Highway To Hell?
Say what you like, but we must admit that America's perversion of capitalism was, as its acolytes maintained, truly about "creative destruction."
It "creatively destroyed" the middle class, pushing Median values so low that average people don't even know how to describe themselves anymore. At various points around 2005 it got so bad, so nihilistic and hopelessly out of control, that all people could do was borrow ever more money at ever higher interest and consume: houses, cars, phones, computers, clothing, food, vacations, sex, drugs... I remember thinking… “there literally seems no end to it... “
Then the banks collapsed and every major government on Earth went insolvent!
The End. (but also, maybe, A New Beginning...)
Because today, the problem is not jobs or energy or even capitalism. The problem remains “New Normal” nihilism at every level. The problem is no one presently has any reasonable basis for believing tomorrow can ever possibly be better than today, only worse--and they live accordingly. The problem is that, for better or worse, rightly or wrongly, hopelessness is the root cause of every economic "depression" humankind has ever known!
The fix:
- The BIGGEST fraudsters (e.g. Dick Fuld, Jamie Dimon, Lloyd Blankfein, Ken Lewis, Angelo Mozilo… ) must go to jail, not just get bailed out (TARP).
- Corrupt systems and institutions must be reformed or dismantled: Supreme Court, Congress, Federal Reserve, State legislatures, The Constitution… (to name a few)
- Various "insider" (Too Big To Fail) corporations must be liquidated and restructured to prevent future bailouts—first and foremost banking, energy and healthcare must be restructured around human (greater public good) values and “success” metrics—metrics like democratic “happiness”, “well being” and “confidence” polls--not aggregate (mostly one percent benefiting) GDP!
- And, unfortunately, perhaps even war/violence (Arab Spring) is necessary…
And when enough REAL CHANGE (not Obama change) finally happens, then people will undoubtedly decide that life again has promise and meaning—for EVERYONE willing to work hard and play smart—then this “New Normal” Depression" will be over (or at least bottom out).
Until, then The Road To Hell is paved with status quo, as Americans, Europeans and Arab/despot nation citizens worldwide remain mired in a bottomless pit of existential and economic despair.