The lingering power of the Great Depression amazes me.
It began seventy-eight years ago and ended incrementally as the Second World War began. That means that those who were at least ten years old and able to have some first hand memories of its devastating effects are in their eighties or nineties, and yet it looms over all of us like a malevolent god. It seems that every article I read about the current mortgage crisis in the United States sooner or later gets around to a comparison with The Great Depression. “Possibly more foreclosures than at any time since TGD,’ or “more bank failures since TGD.” are almost required components of any media coverage. It predates the lives of ninety percent of all Americans, yet it is still the milestone of financial failure.I don’t mean to minimize the effects of TGD, but it does cause me to pause and consider. The very mention of those three dreaded words commands attention like no other. Say the words “World War Two,” and people nod and might tell an anecdotal story of an uncle or grandfather who fought. It belongs in the black and white world of yesteryear. The majority of today’s college students couldn’t even name the major powers involved in the conflict. Say the words “influenza epidemic” and the reaction received is similar to that of a science fiction movie, except less real or terrifying. But The Great Depression? A shudder and a hushed question follow. “Could it really happen again?”I can think of no event with more of a lingering impact to modern man, and I can include Biblical stories in that statement. The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah or Noah’s flood story are child’s play. Even modern disasters like Chernobyl or Darfur do not carry the clout of TGD. I try to keep that in mind as I read articles about the mortgage crisis. Yes, it is a major problem and it will have rippling effects throughout the economy, but I think we’ve lost perspective. The scariest Halloween costumes in America in the past seventy-five years are not Freddy Kruger or aliens from outer space. They are costumes of a hobo with his earthly possessions on a stick or a WPA worker in khaki pants and a shovel in his hand. Those are the most terrifying images to Americans. The next time you read an article about the mortgage problem, keep that in mind. It will help with your perception.
