Was 2008 worse than the Great Depression?
This question has recently popped up in the news and in our consciousness. At first when I saw the question, I thought I sure hope not. All those stories we heard when growing up of the hardships faced by our predecessors as they suffered rationing and stamps. I would hate to think that recession we just went through, which is called a recession and not a depression, is worse than the stories of past. I know a lot of people went through some serious hardships. They lost jobs, had houses foreclosed, were forced to file bankruptcy, etc.
I wasn’t very affected, other than making sure I had a little more pad in my savings and tightening my budget a bit. Then when I think about that last sentence, I realize I didn’t really do either of those things. I thought I would. I thought I was. Really though, my spending habits didn’t change all that much. I still bought too many clothes and went out too often. That being said, I’ve never lived an extravagant life. The details on my spending habits all support the fact that I did not lose my job in 2008, or in the recession at all. None of this is gloating.
So, I lived through this “worse than the great depression” period of time, and it wasn’t bad.
Later, I actually took some time and I read the article which bore the big question. The story actually said that Ben Bernanke, former head of the Federal Reserve said the shocks that happened to the financial system in 2008 were worse than the ones in 1929 that caused the Great Depression. However, because of the efforts that were taken in 2008 to ameliorate the problem the result was not as adverse. Basically, he is saying that due to economic policy and a better handling of the situation, America was able to better fare the economic turmoil. Still, an interesting question to ponder and consider.
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