The Great Recession

The Great Recession has been going on for a few years now. I won't get into a lot of details about why and how we got here. I think that has been discussed ad nauseam in a lot of circles. Despite a decent holiday shopping spree by a still dazed and confused American public the situation we are in is going to be with us for quite a while. There are still ways to make a lot of money in the current economic environment - it just won't be available to everyone. That means that a large portion of Americans are going to face job loss, wage loss or stagnation. The opportunities for some will be nonexistent. Many people in this country are going to have to face a harsh reality. The division of rich vs. poor will widen to create an uneasy and inflammatory social situation. Survival will be more than just about creating money - for some of us - because creating money might not be an option unless it is done illegally. Just look at what is happening right now in Mexico. But here in the U.S. large numbers of used-to-be middle class forced into poverty is bound to create some real tension. I think we've only had a small preview thus far of what could occur in terms of wealth destruction. What will we do? Right now we've taken a wait and see attitude because, by God, if we can get the wheels of this machine turning again we will do it. The repayment of debt can only occur if there is growth in the future. What happens if growth does not occur? What if, for some reason, economies and/or cities shrink? Anyone been to Detroit lately? I'm not going to get into the many reasons why shrinkage could happen. There will be much resistance from many different people. The resistance will come in the form of disbelief of what is actually happening. It will be like a rubber band being slowly stretched and stretched until -POP- it just snaps. Being positive means that we believe we can grow closer as communities because we will need to rely on each other more than we have in the current technology age. Being ignorant means that we refuse face reality because it is too painful and consists of things that we do not wish to hear. Can we stomp our feet and throw a tantrum like we did with Mom to make it go away? How ignorant do we need to be to deny future growth could be limited in some fashion? As far as I can tell, the Government, the mainstream media and the large financial institutions fall into the ignorant category. Of course, their time will come too. Not everyone can be a Goldman Sachs executive, but they will prey on the hopes of all the little guys underneath who desperately wish to be in their expensive Italian shoes. They will continue to be ignorant because they will be part of the crowd that might be able to still make money until the rest of America is in complete ruins.