There's always money to be made as a prophet of gloom and doom, and you have to take that stuff with a grain of salt. Still, few people want to believe the worst can really happen, and that means not many are prepared for it when it comes. Some gloom-and-doomers tried to warn us about the financial collapse of 2007-8, but it happened and pretty much caught us flat-footed. We're still trying to dig out from under that big pile of political poop . . . and that's what it was - a government that badly mismanaged that dismal affair. But all the blame should've fall on them alone because we're all to blame for it. Greed caused it, fed by a lusty public wanting more and more and more. Houses were selling like hotcakes, business was booming, and almost everyone thought it would last forever. The hard times fell on us, took the air out of our sails, left us adrift for a while . . . while government and business leaders tried to figure out ways to get us back up and running again. But did they want to return to a time when some sanity ruled, when things were good but not fantastic? Nope. They wanted it all again, and the measure of success they set for us has been too high and unrealistic.
Well, the gloom-and-doomers are at it again, this time with some really dire warnings about what's to come. Some of these people aren't just hawkers of books of prophecy; they're legitimate specialists who should know the system, and they're pointing to some indicators that show the direction we're headed. I'm not an economic wizard by a long shot, but I do know something about politics and government. At the cost of sounding like just another all hell's fixing to break loose pessimist, I've got to agree with some of what I'm reading about an impending depression, one that might last a while. And in doing so, all I'll be accomplishing is throwing in just one more voice of warning. Damn few people will listen, or care. Too many of us live in a world of the right now, immediate gratification . . . and we're still too greedy, want too much.
With that aside, I'll take aim at the let's-go-with-the-flow folks who just won't listen and will suffer the most when and if there's another serious economic downturn. By that, I mean just your average American who's trying to survive in a world of ups and downs . . . and without much planning for the future. There's a problem with planning for another economic downturn, like . . . just what do I plan for? And even if I believe it's going to happen, what can I do about it? The answers to those two questions are easy, but they're most certainly bitter pills to swallow.
As for what you can plan for, my suggestion is to go down the middle. I'm not at all convinced there'll be a big, long-lasting depression like we saw many years hence in the 1930s. On the other hand, I see some hard times ahead, due mostly to the government's inadequacy to deal with it. Not much is going to change in regard to a sharply divided nation when it comes to liberal vs. conservatives. Elections will be close with winners barely getting public approval and leaving us with lots of dissatisfied losers. Congress will not break out of gridlock, regardless of who wins the elections this fall and in two years. It won't matter much who becomes the President when Obama leaves office, but what little difference it makes could be for the worse. I think Obama's unpopularity will hurt the Democrats some, but few people really love Republicans either. In fact, public approval of Congress is around 15 percent. 15 percent! That means 85 percent of folks, me included, don't think much of how they've handled things. Can that get worse? Not much, but the economic situation we face might . . . if Congress calls the shots. Obama's approval is at least three times higher, if that tells you anything, but he's no financial wizard either.
By going down the middle, I'm suggesting that things will get worse . . . bad enough to cause some difficulties for almost any family, especially middle income folks. Maybe you've noticed this about government, but when things get bad for the basic wage earner, the crowd who really pays most of the taxes in this country, their solution to shortfalls in revenues is to increase taxes. Atta boy, big brother and little bro. Take more from those already suffering, drive us into deeper water and cause more anger and despair. And they won't back off because they are the most greedy of the greedy. Too many people look to government for jobs, and they'll scratch and claw for every dime they can raise through taxation. That means those of us who actually tote the load will have an even bigger load, and that means we cut back on other things.
I don't know where everyone else plans to do, but my plan is to simply spend less money. You won't get any help from government here because they want you to spend, and spend a lot. The more you spend, the more they make off various taxes. I plan to be observant, pay close attention to what's going on, and they try to act accordingly. I've already started the process, just so I'll be used to it when the times comes to hunker down, do the turtle thing and pull back into my shell. Nothing I do can save me from a wholesale meltdown, and it won't save most other people either. But should we go into a moderate depression, I'll survive. I no longer have credit cards, don't owe any bank or lender except my house and car payment . . . and I'm closing in on getting those paid off. By the time Obama leaves office, I won't have a car payment. I don't buy clothes, don't have a recreational budget of any kind, don't take vacations, travel, or even go out much. In short, I'm not buying anything that isn't essential. Will I be ready when and if the hard times come? Not completely, but I'll be in a lot better shape than most people.
I'll write more about living on less later on, just in case anyone is interested. And I've got a queasy feeling that we damn sure need to pay attention.
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