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Serious financial collapse is all it would take at this point. The minute the social safety net fails to keep people in food and heat we'll be there. The prec

Serious financial collapse is all it would take at this point. The minute the social safety net fails to keep people in food and heat we'll be there. The precondition is currency collapse. The traditional precedents of currency failure are already in place and the early symptoms are visible today. It could be averted and there is sufficient time to do so. Ultimately I doubt it will be averted. The quality of citizens in the US is declining and that can't corrected prior to failure.

boppo1 5y ago
How do we avert currency collapse without removing the safety net? All I can think of is rapidly reducing the military budget, but the consequences of that aren't as lovely as some people believe.
- tarboreus 5y ago
  Hike rates. But the stock market will take a big hit, so it won't be done. Rates will sit at 0% and inflation will continue unchecked, or they will try hiking rates a little, the stock market will freak, and they'll give up. What needs to happen is a rate hike and eat the consequences. But our factota don't have the fortitude for that.
  - boppo1 5y ago
    I feel like the stock market will freak out at any significant rate hike and we'll have a depression on our hands.
- topspin 5y ago
  > How do we avert currency collapse without removing the safety net? I don't think we do. We're in the coffin corner[1] where stability becomes impossible. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coffin_corner_(aerodynamics) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coffin_corner_(aerodynamics) > All I can think of is rapidly reducing the military budget Parts of the military budget are clearly safety net. Angry veterans are a classic source of violent protesters/insurrectionists/revolutionaries. Arguably most of the military budget is social safety net. Cutting it would blow up a lot of lives.
  - boppo1 5y ago
    >Arguably most of the military budget is social safety net. Cutting it would blow up a lot of lives. I thought I had implied that, but reading again, I was not clear. We agree.

boppo1 5y ago

How do we avert currency collapse without removing the safety net? All I can think of is rapidly reducing the military budget, but the consequences of that aren't as lovely as some people believe.

tarboreus 5y ago
Hike rates. But the stock market will take a big hit, so it won't be done. Rates will sit at 0% and inflation will continue unchecked, or they will try hiking rates a little, the stock market will freak, and they'll give up. What needs to happen is a rate hike and eat the consequences. But our factota don't have the fortitude for that.
- boppo1 5y ago
  I feel like the stock market will freak out at any significant rate hike and we'll have a depression on our hands.
topspin 5y ago
> How do we avert currency collapse without removing the safety net? I don't think we do. We're in the coffin corner[1] where stability becomes impossible. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coffin_corner_(aerodynamics) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coffin_corner_(aerodynamics) > All I can think of is rapidly reducing the military budget Parts of the military budget are clearly safety net. Angry veterans are a classic source of violent protesters/insurrectionists/revolutionaries. Arguably most of the military budget is social safety net. Cutting it would blow up a lot of lives.
- boppo1 5y ago
  >Arguably most of the military budget is social safety net. Cutting it would blow up a lot of lives. I thought I had implied that, but reading again, I was not clear. We agree.