“I’m an optimist by nature and I hope we can get out of this. The best I could say is I couldn’t see it getting any worse.”
So ends an article on Ireland’s economic problems. The article puts a human side to all the economic statistics that hide the suffering and stories that generate them.
Ireland’s financial condition is not too different from many other countries in the world, including the US.
The simple fact is that the social welfare states of the world have bankrupted themselves. (See Welfare States R.I.P. and Political and Economic Situation Dire.) They are all insolvent. They will all end up defaulting on obligations. The story of Ireland is the story of Portugal, Greece, Britain, Iceland, Spain, the US and likely several other countries. The longer these countries put off their meeting with reality, the worse the adjustments become. Mathematics, rather than economics, is at work here.
Read the article to gain an understanding of the suffering that is, to one degree or another, going to hit your country, state, community and family. Perhaps an understanding of what can/will happen will enable you to be better prepared emotionally and financially for the tough times ahead.
