United States of America

[ThomasWach]

Ein Kommentar zu den Folgen der Finanz- und Wirtschaftskrise auf die amerikanische Gesellschaft und die Mittelklasse

Op-Ed Columnist
The Formerly Middle Class

At the beginning of every recession, there are people who see the downturn as an occasion for moral revival: Americans will learn to live without material extravagances. They’ll simplify their lives. They’ll rediscover what really matters: home, friends and family.

But recessions are about more than material deprivation. They’re also about fear and diminished expectations. The cultural consequences of recessions are rarely uplifting.
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This recession will probably have its own social profile. In particular, it’s likely to produce a new social group: the formerly middle class. These are people who achieved middle-class status at the tail end of the long boom, and then lost it. To them, the gap between where they are and where they used to be will seem wide and daunting
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Quelle:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/18/opinion/18brooks.html

Als kleiner Zusatzkommentar: David Brooks gilt als eher konservativer, wenn auch moderat und nicht ideologisch verblendeter konservativer Schreiber der NYT...