RPhilbeck wrote on Thu, 27 March 2008 12:32 |
This isn't the Great Depression. We have GDP growth of over 2%, only 4.5% unemployment and only 12% of our nation living below poverty. The avg. wage in this country is $17 an hour. "Hooverville" isn't the appropriate term, and really takes away from the suffering during an era when the situation was really outside of the individual's control.
Keep in mind there are 4 economies. Global, National, State & Local, and your own Personal Economy. Your own personal economy is not always a reflection of the other 3 as hard as that seems to believe.
I watch this video and wonder what series of stupid decisions one idiot would have to make to end up in a tent in the same land of opportunity that people are risking life and limb to steal their way into every day?
|
i did not mean to malign those who were victimized by the great depression.
however, the term "hooverville" seems to describe the attributes of the
situation. there is even a well publicized major investment bank
failure. when was the last time that happened?
if one is familiar with the famous "milgram experiment", then they know how easy it
is to get an average person to subvert and suspend their own capacity for
judgement in deference to any recognized authority.
yet even assuming that the homeless debtors are idiots. which
idiots lent so many of those idiots that kind of money?
and also, i guess that one's idea of prosperity may be different.
if the price of food and fuel double, as they have over the
last seven years, that is like a regressive tax, one
would have to be an idiot not to see that. but
as long as housing prices fall, i don't see
any inflation. do you see any inflation?
jeff dinces