Tuesday, February 10, 2009

The System Is Resetting Itself

This system -- this mad, funhouse-mirror system -- that we've had since the end of WWII, this system built on the presumption that all Americans need to be willing to put themselves into insane amounts of debt in order to puff up the machine, that system is dying -- now, as we speak. The economy is going to contract -- permanently -- and people's attitudes are going to contract along with it. Maybe our culture will finally find its way back to the honored tradition of cash-and-carry, "if you can't afford it, then you can't have it," that sort of thing. Does that mean a lot of Americans won't get their piece of that very problematic thing called "The American Dream"? Does that mean that a lot of Americans won't get that second or third car that they really can't afford? does that mean that they won't get that big house they really can't afford? I think that's what it means, yes. And the "collateral damage" from this systemic change is going to hurt each and every one of us, in ways we probably can't even imagine yet. Being unemployed isn't even the start of it.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Haven't used credit cards in years. We own both vehicles. Our only debt is mortgage. Unfortunately we have two of those. Beach and permanent residence.