It's not "brittle," it's "just in time." It seems to me a whole lot of people were given authority to make decisions and agreements that collectively whittled

It's not "brittle," it's "just in time." It seems to me a whole lot of people were given authority to make decisions and agreements that collectively whittled away at the ability of participants in US markets to be responsibly prudent. We allowed players in the market not subject to labor, quality, ecological, or criminal accountability, promoting an endless deluge of cheap crap at the expense of business (and thus economic) resilience. This led toward more consolidation, with acquisition and endless growth replacing reserves and correct planning for lean times, ensuring that only the biggest players in a rule abiding market can survive. When tshtf the boomers will die first. As the world burns we can at least enjoy a little schadenfreude.