Everybody worked hard, and seriously, at everything- from farm chores to schooling. Complaining was not allowed. Obedience and cooperation were economic necessities. My culture of excess has created sassy, presumptuous children. Kids are supposed to play.
Punitive discipline is banned for fear of lawsuits.
From the perspective of my own little life, I can see that part of the problem is a lack of maternal focus on parenting. Us modern marvels of possibility must earn our esteem in degrees and wages, and by necessity, reduce motherhood to a hobby. It's not that we don't know that it's the most important job in the world. It's just that no one else seems to think it's a job worth doing. And husbands everywhere expect their wives to pull their weight, as if child rearing and household were not work, albeit unpaid.