What's stopping the next great depression?

[salinen]

Our Government has as it's main function the protection of wealth. All other costs of running the country is shared between the non-wealthy and borrowing foreign monies. Empty and fore closured homes are the new landscape features. Unemployment must continue to rise because teabags will refuse any stimulus or works programs and our pres. will not object. Commodity prices will steadily rise because our currency value will continue to fall. The market will continue to have violent swings which should cast out the weak stomached. This will cause a further decline and foreigners will bail. The Unions are almost destroyed so labor will become cheaper and without protections. The standard of living for the wealthy will be fantastic. For everyone else, food and roof will take every cent earned, just like 3rd world living. The free market open port capitalistic low wage no regulation no safety net system will snuff out the middle class. No new infrastructure for the commons and barely any maintenance.

Actually, maybe there will not be a depression. Just a slow and steady decline for all but the chosen. Could work out just fine for the Teabag nation.

[FreakinDJ]

1. The Media from Telling the Truth

[Yavin4]

2. In Many Respects, It's Already Here

Most of the wealth of the middle class is in their homes, and if you did an honest accounting of home valuations (marked homes to current market values), then most of the wealth of the middle class is wiped out.

Further, if you valued homes based on incomes and mapped future housing valuation growth to income growth, then housing is a long term investment disaster. Who will be able to buy your home in 10 years if they're not working now or underemployed?

[dmallind]

3. I know you don't really want an answer, but

The greater mobility of labor and capital, coupled with instant information.

Reduced barriers to entry

Educated workforces and reliable infrastructure

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Three big differences there from the last one.

[CleanGreenFuture]

4. Nothing is stopping it. We're already a couple of years into a permanent and terminal decline.

[flamingdem]

5. No big depression coming. Corporations are very healthy, jobless recovery nt

[banned from Kos]

6. Few here will understand but the Federal Reserve did

The GD was marked by lost deposits, bank runs, and high interest rates caused by monetary tightening.

The Fed made sure none of that occurred this time.

No one is putting their money in a jar and burying it in the backyard.

[salinen]

7. I'll bet

backyard burying is coming back into fashion.

[CleanGreenFuture]

8. What a pant-load of bull shit.

[banned from Kos]

13. Ron Paul fan?

Yes, monetary and banking reform began in 1913 and the FDIC (30's) was a critical piece of the solution.

Now we are on to capital standards - see Dodd-Frank and Basel III. Regulation is needed MORE in finance/banking than ever.

[Zenlitened]

11. No, it was the FDIC that did these things. n/t

[dtexdem]

9. Why do you think something's stopping it?

Is there any evidence that it will be slow and steady? And how many teabaggers will see their own businesses hurt as consumer ability to buy declines further and further?

[Javaman]

10. When the next repuke comes in office, the nation will slide off the cliff.

right now we are living on barrowed time.

Obama certainly isn't helping things, but he's also not flooring the gas pedal either.

He's just allowing the economy to coast down hill.

[Rex]

12. Food stamps.