Bertrand Russells Essay In Praise of Idleness Revisited

In his 1932 essay entitled In Praise of Idleness set against a cultural backdrop of work in modern industrialised countries being promoted as something virtuous, mathematician and philosopher Bertrand Russell argues for a reduction in work hours and an increase in leisure time, stating that it would lead to people adopting active interests rather than passive ones, due to them having more energy and thus a different outlook on life. Though written during a time of increasing mechanisation, have we actually advanced in terms of our own leisure time, and do the powers that be have a vested interest in keeping us on the hamster wheel of life, with our (still) mainly passive interests?