General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: How bad does it have to get? [View all]stevenleser
(32,886 posts)and the rest of the 1%.
It has totally messed the economy up. The other side of that that most people do not realize is, if the top 10% own 80% of the wealth, the bottom 90% could go on a permanent general strike and it would not affect 80% of the commerce (by $ not by number of transactions) of the country. That limits the impact of the strike. The top 10% would only start to feel it if the utilities started failing or the transportation system failed to the extent that cars could not get around. I try to point that out when some people suggest a strike but it doesnt usually go over well.
That also necessarily means that your average stores in your average towns around the country where there are not concentrations of top 1% and top 10% might as well close up shop because there is no one there with any wealth to buy goods. That is what happens when the middle class has wealth stripped away.