It's hard to imagine what it was like living during the "great" depression. Neither Edie nor I grew up during that time, and there aren't many people who were around then still alive.
But there are a few, and Edie and I just so happen to be living with one such individual, my aunt Sylvia.
I say it's hard to imagine, because today Edie and I went to see about a bridge club for Sylvia to join.
Currently Sylvia only plays on Thursdays, at the senior center close to our home, but two of the last 3 weeks there weren't enough players, so she didn't get to play. She was a little disappointed, so in our infinite wisdom, Edie and I thought we would look into some other places she could play.
We were impressed with the bridge club. There were lots of participants at all skill levels, and many opportunities for her to improve her playing ability.
Well, much to our surprise, Sylvia was already aware of this club, but she was not interested.
And the reason she wasn't interested was because it costs $8 to play a game (a game typically lasts 3.5 to 4 hours, and includes lunch), and
I was shocked, as was Edie. $8, a lot of money? Does anyone else think that's a lot of money?
Heck, Edie and I dropped a lot more than that gambling in Vegas two weeks ago, and I'll think nothing of spending $50 to play a round of golf. Last year, I even spent over $200 for one bottle of wine, and Edie and I will typically open at least a $10 bottle of wine to have with dinner every night. And I won't even mention what I spent on the two new bikes I bought this year. Oh, and it costs $10 to race at Eldorado on Tuesday nights, and that only lasts about an hour.
So $8, in my opinion, is not a lot of money, especially for 4 hours of entertainment.
But then again, I didn't grow up during the "great" depression.
Hopefully we can still convince her otherwise, but I'm not that confident.
Just how do you convince someone, who grew up during the "great" depression, that $8 is NOT a lot of money?
But there are a few, and Edie and I just so happen to be living with one such individual, my aunt Sylvia.
I say it's hard to imagine, because today Edie and I went to see about a bridge club for Sylvia to join.
Currently Sylvia only plays on Thursdays, at the senior center close to our home, but two of the last 3 weeks there weren't enough players, so she didn't get to play. She was a little disappointed, so in our infinite wisdom, Edie and I thought we would look into some other places she could play.
We were impressed with the bridge club. There were lots of participants at all skill levels, and many opportunities for her to improve her playing ability.
Well, much to our surprise, Sylvia was already aware of this club, but she was not interested.
And the reason she wasn't interested was because it costs $8 to play a game (a game typically lasts 3.5 to 4 hours, and includes lunch), and
that's a lot of money.
I was shocked, as was Edie. $8, a lot of money? Does anyone else think that's a lot of money?
Heck, Edie and I dropped a lot more than that gambling in Vegas two weeks ago, and I'll think nothing of spending $50 to play a round of golf. Last year, I even spent over $200 for one bottle of wine, and Edie and I will typically open at least a $10 bottle of wine to have with dinner every night. And I won't even mention what I spent on the two new bikes I bought this year. Oh, and it costs $10 to race at Eldorado on Tuesday nights, and that only lasts about an hour.
So $8, in my opinion, is not a lot of money, especially for 4 hours of entertainment.
But then again, I didn't grow up during the "great" depression.
Hopefully we can still convince her otherwise, but I'm not that confident.
Just how do you convince someone, who grew up during the "great" depression, that $8 is NOT a lot of money?
Comments
http://middle.usm.k12.wi.us/faculty/taft/unit7/citilife.htm
Hopefully your book will enlighten everyone!
One more try on the link. if it doesn't work search google for living in the great depression:
http://middle.usm.k12.wi.us/faculty/taft/Unit7/citylife.htm
Even the collapse of the economy in recent days cannot match what we experienced in 1929. Bank deposits are insured now (look for the FDIC sign on your bank's door). The exchange has built in rules to preent collapse. They can close the market when things get out of hand. These measures were not in place back then.
Watch the unemployment rates. Under Bill Clinton the unemployment rate nationally hovered around 6%. During the great depression we saw double digit unemployment. It's a great lesson in presidential history to study what Franklin Deleanor Roosevelt did in his New Deal. He employed both Democrats and Republicans on his staff. If an idea wasn't working, he tried a new one. He wasn't afraid to get rid of something that wasn't helping. He was popular because he used a real common sense approach to our national problems.
I'm still writing. :) I"ll have more stories soon. Hopefully the keepers of this web site will have a few more. ;)
Carol Charron
Without getting into an argument over what caused the problems we're in, what has been fueling this economy over the past several years was a massive bubble in the housing market, pushing home prices to levels that were not based on anything even close to representing reality, which allowed home owners to use their homes like bottomless piggy banks.
But like that old adage, "what goes up, must come down" we are now paying the price for that delusion, and there is no money left in the piggy bank to restart the economy.
Nothing short of massive stimulus now by the federal government, much like FDR in the 30's, can bring us out of this morass.
My biggest fear though, is unlike the early 30's, a huge portion of our manufacturing base has been lost to low wage countries like China, Mexico, India etc. and will not be available when needed, like it was during WWII, when we finally emerged from the great depression.