Great Depression comparison

[W2R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by utrecht How many bread lines have you seen lately? Using the word "depression" right now is probably pretty offensive to anyone who actually lived thru it.

They didn't have food stamps back then.

But I still agree with you - - the Great Depression was so much more severe than anything we are going through now. I think that as those who lived through it die, younger people aren't hearing the types of horror stories about the Depression that many of us heard from our parents' generation. So, all they know is from textbooks and it is hard to fully comprehend its impact on daily lives from reading about it in a book.

[Bestwifeever]

I wonder if a mod could fix the spelling in the thread title--tia.

[ziggy29]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Want2retire I think that as those who lived through it die, younger people aren't hearing the types of horror stories about the Depression that many of us heard from our parents' generation.

Agreed. And I also think it's not an accident that we have begun repeating some of the mistakes that led to the Depression just as most of the cautionary voices who remembered those times are no longer around to keep us from repeating the excesses that led to the economic implosion.

[FinanceDude]

On October 9th, 2002,the Dow closed at 7286.............

[CuppaJoe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by utrecht How many bread lines have you seen lately?....

Come to my city, I'll show you around.

[Moemg]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FinanceDude On October 9th, 2002,the Dow closed at 7286.............

and I remember I had the same pit in my stomach then and I was still working !

[quietman]

OMG. There was a big decline in October during the Great Depression and October is almost here again. I'm selling everything and buying a really big mattress. Or starting day trading. Or maybe I should look into a wrap account. Dried food? Guns? So hard to decide.

[Raygun99]

Even today the best it seems you can hope for is staying even without inflation? Is there any model for bonds to secure a guaranteed 5+ return over 30 years? Is laddering the aproach? If so are there any models out there to show the risk?

[fisherman]

Black Monday was the day we started investing. We had been saving for a year to by our first three mutual funds. I walked down at lunch from work to buy the funds at the local broker and saw the ticker and walked out. I made it half way back to work before I realized that it was probably a great buying opportunity and went back. It sure helped and so did 2002! I never hit the actual bottom but we have bought during some good times without a doubt.

[fisherman]

My Dad grew up in the depression and always told me about it. One particular story that hit home was when he was drafted for WWII. He gained 20lbs in boot camp! He always said he never got enough to eat growing up and that made it hit home.

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Yep, everyone was thin and healthy then.

Its much better now...

[heyyou]

My Dad was 27 years old in 1929. Those that are making Depression comparisons are just showing that they haven't read "The Grapes of Wrath." There is also a pretty good Woody Guthrie movie (might be PBS) out there somewhere. I liked the credit that Woody gave to an undiscovered, better musician who was beaten to death for helping to organize migrant farm workers, which is what Woody was. Having witnessed the beating, that is what drove Woody to start public performances, for the same people.

Only current immigrants from some foreign civil war could have had worse experiences than the Dirty Thirties were here.

[clifp]

Quote:

Originally Posted by heyyou Only current immigrants from some foreign civil war could have had worse experiences than the Dirty Thirties were here.

I agree and Grapes of Wrath is worth seeing even if it is a bit dated.
Actually there have been other financial crisis as bad as the Great Depression, but fortunately not here in America.

[Retire Soon]

In the Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck presents a grim but accurate portrayal of Americans who escaped the dust bowl by fleeing their no longer productive farms for an illusion of a better life in California. Severe drought and high winds had robbed the once rich fertile farm land of its topsoil. Crops could not longer grow. Greedy and dishonest fruit orchard owners in California sought successfully to increase the supply of farm workers to what was greater than the actual demand by passing out hand bills in Oklahoma and Kansas advertising jobs on their farms. When an oversupply of migrant workers showed up in California, wages were driven down for everyone. Some farmers even went so far as to open stores on their properties so they could overcharge the workers for food and other necessities. Many of the migrant workers simply did not have enough eat. The opposite seems to be true today in America where many of us are overweight or obese. We now have many helpful programs such as welfare, unemployment insurance, social security, Medicare, Medicaid. We also have FDIC to keep bank depositors from losing money. The problem now, however, is that there is a limit to the funding of these programs. Taxpayers can only bail out a finite number of corporations. If things keep going the way they are, we may no longer be able to provide aid to corporations as large as Bear Sterns, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and AIG. When our government decided to increase home ownership from 63% to 70%, it was simply not in touch with reality. Mortgage lenders armed with subprime money, credit rating companies, real estate agents, title companies, appraisers, derivative issuers, all jumped on the band wagon to get rich by selling homes to people with bad credit who could not even afford to rent the homes they purchased. The ability to fog up a mirror was the only qualification to acquire the American Dream of home ownership. Investors, many with good credit bought homes to be used as rentals simply because they had nothing to lose except perhaps their good credit. Too many people were swept up in the euphoria of rising home prices and thus their grip on reality. Now it's time to pay the piper and the American taxpayer will be held responsible for full payment of the excesses of the greedy. This time it's different. There is now more to fear than fear itself.

[CuppaJoe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by clifp I agree and Grapes of Wrath is worth seeing even if it is a bit dated. Actually there have been other financial crisis as bad as the Great Depression, but fortunately not here in America.

-
No, no, READ Steinbeck, and Jack London while you're at it.

For years, I couldn't eat in Vietnamese restaurants, too many wounds. Finally in the mid-'80s a tourist friend insisted, been going to those restaurants ever since. Recently, I was thinking who my real friends are, one of them runs my favorite Vietnamese restaurant, is always cheerful, probably in his '50s but I don't know his backstory.

[lazygood4nothinbum]

"time forks perpetually toward innumerable futures. in one of them i am your enemy."~~jorge luis borges

[Gardnr]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Retire Soon In the Grapes of Wrath, John Steinbeck presents a grim but accurate portrayal of Americans who escaped the dust bowl by fleeing their no longer productive farms for an illusion of a better life in California. Severe drought and high winds had robbed the once rich fertile farm land of its topsoil. Crops could not longer grow. Greedy and dishonest fruit orchard owners in California sought successfully to increase the supply of farm workers to what was greater than the actual demand by passing out hand bills in Oklahoma and Kansas advertising jobs on their farms. When an oversupply of migrant workers showed up in California, wages were driven down for everyone. Some farmers even went so far as to open stores on their properties so they could overcharge the workers for food and other necessities. Many of the migrant workers simply did not have enough eat. The opposite seems to be true today in America where many of us are overweight or obese. We now have many helpful programs such as welfare, unemployment insurance, social security, Medicare, Medicaid. We also have FDIC to keep bank depositors from losing money. The problem now, however, is that there is a limit to the funding of these programs. Taxpayers can only bail out a finite number of corporations. If things keep going the way they are, we may no longer be able to provide aid to corporations as large as Bear Sterns, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and AIG. When our government decided to increase home ownership from 63% to 70%, it was simply not in touch with reality. Mortgage lenders armed with subprime money, credit rating companies, real estate agents, title companies, appraisers, derivative issuers, all jumped on the band wagon to get rich by selling homes to people with bad credit who could not even afford to rent the homes they purchased. The ability to fog up a mirror was the only qualification to acquire the American Dream of home ownership. Investors, many with good credit bought homes to be used as rentals simply because they had nothing to lose except perhaps their good credit. Too many people were swept up in the euphoria of rising home prices and thus their grip on reality. Now it's time to pay the piper and the American taxpayer will be held responsible for full payment of the excesses of the greedy. This time it's different. There is now more to fear than fear itself.

Not to be a school marm, but...

White space and paragraphs, please! It's makes things so much easier to read.

I've almost done this before but I know it can come across as picky and b!tchy. Please don't take it that way. Just friendly critique.

[Raygun99]

This may be wrong forum... string and PC incorrect but maybe a clue to our society and how far we have come from depression "survival" days. We have grown to expect so much from the GOV. This week in S. Texas millions of people are still looking for secure shelter, but the major complaints covered on the news is FEMA failure to get ice to them fast enough.. WE ARE SPOILED and the mainstream media migrates to the superficial.. last time I checked water is more critical than ice.. in fact in Europe its a non-essential

[Bestwifeever]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Raygun99 This may be wrong forum... string and PC incorrect but maybe a clue to our society and how far we have come from depression "survival" days. We have grown to expect so much from the GOV. This week in S. Texas millions of people are still looking for secure shelter, but the major complaints covered on the news is FEMA failure to get ice to them fast enough.. WE ARE SPOILED and the mainstream media migrates to the superficial.. last time I checked water is more critical than ice.. in fact in Europe its a non-essential

I think the ice is desperately needed for coolers to keep food from spoiling, since the electricity is out so refrigerators are not working.

[Raygun99]

Good point for people who need to keep milk for children or medications cool. Those without electricity have already lost the food in their refrigerators and iceboxes. We would be better off providing dry goods and fresh water vs. trying to maintain perishable goods in these situations such as MRES vs. carrying tons of ICE -- Just a matter of logical resources after 7 days of storm outages. Those with life threatening needs should be evacuated to a better location for the duration. It’s a real mess and I don’t think our priorities are always well thought out.