Link: https://flowingdata.com/2024/02/13/consumer-confidence-in-current-economic-conditions/
Edit: By the way even though they highlight Biden’s inauguration as the time of the split I think the driving cause was the unequal recovery of the economy which is somewhat under Biden’s control but not fully.
Businesses are doing great in a cost of living crisis while the workers that both produce and consume the products are fucked - what could possibly go wrong? Things will trickle down any decade now… You’ll see.
This is like the private equity model scaled up to the level of the economy… Strip out all the costs (cut wages, automate, etc.) in an entirely unsustainable way that makes things look good on paper short-term, pat yourself on the back for turning the business around, then flog the lot on the fudged valuation and run, chuckling as the whole house of cards collapses.
Structural change is needed. Endlessly siphoning more and more productivity off to non-productive shareholders is breaking the economy.
It is EXACTLY that. PE is the main driver behind the rise in health care, the rise in elder care, the rise in medicine, the rise in child care, and now the rise in housing.
And just for funsies PE, since 2008, has essentially rolled up EVERYONES retirement into their billfold, teachers, 401k’s, nurses unions, for 2 reasons. 1. easy money, the person who makes the most off your retirement account isn’t you. The PE firm take you for over a third of its lifetime value. It’s.fucked. and B. Insurance against regulations. If they go down…they’re taking everyone with them. It’s.SUPER.fucked!
The sooner they go down the faster we can work on fixing the hundreds of millions of destroyed lives (in America alone). Capitalism is digging it’s own grave. It’ll end up a swear word. Calling someone a banker will be grounds for a fight. I’ll personally guarantee that last part…by going around fighting all the bankers.