There are some undeniable facts and historical trends that seriously indicate the economy is in much worse shape than most “experts” would have anyone believe. On top of that, throw in a dose of religious mythology and doom-saying, and we have the makings of how the seven deadly sins could lead the United States into a depression, not recession.

GLUTTONY

Wikepedia defines Gluttony as “the over-indulgence and over-consumption of anything to the point of waste….it is considered a sin because of the excessive desire for food, or its withholding from the needy.” For the past 4 decades the United States has implemented an inane policy of farm subsidies; we’re literally paying farmers to destroy livestock and crop. All this in the midst of a world wide food shortage and crisis. World War I was often blamed on the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, but the more significant underlying cause was the rising food prices throughout Europe that caused great unrest.

GREED

The meteoric growth of the United States stock market in the 1920’s and its ensuing crash was the catalyst for the Great Depression. One of the primary drivers was the absolute lack of any common sense regulations. Fast forward 80 years, and we have a housing market on the verge of collapse, because every yuppie family in the US wanted a house just a big as their neighbors, even if they didn’t have the income to justify it.

This comical and scary presentation is the best explanation I’ve ever seen of why we’re having a real estate market crash.

The Real Estate Market Crash – Free Legal Forms

SLOTH

Over 1 million students drop out of high school each year (read more here).

We’ve medicated over 2.5 Million children for ADHD.

Besides our troops and their families, over 300 million Americans have never been asked to make a single sacrifice, despite being at war for the last 5 years.

WRATH

We’ve become an angry ass nation. We hate abortionists, we hate pro-lifers. We hate gays, we hate traditionalists. We hate science, we hate religion.

Sometimes I find myself watching Fox News just to see how angry I get.

ENVY

Who are we envious of… ourselves.

40 percent of American families annually spend more than they earn.

The average per household debt in the U.S., not counting mortgage debt, is about $14,500 (before the 1930s, most middle and working class people had no major debts)

More Stats Here

PRIDE

The national debt is approaching 10 Trillion Dollars

Our manufacturing industry is in steep decline and we are an increasingly less self-reliant country.

Traditional services based jobs (legal, accounting, call centers) which drive the economy now vie for competition all across the world.

The dollar is at historic lows, and the most likely path to curb crippling inflation will be a steady increase of interest rates, which will eventually cause a rise in unemployment and the price of consumer goods to skyrocket.

In spite of all these historical indicators, we remain overly optimistic, overly abundant, and overly prideful of our economic hegemony in the world.

The US has the most vibrant, innovative, and resilient economy in the history of the world. A serious economic downturn is NOT a foregone conclusion, but it is a likely one if we don’t take heed of historical trends and deadly sins.

what about..

LUST

Actually, that one is not that bad. Check out my last blog post.