Thread: It's not great but it's been worse

Many people don't like the way the country is heading. Others feel we're going towards a socialist regime. I'm not sure what will end up happening but what I do know is that USA has been worse off and we still prospered.
In WWII there was rationing. Rationing. No one today would allow a rationing program to come to fruition. Look at the way people had to live back then and the way we complain about living now.

Rationing on the US Homefront during WW II

I'm reading Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged and see many similarities to our present day situation but as long as I still have a vote and it counts, and it does, we will never become a country that lives in oppression.

Well, I'll bite my tongue on the oppression part and keep my opinions to myself.

But, I agree with you regarding the country being in more dire straits than today. In some form of small preparation, I've fenced in my small back yard and next year will be planting something akin to a victory garden comprised of raised bed vegetable garden plots. My parents raise poultry and eggs and have ever since I was a child. They're 1 1/2 hours away and provided we're still able to travel up to see them fairly often, we should have protein.

So far, there's at least one thing that I don't like about this recession/depression: My property value has plummeted to a level where I believe it may be at least a decade before the value reaches the amount I purchased the home for in 2003; if I'm very lucky. I'm only 39, but I may very well live out my natural life living in this home. Something I never would have dreamed of in 2003.

Aside from that, this current time has excellent potential for positive things to happen overall.

If the "economic downturn" actually gets even more severe, I have no problem and no fear of society kissing virtually all the frivolous and unnecessary materialistic crap goodbye. Adios TV, Cable, Computer games, convenience appliances, closet of clothes, a myriad of restaurants and grocery stores the size of warehouses; heck, even going to an extreme, many cars and freely available transportation.

What if it got so bad that I had to actually trade vegetables from my garden for game shot or trapped by my neighbor? People would have to start......helping and relying on each other again. Community would become healthy again. Fear would actually decrease and a collective feeling of safety and survival in numbers of people helping people would increase. I say bring it on.

Chris L

Yeah well.... read Grapes Of Wrath for people helping one another again. So Chris... this means one or two razors per household ?

As long as I'm allowed to pick the two razors, I'd have a clean shaven face for a long long time!

Chris L

I have faith that we are only experiencing a temporary setback. I put my money where my mouth is as I continue to invest in the U.S. economy.

Sorry but I can't agree. True, conditions have been worse vis a vis hard economic times and all that but the polarization in this country and lack of a sense of compromise is far more damaging. True adversity always brings people together. Maybe we should pay Canada to invade us. We can let them have Michigan but when they take Illinois then its time to get together.