From a chassidic sefer about 200 years ago:
“People are always saying that things are not as good today as they were in the past.
They say that in the ‘good old days’ everything was much less expensive than today, even though people did not have as much money as they have now. Even ordinary people, even those who live off charity, spend more today than wealthy people did in the past.
But the truth is the opposite of what people say. God now runs the world better than ever!”
Sichos Haran #307