> -----Original Message----- > From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On > Behalf Of Bruce Bostwick > Sent: Monday, January 05, 2009 8:37 AM > To: Killer Bs (David Brin et al) Discussion > Subject: Re: Scouted: U.S. to collapse in next two years? > > On Jan 4, 2009, at 9:13 PM, Dan M wrote: > > > And yet, you sing we're on the eve of destruction? > > > > Dan M. > > I guess part of my cynicism is frustration at having had to live in > the wake of the Boomers most of my life, and survive on the scraps > they missed, when it seems the only response to my getting closer to > actually joining the middle class and becoming financially stable is > the goalposts moving farther away just when I think I'm about to get > there.
I'm sorry if you have financial hard times, but you write as though there is finite pile of money and when it's gone, it's gone. As I mentioned before, I personally know and worked alongside a team that created tens of billions of wealth. In my own small way (http://tinyurl.com/8zp89c) I have created wealth....by developing techniques that allow for the accurate measurement of porosity while drilling....saving time and thus money (it takes millions/day to operate big oil rigs) by allowing companies to get the needed measurements while drilling. So, the growth in per capita GDP is not simply a funny number; it reflects the growth of real per capita wealth. Indeed, even if you don't accept that the CPI slightly overstates inflation, deny Brad DeLongs persuasive arguments that inflation has been about 9% less for lower income people than higher income people, and dismiss the value of the rise in the benefits obtained by the average family, the average household income is now higher than it was when I was in my 20s. So, while you might be on hard times, hard times existed in the '60s-'80s too. Dan M. _______________________________________________ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
