NOTHING TO LOSE

 I was watching a video from Jim Sterling that discussed what happened on Wall Street this past month. He talked about how wealth begets wealth and that there are more ways to get wealthier, especially when you are wealthy, to begin with. We see that the difference here, from the 1920s to the 2020s, is that common people seem to have nothing left to lose, and they just gamble it away.

While the economic situation for the lower and middle class is worse than it used to be, it can be a worse experience in other countries. In this issue, I want readers to understand why millions of people still want to come to the “good USA” and make a living.

Let me try to paint you a picture:

You live in a third-world country, you learned to prepare a budget, not because you wanted to save, but because if you do not, you will not make ends meet; and even then, you might not be able to. You are probably living on loans, living with your parents in a one-bedroom or small apartment. Sure, it may be illegal technically, but your other choice is living on the streets; shelters are full or do not exist, so that is out of the question.

Charities? You thought the charities in the United States were corrupt, and only a dime out of a dollar donated to the “March of Dimes” goes to the needy?

Well, here they do not have to hide it, almost no resources go to the poor. At most, stale bread and groceries would be thrown away anyway. That is the reality of poverty in developing countries. Oh, find a job, you say? The best part, all those people are employed, but the salary is not enough to make ends meet. Few are lucky to get government housing.

The concept of savings is something that exists among the luckiest of the few. That is indeed the picture of a dysfunctional economy. That is exactly why even with all our problems, people still come to America in droves – with a wish to live, establish, and contribute to a country with a future.

That is the direction that a declining nation, where the welfare of the low and middle class is abandoned, where they are no longer seen as people, but as assets to be leveraged. We can see that with the discussions around economic stimulus and how the money is distributed.

Unfortunately, that is the future we are heading towards, especially if we do not get our economic perspectives back on track. Even with the highest GDP in the world, if not leveraged right, then you only have an economy that is utilizing a fraction of its potential, and only fueling public unrest.

The stock market is not the economy.