A good try, but the fundamental missing area of consideration is that it isn't "people" who are the problem in "flouting" cultural norms - it is the wealthy and powerful.
50% of the population being poor and paying no taxes doesn't really matter; 0.1% of the population holding 25% of the wealth - not paying taxes - is.
Historically, the primary contribution of the poor was in corvee labor.
The CCC, prior to World War 2, is an excellent modern example.
I posit no particular conclusions but would simply note that blatant and brazen misbehavior by those same 0.1% - both in shaping societal mores and in generating mistrust in the equity of society - would seem a more likely candidate for cause of decline than generalized "people" and their "moral" decline.
A good try, but the fundamental missing area of consideration is that it isn't "people" who are the problem in "flouting" cultural norms - it is the wealthy and powerful.
50% of the population being poor and paying no taxes doesn't really matter; 0.1% of the population holding 25% of the wealth - not paying taxes - is.
Historically, the primary contribution of the poor was in corvee labor.
The CCC, prior to World War 2, is an excellent modern example.
I posit no particular conclusions but would simply note that blatant and brazen misbehavior by those same 0.1% - both in shaping societal mores and in generating mistrust in the equity of society - would seem a more likely candidate for cause of decline than generalized "people" and their "moral" decline.
Mike Duncan wrote a history of decline of the Roman Republic due to declining norms called "The storm before the storm"
https://www.amazon.com/Storm-Before-Beginning-Roman-Republic/dp/1610397215