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I’m really worried that we haven’t even seen the start of this financial unraveling yet. I’m sure tech workers like us will be okay, but essentially everything

I’m really worried that we haven’t even seen the start of this financial unraveling yet. I’m sure tech workers like us will be okay, but essentially everything else is broken. If the rest of the economy is falling apart tech won’t be far behind. Is there anything that can alleviate my concerns?

troughway 6y ago
A bit of therapy might help. Getting off of HN and other sources that cause you anxiety would be a good start.
- Der_Einzige 6y ago
  Such a terrible response to someone venting out their economic anxieties.
  - troughway 6y ago
    Terrible or not, it should be a stock response to these kinds of questions. It would not surprise me if HN turned out to have an abnormally high amount of people with GAD and/or undiagnosed anxieties, especially in the wake of COVID-19 which was just a shitshow of one doom porn article on another. So yes, go see a therapist if you're having trouble coping with the situation. You can thank me later for my "terrible response".
- noodlenotes 6y ago
  The underlying assumption in your comment is that worrying is bad. Worrying is a great thing! When I get in the car, I worry I might have a car accident, so I wear a seat belt and pay attention to the road. Either you think OP's concerns aren't well-founded or you think their psychological way of dealing with worry is bad. Since you don't know OP and OP is questioning the former, why not address the question "should we be worried about the economy?" rather than tell OP to go to therapy?
- andy_ppp 6y ago
  I think you're suggesting that a great depression isn't the most likely outcome of the current crisis, to say that maybe my fears are unfounded because X, is fine, but to say I need psycological help because I see an outcome down the road that I think a lot of people see coming [1]. [1] https://www.cnbc.com/2020/05/14/ray-dalio-on-coronavirus-effect-on-economy-society.html https://www.cnbc.com/2020/05/14/ray-dalio-on-coronavirus-eff... To be fair that article gives a more rounded view - it might be bad for 5 years but we always recover. No need to worry about the huge US debt or a death spiral as things unravel!
jedberg 6y ago
The US economy is fairly diverse and adaptable. While a lot of jobs you are used to have or will disappear, new jobs will take their place. It's already happening. I just saw an ad for a "contactless remote video broadcast studio". It's like an RC cart with a pro camera and teleprompter. Someone comes in a van and drops it at your front door, and then it gets remotely driven around your house until they find the filming spot. Then the director controls it remotely while directing you. So we have the "camera delivery driver" and "cart maintenance" jobs that were created. That business will also need vans to drive the equipment around. And the director gets to keep their job and so does the actor. There will for sure be a lot of short term pain as people adjust to the new reality, but the jobs will shift and people will come up with new ideas. The existing diversity of our economy will help a lot.
- paulcole 6y ago
  > So we have the "camera delivery driver" and "cart maintenance" jobs that were created. How many jobs were lost to create 2 jobs? The cameraman? The union goes who do lighting, sound, etc.? The support staff for the on-site crew?
  - jedberg 6y ago
    That's just automation losses though. But the point is, the economy is already shifting and adapting. The adaptations take time, but it will come.
deleted 6y ago
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troughway 6y ago

A bit of therapy might help. Getting off of HN and other sources that cause you anxiety would be a good start.

Der_Einzige 6y ago
Such a terrible response to someone venting out their economic anxieties.
- troughway 6y ago
  Terrible or not, it should be a stock response to these kinds of questions. It would not surprise me if HN turned out to have an abnormally high amount of people with GAD and/or undiagnosed anxieties, especially in the wake of COVID-19 which was just a shitshow of one doom porn article on another. So yes, go see a therapist if you're having trouble coping with the situation. You can thank me later for my "terrible response".
noodlenotes 6y ago
The underlying assumption in your comment is that worrying is bad. Worrying is a great thing! When I get in the car, I worry I might have a car accident, so I wear a seat belt and pay attention to the road. Either you think OP's concerns aren't well-founded or you think their psychological way of dealing with worry is bad. Since you don't know OP and OP is questioning the former, why not address the question "should we be worried about the economy?" rather than tell OP to go to therapy?
andy_ppp 6y ago
I think you're suggesting that a great depression isn't the most likely outcome of the current crisis, to say that maybe my fears are unfounded because X, is fine, but to say I need psycological help because I see an outcome down the road that I think a lot of people see coming [1]. [1] https://www.cnbc.com/2020/05/14/ray-dalio-on-coronavirus-effect-on-economy-society.html https://www.cnbc.com/2020/05/14/ray-dalio-on-coronavirus-eff... To be fair that article gives a more rounded view - it might be bad for 5 years but we always recover. No need to worry about the huge US debt or a death spiral as things unravel!

jedberg 6y ago

The US economy is fairly diverse and adaptable. While a lot of jobs you are used to have or will disappear, new jobs will take their place. It's already happening. I just saw an ad for a "contactless remote video broadcast studio". It's like an RC cart with a pro camera and teleprompter. Someone comes in a van and drops it at your front door, and then it gets remotely driven around your house until they find the filming spot. Then the director controls it remotely while directing you. So we have the "camera delivery driver" and "cart maintenance" jobs that were created. That business will also need vans to drive the equipment around. And the director gets to keep their job and so does the actor. There will for sure be a lot of short term pain as people adjust to the new reality, but the jobs will shift and people will come up with new ideas. The existing diversity of our economy will help a lot.

paulcole 6y ago
> So we have the "camera delivery driver" and "cart maintenance" jobs that were created. How many jobs were lost to create 2 jobs? The cameraman? The union goes who do lighting, sound, etc.? The support staff for the on-site crew?
- jedberg 6y ago
  That's just automation losses though. But the point is, the economy is already shifting and adapting. The adaptations take time, but it will come.

deleted 6y ago

[deleted]