Poor Man Survival
Self Reliance tools for
independent minded people…
ISSN
2161-5543
A Digest of Urban
Survival Resources
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The Core of the Economy--The Middle Class--Is
Crumbling
The net result
of hyper-globalization and hyper-financialization is the
crumbling of the middle class.
“Based on
the recent data we got . . . the inflation curve has bent back up. The
months of declining inflation are in the rearview mirror. Now, we are going
to see accelerating inflation . . . and I think before the year is over, we are
going to take out that 9% inflation high last year in year over year CPI
(Consumer price Index) . . . and what that is going to show is what the Fed has
done thus far in its inflation fight is completely ineffective.”
Neofeudal societies and economies lack a vibrant middle class. This is the
defining feature of feudalism and its updated V2.0, neofeudalism: a nobility
(based on birth or finance, it doesn't matter) controls the vast majority of
wealth, political power and productive capital, all served by a powerless
peasantry.
The modern versions of capitalism emerged when a European middle
class arose and became powerful enough economically and politically to
dismantle feudalism. The fundamentals of the middle class are:
1. A mindset / set of values embracing (as highlighted by writer Peter Frost)
"thrift, prudence, negotiation, and hard work."
2. Access to markets and credit so enterprises could be established and
expanded.
3. Sufficient education to navigate regulations and the requirements of
enterprise.
4. The free flow of labor, capital, goods and services.
Feudal economies lacked these fundamentals by design. All
these forces were restricted to enforce the power and perquisites of the
Nobility.
Neofeudalism is a trickier beast. Neofeudal
economies and societies make a big PR show of being open to new enterprise, but
the real-world reality is not so warm and fuzzy: new cartels and monopolies
arise in a fierce struggle to stamp out competition and influence regulators to
not just enable predatory cartels/monopolies but defend them.
The past 30 years can be characterized by the ascent of capital
and the decline of labor. As the chart below shows, wages'
share of the economy has been in a 45-year decline. The recent uptick may be a
false breakout or it might be a change in trend. It's too early to tell. But in
any event, wages--the bedrock not just of the working class but of the middle
class--have been chipped away to the tune of $50 trillion siphoned away by
capital. (Source: Trends in Income From 1975 to
2018 RAND
Corporation)
Another mechanism is visible in the charts below showing the Share of Total Net Worth of the top 1% and the middle class, i.e. the households between 50% and 90% (this broad definition includes the spectrum fron lower middle class, households with incomes around the median, and upper-middle class households earning considerably more).
As the chart below shows, the top 10% own the vast majority of income-producing assets:, stocks bonds, income real estate and enterprises. The relative share owned by the middle class is at best modest, at worst negligible.
The key economic dynamic of the past 30 years is central bank-driven credit-asset bubbles which propel the assets owned by the top 10% to the moon. Those who own few such assets do not benefit from these asset bubbles, so their share of net worth (wealth) declines accordingly.
The two primary forces in the past 30 years are financialization and globalization, forces which accelerated under central bank / Neoliberal trade policies into hyper-financialization and hyper-globalization: hyper-financialization constantly inflates ever-larger asset bubbles, enriching the already-rich, while hyper-globalization forces labor to compete with lower-cost workforces globally, effectively transferring wages to capital, which can optimize labor / regulatory /credit / currency arbitrage to maximize corporate profits at the expense of the bottom 90% who depend on wages for their income rather than capital.
The most striking feature of the fortunes of the top 1% and the middle class is clearly visible: the share of total wealth of the top 1% soars to new heights in every bubble, while the share of the middle class dives.
The share of the middle class only rises when asset bubbles pop. This is the result of the top tier of US households owning the vast majority of assets: as bubbles pop, those who own few assets suffer far less than those who own most of the assets that bubble higher on the back of central bank stimulus and easy credit.
When the bubbles inevitably pop, the share of the top 1% crashes as the share of the middle class makes a temporary gain.
SIDEBAR
American
life satisfaction is at the lowest level in 50 years…
Why Americans’
confidence in the government, big business, and the media are at all-time lows…
And why an
unprecedented 58% of Americans believe “America’s best years are already behind
us.”
Many of the things
you take for granted right now are due for a big disruption in the months and
years ahead.
Gaslighting is a form of psychological
manipulation.
It’s
actually a form of abuse… and describes when someone is telling you so many
lies that you actually start to question your own sanity!
So
that’s a bold statement to say that the government is gaslighting Americans…
As
you’re about to see, your Social Security benefits will likely be slashed.
Your
taxes are probably going way up.
Many
of your investments are likely to continue falling.
The
auto-industry company Edmunds recently reported that more than half of American
households couldn’t even afford a used car at current prices.
And
all those folks who bought NEW cars back in 2020 or 2021… when the government’s
stimulus checks were flowing like cheap wine?
Meaning
even if you think you’ve saved enough money to retire… you’re probably going to
need way more money than you thought.
All these
things you’re seeing on TV and online – about the fastest-growing inflation in
history… the talk of recession… the bear market in stocks – these are all
just symptoms of
a much deeper problem in America.
Ways To Save With Rubbing Alcohol
We explore some ways to save with rubbing alcohol around the
house. You’ll find it can replace some of your expensive store-bought cleaners.
Hackable Humans Obliterate Privacy?
The annual World Economic Forum meeting 2023
session on “Ready for Brain Transparency?” opened with a short video showing a
dystopian scenario where employees’ brainwaves were not only decoded to
determine their performance in the workplace, but also to determine whether
they participated in illegal activity, reported website Sociable.co. As dystopian
as that sounds, in her presentation, Nita Farahany from Duke University
explained that the technology to decode brainwaves already existed and was
currently being rolled out in some use cases…
How Biden's 'Green Energy Economy' is Benefiting Left-Wing Billionaires
Much of the Middle Class is getting screwed by scarcity and high prices!
The Uselessness, Risk, and Extreme
Danger of Physical Mass Protest As a Solution to Tyranny
[Recipe] The Best Pioneer
Survival Food
3 basic ingredients
are all you need to make this long-lasting survival meal...
That’s also
seen action in WW1, as emergency ration for shipwrecked sailors, and a
homestead essential in times of famine.
So don’t
delay...
Click Here to Discover ’The Best Pioneer Survival Food’ <<
Why do you need an
emergency radio?
·
. Just
60 seconds of hand cranking provides more than 45 minutes of radio
Radios: Having a couple small, portable radios
on hand is going to be a must. If there’s a disaster, you’ll
need to listen to the radio to get news about what is happening around you….grab
a TacRight Emergency Radio:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/185665101473
4Patriots Patriot Power Cell Solar
Phone Charger
USE THIS solar gadget to survive an emergency!
In 2022 alone there have been
over 70 attacks on the power grid with reports of six in Florida, five in
Oregon and Washington.
And according to national
security experts, this trend is only going to continue.
As America's power grid comes
under increasing attack and/or disruption…
THIS is your lifeline
in a crisis.
It's peace of mind that you can...
·
Call
family and friends in an emergency
·
Signal
for help from first responders
·
Stay
connected to critical weather updates
·
https://www.bonanza.com/listings/4Patriots-Patriot-Power-Cell-Solar-Phone-Charger/1419398891
Free enterprise, limited
government, individual freedom!
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Not Prepared?
That's Bad News...
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Buy Life Insurance After You’re Dead-Prepare NOW for Emergencies…
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A Smoking Frog Feature, Shallow Planet Production
2 comments:
Despite an overall pessimism among folks I know, everyone seems to be spending like it's '1999.' {especially the whack job socialists in Washington]
No one cares about the Middle Class it would seem...illegals & criminals are there priority.
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