I think it is still possible to have a 20 year "downturn" and the world doesn't deteriorate. Essentially a complete reversal of what caused growth in many diffe

I think it is still possible to have a 20 year "downturn" and the world doesn't deteriorate. Essentially a complete reversal of what caused growth in many different industries. I'll just go through a couple of industries. Banking - Governments around the world decide to break up big banks. This allows for the return of small local co-ops that aren't listed on the stock market. Now the market is super competitive and so the big banks stock go into decline (the hypothetical value of the co-ops increase but you can't capitalize on that). Mining - Recycling gets so advanced we no longer need to mine stuff. Mining industry is no a shadow of its former self. New industry isn't as valuable as before as the barrier to entry into recycling is much lower. Healthcare - US government decides to take over the industry because a cultural shift. Industry collapses. Now, we live in a world with no Wall St, environmentally stable, and everyone has access to healthcare. But the people who went into ETF's essentially have no money. Obviously, this world would require much reform (more taxes), but one that I don't think is entirely unobtainable.