I can't relate to that at all when I read, hear watch, or remember accounts of life back in the 80s and earlier (I was born '82). Callousness was extreme, from the attitude that AIDS victims deserved it, to the cold acceptance of workplace accidents, to Formula 1's huge death toll.... People didn't give any sort of a **** about others. Awful.
True - I was thinking more the callousness towards other people's property and general well being but that does link into workplace accidents, etc. dunno my experience in dealing with people in general it seems like it has become much more common in a different way.