Generation Bubble

"Neither a Borrower Nor a Lender Be": Americans Dash for Cash after Wall Street's Crash

The Depression saw unemployment rates much higher than we’ve seen yet in this recession, and it lasted for nearly a decade. Also, American culture wasn’t nearly as integrated by various forms of media as it is now, which meant that the experience of poverty was far more isolating and devastating. So while Americans have lost confidence in the economy for sure, it’s not yet clear whether Americans have suffered enough in this downturn to confidently predict a return of the “modest consumer” who is wary of indebtedness.