15 signs American society is coming apart at the seams

yes, that 1950's scene,...modest sized house, picket fence, middle class workers lived like kings!!! Now, you have to fight to get ahead...corporations and big contractors have snuck in undetected, they just negotioated with the local mayor, and came rolling on in, all over crap no one really cares about. IN my city, we have the TRUMP tower...southwest CT. GOD the building looks of arrogence. Its because of buildings and business like that, pushes low income and middle class people out..and to top it off...they bring that business arrogence with them, making people more and more depressed and angry, so they dont wanna talk to anyone other than themselves or KNOWN friends*

Then they hire illegal alines, nearly destroy the working class, forcing people to move, and only those making $100,000 are allwoed to stay in YUOR city now...eventualy laying of the overpayed american citizens, and keeping and promoting illegal aliens....
Back in the 1950's 1960's at least the corporations were somewhat sympathetic and patrioti, to get thier products to sell...now its other way around..its aginst the american consumer for the most part. Also, not to mention, all the chemcials and carcinogens put into thigns like soap, shaving creams, toothpaste, ect ect that pollute the lcoal beaches and water systems.
Looks like corporations have an evil agenda* wouldnt you say

reply to post by Rhetoric


Good read, very true, I say bring it on.
(and i second the motion with a second line)

The article --- though sad --- is dead on. Unfortunately, when threatened humans tend to contract to a state of self-preservation. It's hard-wired. But read that again. self-preservation. That very instinct interferes with our ability to interconnect or work together when threatened. We entrench. We crawl in our holes dealing with our personal issues and challeneges and entirely forget what put us there. Instinct at work.

And to make matters worse, 'they' know all this. They know how to divide and isolate us in orer to keep us under control. They've perfected this science for decades. So, when the SHTF, we'll be at one another's throats... not theirs, unfortunately. It's going to take a miracle to make any meaningful and significant change.

But everyone please remember this one, very important thing:

When the balloon goes up... we go for the lawyers and politicians first.

Originally posted by Confused and Dazed!
Once upon a time, a single wage earner, could support a family of three or four on a modest middle income. Then women rejoined the work force, to help push their income levels higher, so that the family unit, could then afford some of the extras, that one income couldn't.

The extra incomes, helped American families achieve a living standard, that had never been obtained before by middle America.

Commerce took notice of the extra income...and not all that long afterwards, began a steady pricing increase on nearly everything. Soon, what used to be affordable on one income, was now a reset living paradigm that needed two incomes just to get by on.

Unions then began demanding more for the workers, as industry increased prices to consumers. Costs continued to escalate.

After a while, wage earners couldn't make enough fast enough, to afford all that they wanted to buy, and credit companies began to surface, making it easier to buy on time...everything your heart desired.

Now, people have lost sight of reality. They cannot stand to be the one without. They cannot stand to be told "NO", or that you have to wait for it.

It is a society with an Instant Gratification complex. Everyone is owed the "High Life", and they deserve the best of everything...no matter the long term consequences. I'll buy it now, and worry about paying for it later!

I often wonder what is wrong with the brain of someone, like a low brow rube bagging groceries, who is telling the cashier that he is going to buy a NEW Mustang, as soon as he can get a co-signer for his loan! Especially, considering the fact he had a mouth full of bad teeth. His priorities were totally screwed up.

It is common for someone to have 10,15 or more credit cards, most carrying a balance out of proportion to their incomes. People regularly purchase new vehicles, that are a financial burden them...yet, they refuse to buy a five year old or older used car...because it is beneath their status.

Peoples priorities are just totally out of whack. Far too many think they should be financially rewarded with huge incomes, benefits, and a bonus Porsche to boot, just because they have a Bachelors Degree....

Listen to the new college graduate hiss and piss when they can't land the big time fat paychecks of someone who has worked for 25 years doing something similar. They want the very same pay, NOW!

Why have costs of living went insane? Such as;

A two bedroom apartment that cost $ 160. @ month in 1970, is now more than a $1000 @ month for the very same unit today! Something is very wrong with that picture!

A modest but nice home that cost $ 17,500 in 1970, is over $190,000 today, for the same home... without any modern upgrades.

A brand new 1977 Plymouth ,Grand Fury with every option was $5,500...today, a vehicle of an equivalence to it, would be in excess of $50,000+. And no longer American made.

Everything is geared to the dual incomes of working couples. The dual income paradigm is also geared to the college degree holding worker. They tend to be paid more than non degree holders...so therefore, they are the ones, who have set the standard prices we all pay.

For the single person, who is living alone; "Good Luck" with that situation today! Unless they are making $35,000+ a year, they will be living mightily frugally.

The Me-ism of America, a society deluded by it is desires of Instant Gratification, and that everyone is owed a fat cat life on E-Z Street...has pushed the whole nation towards financial chaos and it ultimate demise.

Americans are owed nothing, but one huge comeuppance. It is finally here, and now listen to everyone blubber and sob about losing it all, when they were ones who lived above their means for over 40 years...

It is time to pay the piper...and his fee is going to hurt!

This is the single best post on the entire internet. Ever.

Excellent article, and very much to the point. I believe that when most Americans break away long enough from their tv induced stupor, and realize whats going on, there is going to be some violence at some point.

People are in a bad, bad mood, and getting madder. There will be a tipping point soon. When it all goes bad, it will happen quick.
Take the advice posted on the survival boards. stock up on food, guns, hard assets, and get ready for the ride. it will be long and painfull. if you think the government is going to somehow turn this mess around, then you deserve what happens to you. Failing to plan, is planning to fail. Don't do it to yourself, and your family. get ready now.

Thanks for the article. S/F

It's time to throw ideology out the window. All of us. For God's sake we are letting our country FALL!

I spent the day at work (luckily!) listening to a co-worker scream about Washington, the banks, and the wars. I'm sensing flat out anger from many people I know...the ones who have woken up. More and more people are finally starting to pay attention. When they realize what is going on...they quite simply can't believe that it has become this bad.

The "50 percent of all children will be on food stamps" is startling to me. My brother just started on them as he works in construction and is struggling to keep food on the table. I am also eligible for food stamps but I have avoided it because I am trying to keep some sense of pride (not that anyone should feel any less of a person for doing so!).

You do what you have to do to take care of your kids. It trumps any and all ideology/beliefs.

The American people need to come together and fight this. I'm tired of fighting with each other.

Aren't you? We yell at each other yet none of us are the real enemy. The enemies are the ones who don't know what it's like sitting your shoes.

No politician is struggling like you are right now. No corporate entity...no millionare reporter, no one who is flashed about on your television screen struggles like you...yet somehow...they know what is best for you.

reply to post by David9176


I have a idea , but not for sure

What is a food stamp ?

reply to post by Sean48


Well I'm not sure how it's done now...I think it's done with debit cards and an account is set up for you...but when I was younger it looked like fake play money. My father was on it once when i was very young after he was layed off at the steel mill he worked at.

Another thing that this article doesn't talk about is how many people are in the WIC program which helps families with newborns get baby formula/bread/milk.

Originally posted by David9176
Thanks for the article. S/F

It's time to throw ideology out the window. All of us. For God's sake we are letting our country FALL!

I spent the day at work (luckily!) listening to a co-worker scream about Washington, the banks, and the wars. I'm sensing flat out anger from many people I know...the ones who have woken up. More and more people are finally starting to pay attention. When they realize what is going on...they quite simply can't believe that it has become this bad.

The "50 percent of all children will be on food stamps" is startling to me. My brother just started on them as he works in construction and is struggling to keep food on the table. I am also eligible for food stamps but I have avoided it because I am trying to keep some sense of pride (not that anyone should feel any less of a person for doing so!).

You do what you have to do to take care of your kids. It trumps any and all ideology/beliefs.

The American people need to come together and fight this. I'm tired of fighting with each other.

Aren't you? We yell at each other yet none of us are the real enemy. The enemies are the ones who don't know what it's like sitting your shoes.

No politician is struggling like you are right now. No corporate entity...no millionare reporter, no one who is flashed about on your television screen struggles like you...yet somehow...they know what is best for you.

The second best post on the internet ever!

Good job David and very well said!
Happy Holidays, hope you all are well!


[edit on 22-12-2009 by dodadoom]

I just read a blog from someone predicting a food crisis in 2010 that he theorizes will be the final straw that broke America's back (to paraphrase). He claims there have been record crop failures in the USA and around the globe in 2009 which spells disaster for 2010, yet at the same time the USDA is claiming there will be surpluses, so someone is not telling the truth. Who are you gonna believe, the govt or the farmers who are the ones putting the food on your table?

www.marketskeptics.com...

If the dollar collapses AND there are food shortages, we will be in a SHTF situation.

That's a very good article.

As if any more evidence was needed to show that there is a revolution on the way.

America is fully armed.
The people almost have nothing left to loose.
The "authorities" are increasing their presence at every opportunity, and it'll only take one incident at any future protest/rally to spark a complete meltdown.

The fact is, the US govt. (just as in almost every other industrialized nation) has its own "second economy" of the corporate elite. To increase wealth amongst that elite, they have to remove money from the "real economy". That is why there is a wealth divide. And all the political leaders are in on it.

They rely on that to gain funding, to make their own profit, to have corporate contractors on side to control you all and supply to the Military.

They will not let the corporate game (the one where you and I are robbed to make wealthy people even wealthier) end any time soon. They will do everything in their power to stop the protests, stop the truth getting out to the people, they'll manipulate facts and figures, they'll hide the bodies if they have to.

But there will come a tipping point. I would have thought it would all be happening faster TBH. I was predicting a lot more for 2009. But I am almost certain that we will see a protest in the USA in 2010 where Riot cops are shot at from rooftops.
In a country armed like America, it's inevitable that the people will fight back when they see an oppressor, and the PTB will have no choice but to oppress the people to maintain their control and their capitalist (read: fascist) system.

Politeness and restraint only go so far, and when there are enough people with nothing left to loose, that is when they start to make irrational (or rational, depending on your views) decisions.

2010 is going to be a fascinating year.

reply to post by Confused and Dazed!


Bullseye. The last 40 years have seen the growth of the consumerist society with the emphasis on the last 30 years. We went from the "American Dream" to "Keeping up with the Joneses" to surpassing the Joneses to I want it now, I don't care how much it costs as long as my credit is good enough.

I've posted along these same lines in other threads. While it obviously is not every single person in the country, we've become a country focused on the latest, best, newest. Part of it is due to the acceleration in the progress of electronics and technology in general. Part of it is due to things that one might have once held onto for years being viewed as disposable, easily replaceable with the swipe of a plastic card, traded in or flipped.

We've gone from a society that appreciated what we have to one that strives to have more at any cost. Banks have made it easier as credit has gone from a privilege to something that can be obtained by almost anyone that can prove they have some form of income. It's become more tenuous as a person's career path has morphed from one where someone seeks job security for life to one where hopping from job to job every five or ten years for that higher payday becomes more the norm. People want that college degree because everyone says you can't get a good job without one while good paying jobs that don't require a degree become more scarce and those are the jobs that the majority of Americans rely on.

It's sad that we've become a country that places such value on things rather than the fundamentals. Shelter for your family, sustenance for them and the means to provide it. While those are the things that we work for in a basic sense, the level of an "acceptable" standard has been raised so high that it's nearly impossible for an average person to maintain for decades. Have to have this, have to have that, can't live without that, that's not good enough.

The shift away from the knowledge of how our country works doesn't help. There are people that are more likely to know who won an Oscar for best actor than their own senator's name or what they stand for. Entertainment such as movies, television, video game and music went from occasional enjoyments to focal points. Movie or music stars are followed far more closely than they once were. Sports teams are our own local gladiators. All of them have become industries to a level that would have once been considered absurd.

People have become so used to a standard of living that they don't know what truly hard times are. I'm no spring chicken but I have to look to my 82 year old mother to remind me what real hard times are. Life as a child on a farm in a depression without running water or electricity, living through war rationing. Things that most people today think of as inconceivable, something out of the dark ages that happened only 60-75 years ago.

The recessions and economic downturns that this country has seen in the past 40 years are nothing compared to life in the not so distant past. Most people today can't conceive of the life that our not so distant ancestors lived and they're poorly prepared if those times became even close to the norm again. Too many people take for granted things that they have available to them that would have once been thought of as luxuries.

Ugh. I could babble on but it's almost 5 am.

Originally posted by TypeSH2001
reply to post by expat2368

 

"I unfortunately agree with both your analogy and solution. It's disgusting, but sometimes I feel like we need another Great Flood soon to wipe out all that is and start over again. It's like the present civilization is in the same predicament that the previous civilization was in before the Flood - so much evil in the world and just so far gone. Good somehow doesn't have the will or desire to counterbalance Evil and to do what's necessary to maintain a fair and proper balance in the order of things, and total destruction always seems to result.

In theory that sounds like a workable concept, and I hear so many survivalists, minimalist, and religious factions echo the same philosophy about how the earth, or god, or nature, will wipe the greedy elite from us in a "great flood" like catastrophe. And we are in for the several potential chances of catastrophe's spanning from now until 2026. This will be when we finally move out from the galactic alignment of the Dark Rift.

However, the elite have dug in and are counting on a shiiit storm of upheaval, to destabilize and eliminate a good portion of the common free will human species. Why do you think they have sync'd their time table for take over with this period of time. Why do you think so many time tables peak during this period of time.

Its not just going to be enough to survive the Galactic storm we are going through now, or to endure the elites wrath, they are currently inflicting upon us, the real battle will be in the after math of a major catastrophe. This is when they plan to make their move for total take over and enslavement. This is when their NWO will be brought in.

Anyone watch the Daily Show last night? Hilarious and sad... because it's true:

www.thedailyshow.com...

Here's the Colbert Report, also top-notch:

www.colbertnation.com...

If we're all gonna die, may as well laugh while doing it.

Also, can we get a dedicated Libya forum any time soon?

reply to post by Jazzyguy

Rather than drastic changes to the tax code to redistribute the wealth (somehow governemnts dont do it very efficiently anyhow) why not lower barriers to entry and expand opportunities foreducation, employment and capital for entrepreneurship??

Here's why all the wild ideas don't work. A local politician wanted to create 350 jobs and all he needed was a building but nobody would GIVE him one. So someone offered him one free for 3 years with a rent tied to profits for the next 3 years then he owned the building. They couldn't make a deal because the building owner wanted a a business plan / outline. The dreamer just wanted a fight to prove somebody with money was trying to keep him down. He won but the guy with the building just sold it for 3 million so who So who won?? and is it the buildings owners fault that only 60 jobs will be created or the local politican who wouldn't and couldn't prove he could make money?? The local wanted to make bath towels. DUHHH