Yes, we are improving our standard of living with more material. Think of those housewives of the past slaving away to do their 5 kids’ laundry!

Actually, from a material standpoint, two dishwashers aren’t really “more.” Dishwashers last less time than a house. Two dishwashers used alternatively are likely to last 1.5 to 2x as long, assuming rubber gaskets, etc can still be replaced.