There was a bit of a brouhaha when the government shutdown awhile back, Apparently a lot of people don’t have much saved. Are there people out there right now who have gone broke and are going to starve to death?
Let’s see - massive unemployment, huge uptick in bankruptcy filings, not all rents and mortgages forgiven - is anyone going broke? Minimarts have armored windows for a reason.
I’m guessing there will be a lot of people moving in with parents, siblings and friends soon because of all this. Plus an explosion of tent cities.
I don’t know jack about economics, but I don’t see how we can have a V shaped recovery. This is the second massive economic collapse in less than two decades. I think that millennials and Gen Z may end up like the depression era generation, and have frugal habits for life. I don’t know if spending will just magically skyrocket when the virus is gone since everyone will be scared and will save money.
Generally, its hard to starve to death in America. Its more about people losing their homes and health insurance.
On another note I know some people in places like India and the Philippines, and starvation is a more serious risk there. So are political coups, I think we will see a wave of coups in the developing world due to all this.
[Moderating]
Off to Quarantine.
I move we call these Trumpvilles, to keep our sense of history.
The reason I doubt a V curve is not people going broke, but companies going broke. Many will, especially with the typically incompetent way the stimulus has been handled so far. If the recovery finds fewer companies there to rehire people, unemployment won’t drop as much. Surviving companies will be very cautious, and though new companies will be formed to take over from the dead ones, it will be a while before they will hire to the same level. Add the dead oil companies to that, and the likelihood states will have to cut at the worst time (again) if Mitch gets his way, and we’re in for a long one.
The food bank I’ve been working at thinks this financial crisis is going to have a very long “tail” measured in years before everyone is back to where they were in January.
The on-site organizer of a produce distribution I worked last month said we served more than double the usual number of people, and it’s only gotten worse since then. And it’s going to stay worse - as one example, a restaurant industry organization predicts half of all restaurants in San Francisco will not re-open. How many thousands of people just in that one city will remain out of work?
Homelessness is rising in Hawaii. There are more visible on the streets, but that could also be because many homeless shelters have had to close.
The eviction crisis is real, but I suspect it will be awhile before we see Trumpvilles. Most people have a support network that can help them in the immediate aftermath of an eviction. Parents, siblings, friends, extended family. Eventually the spare couches run out and that’s when people turn to living in dumpy motels, cars, shelters, and encampments. Heaven help those folks because we’re fixin’ to move into the cold weather months.
I worry for people who can’t turn to their support networks because their support networks are also looking for a place to stay. What do people do when they can’t go back home to live with their parents, because their parents are already supporting Meemaw, Big Brother, Cousin Oliver, and Auntie Anne and all their myriad of dogs and cats? I really wish we had guaranteed housing right now. Being hungry is horrible, but the average able-bodied person can do an odd job here and there and stay relatively well-fed. It is almost impossible to get housing if you are able-bodied and don’t have a stable job.