One think I have come to realize (in a non-scientific way, don't have time to look up all the numbers): I think there never really has been a stable time in our history. Those golden days of the past where workers could earn well were also just a fleeting moment, and perhaps at the same time other people were already struggling and suffering. Today software developers do quite well, but in a few decades we might get to read the same kind of stories about them. The world is changing all the time, and people are always struggling to keep up and survive.