each morning, and raise produce and chickens for food for the school.

I think that it does in fact create unhappiness. This is the one developed nation where one stoke of bad luck is all it takes to ruin you for the rest of your life. Even if you do everything right, go to school, work hard, pay your bills, obey the law... most of us live one incident beyond our control away from total ruination.

There's a woman here in my area, she had what seemed like it all. She owned a popular local business, was almost done paying her bills, two great children... then one day her ex husband decides to walk into her home and shoot her in the face. A 30-6 round annihilated her jaw and while she recovered in the hospital the vultures swooped in and took her whole damn life away. Her home and business were scooped up by the bank when she obviously couldn't be making money and her insurance wouldn't cover all her hospital fees to the tune of more than $100,000. Her insurance also decided that reconstruction of her jaw was an elective procedure so it wouldn't be covered either. She lost her home, her business, her fucking face, her kids were sent to foster care and being homeless unemployed and broke she can't regain custody... Her whole life is gone because of one evil act by another human being. Such a great country...

I think it's really complicated. Society definitely has its role to play, I think, but what we bring to society also plays a role, and they push and pull against one another. My personality itself leans toward unhappiness. I think that's irrespective of whatever's going on in the world around me. I could be anywhere, at any time in history, and I think I'd be on the low side of satisfied. But, with that said, there are highlights and lowlights that I think society influences. I think the commercial nature of American society can be stressful — a bombardment of options that make us second-guess our decisions and wonder if we passed up something better, and an illusion that we're not successful (in various ways) unless we have the things we see on television, in movies, etc. I think it's subconscious, so it's not something we can just say, "I don't need that," because we feel it on such a deep emotional level. And there's an immediacy in our highly technical, digital age, that makes us geared toward instant gratification, and we don't anticipate simple things like we used to — like the next episode of a television show. There are some things we still have to wait for, but there's no end to the amount of things that can fill the time in between, so we don't have that "I can't wait" buildup, and I think that lack of anticipation undermines happiness. I think relationships often tend to make us less happy, too, partly because modern, westernized relationships wrap so much expectation into a single person that we feel let down when it's not the perfect gem of a marriage or other relationship we expected, especially when the real work of a relationship kicks in. Again, so much of this is subconscious; from the time we're toddlers, we all see media portrayals that suggest a "live happily ever after" scenario, and I think on some level we expect that effortlessness to be reality. None of this is exclusive to American society, but I think it applies. /2¢

Depends on what class you are a member of. (IMHO)

Neither

There's a disturbing trend of people measuring others by how much they suffer. It's why looking busy at your job is more important than doing the work. It doesn't matter if you're a whopper flopper or a successful CEO, so long as you can claim to be dissatisfied and unhappy with your job. It doesn't seem to matter how much or how little you earn, so long as you can somehow claim the high ground of oppression.

Look at our world. Just a few people, less than 1,000 mortals, establish all the laws by which they force us to abide or they will kill us. Consider the laws that govern us. Who makes these laws? Whom do these laws benefit? Do they benefit the poor or the rich? Do not the rich need the poor in order to become rich? Are not the laws structured to force the poor to protect, support, and enhance the Free Will of the rich and powerful? What poor person can live unless he or she submits his or her Free Will to the rich and powerful? Who can eat, who can buy clothing, who can live in a house, and who can have healthcare and education except the person who gives up their Free Will? Are not the majority of us forced to work for an economic system based on money, where those who are using their Free Will to become rich establish laws that force the majority, who are poor, to give up their Free Will so that the few can become rich? No mortal upon this earth, during any dispensation of time, has ever become rich by acting alone without using other people to become rich. It is impossible!

In the US we enjoy many freedoms. The society is a vast, million-faceted thing.
I don't like the mainstream, strip mall, new Mustang I can't afford mentality, so I don't participate.
I've traveled the country by car enough to believe that anyone can find (or create) a niche in which they feel at home.

We've got capitalism, colonialism, and imperialism. The government could control it all, but they've been seized by corporations, which are much like a foreign power. So as soon as you fall into poverty, the system is used against you like you're a disease. Normal behavior is pathologized for profit. All of the non profits are meant to keep people down and pay overhead, because they haven't learned to exist in anything other than capitalism.

It's the economic structure. There really are only so many slots at the top and there are many many more on the bottom trying to get there. It pretty much creates a cut throat society that kind of revels off the short comings or "failures" of others. It's pretty disgusting. Then when someone makes it, they look down on the others as if they didn't try hard enough etc. We can't say we're a civilized society if this still goes on. The marketing campaign has made people think that what they have isn't enough and you have to keep up with the Jones or else your worth is somehow lesser.

IMO the government of America is designed to promote the welfare of the wealthy meaning the majority will serve the needs for happiness for the wealthy. Opportunity for real wealth is portioned out sparingly and with considerable bias and is typically passed down within families. This can lead to a good deal of dissatisfaction materially for those constantly pumping money to the top. The politics of the country are specifically designed to divide and weaken the majority. So the degree of happiness or unhappiness one experiences depends a lot heredity and wealth generally speaking. That is not to say one can not transcend the material and find happiness in other ways - you just have to do it with a lot less stuff.

Only if you approach everything from a negative perspective , whoa is me attitude or why did this happen to me. Life is far from perfect but just look at the accomplishments people have made. I will only name one Hawkings with a terrible disease yet has done so much for us.

These damn near sound like sociology questions. Are you sure we’re not helping you with homework? Haha just kidding.

I think it does to a certain extent. In the news media and pop culture I think what is shored up ultimately leads to unhappiness. There’s this idea that aspiring to gain wealth leads to ultimate happiness. It’s the focal point of news media (stock market) and pop culture. Sure, money can make quality of life better but not stacks and vaults of money. This is what is put out as the carrot, if you will, dangling in the face of society with the idea that accumulating vast sums of wealth will ensure happiness no matter your dreams or aspirations.

Huh. Okay. Let's first establish that our entire governmental structure is based on our economy. No money, no budget, no government. So, big, robust economy, lots of money coming in. Okay? Now, cash flow is the life blood of our kind of economy. I need you to buy stuff or everything grinds to a halt. So, in order for us to have a vibrant economy, we all must keep spending. Buy! Buy! BUY! If you don't... if enough of us don't, or can't, we're fucked. So we are encouraged, told, DRIVEN to buy! And this will make you happy. Only, it won't. It will PLEASE you... which is a dopamine reaction in your brain and it is fleeting. Want another dopamine-cookie, monkey? Go buy something. The sexier (societally, not actually sexually) the bigger your cookie. Lather. Rinse. Repeat. But that isn't happiness. Happiness is a serotonin reaction. That's more about love and family. Stuff that doesn't drive an economy. So, that being played out, my answer is, yes, the structure, which is nothing more than blind, ravenous consumerism, does serve to make us all unhappy. My tuppence, for what it's worth.

I think it does. We are entrained to worship growth. National, Business, and Personal. It is built in to our economic system and our nervous systems. How is my career progressing? Am I getting paid what I am worth? Worry in advance that we are behind. I do not believe it is entirely an American phenomenon. We rattle our little hamster wheels faster and faster to keep up with rising costs and expectations.
We are sold satisfactions at popular prices and find them less satisfying all the time. We are subject to infotainment for news of the world and constant advertising for things we are told we deserve. It is rather what one would expect.

#Facebook.

From my observation, some families-under what they call family "principals " end up paving way to unhappiness. Anti- people tendencies we see daily actually start within families and find their way to public places and private business that are designed to serve the public.

Everyone has some notion of what constitutes happiness. In nearly every case the notion of happiness is linked to the attainment of some future goal. It is as though daily happiness is postponed or shelved for some future date. Oddly enough, the realization of the goal seems to bring a very short lived happiness.

The proverbial donkey chasing the carrot that is tied to a stick that is dangled in front of him does not conjure any images of happiness.