[mikemike]

They had a very good interview on NPR yesterday afternoon with Thomas Friedman about his new book.

So what happened? What changed? For one thing, Friedman says, the end of the Cold War saw the rise of a new American generation.

"We shifted from [the] greatest generation that really operated on what we call in the book 'sustainable values' — saving and investing — and we handed power over to the baby boomer generation who really lived by 'situational values' — borrow and consume," Friedman says. "The baby boomers, I believe, have a lot to answer for. They have not followed in the path of their parents in terms of making the hard decisions, making the long-term investments."

Thomas Friedman On 'How America Fell Behind' : NPR

What made america great isn't what we consumed, it was what we produced.

[jeffkrol]

You can't produce without consumption...........be it here or overseas......

[shooz]

Cars, guns, beer and gambling halls?
We still do two of those.

[shooz]

Mr. Friedman failed to point out our rise of marketing domination.
Let alone, mention it's effectiveness.
Seems to be forgotten in a lot of such research.

Also the implementation of planned obsolescence.
Corporations planned it all out.

[jeffkrol]

We produce and consume plenty.. in health care............

[mikemike]

We produce and consume plenty.. in health care............

That is only for the government, the point is more about the whole economy.

[shooz]

Gieko not withstanding, don't forget the rise in other insurance costs.

[shooz]

;1640423, the point is more about the whole economy.

That runs on debt.

[Nesster]

That is only for the government, the point is more about the whole economy.

Howcome government spending is bad for the whole economy, but medical spending is 'only for the government'? It sure as heck takes two bites out of my paycheck: one for the ever increasing costs and decreasing coverage, and two for the raises I don't get because my employer's part of the healthcare cost is eating my raises. And three bites, as that extra job isn't being created because of the medical costs.

Our medical system is one of the main drags on why jobs are going elsewhere, right up there - maybe higher than - regulation and taxes.

I also heard the Friedman bit, and yea I can see generalizing from the 'me' generation... but that's to a good degree falso. Friedman himself, when he did the funny bit about what wasn't in his last book: facebook, skype etc etc, sort of sideswiped this. Silicon valley is largely boomers. Microsoft? boomers. And there are plenty more.

I'm thinking it's technological change that's driven much of the other stuff: I still remember Death of the Equity, and Forbes going out on a limb to predict the '80s were going to be the Decade of the Bond. Not just marketing, but Wall St benefited hugely from technology, from the volume of data and trades that can be processed, the global communications and arbitrage opportunity.

Just as we've de-materialized thins like music (and movie) delivery, the place of work, books, personal communication (i.e. the telephone) and computing... cut them free of physical ties... we've done so with money and capital, with Wall St, and the physical industries have suffered.

And yes, the increased velocity of money, and the aftermath of the Comeback of the Bond (and Stock), the Slaying of Inflation, all conspired to increase debt levels. And sure, many of us boomers may have thought incomes would keep going up, home prices ditto, stock prices ditto, and that there was good sense in leverage.

I don't think he fully accounts for the changing employment dynamic where women are more equally employed than in the past.

[jeffkrol]

sure just sluff off 17% of our economy........

Healthcare spending was a record 17.3 percent of the U.S. economy in 2009, the largest one-year jump since records have been kept, government officials said.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services report indicated the nearly $2.5 trillion spent in 2009 was $134 billion more than 2008, when healthcare consumed 16.2 percent of the gross domestic product, the Los Angeles Times reported Thursday.

The CMS report by independent actuaries released Thursday indicated the increase was the largest year-over-year jump since records began being kept 50 years ago, the Times said.

The report also projected that as early as next year the federal government could pick up more than half of the nation's total healthcare bill for the first time --- another milestone.

Read more: Healthcare spending 17 percent of economy - UPI.com

Pick up the other half and be done with it already.. Your dragging the economy even lower.........

[skyredoubt]

You can't produce without consumption...........be it here or overseas......

Bingo! And contrary to the conventional wisdom
"Made-in-China" Accounts for Only 2.7% of U.S. Spending

[mikemike]

sure just sluff off 17% of our economy........


Read more: Healthcare spending 17 percent of economy - UPI.com

Pick up the other half and be done with it already.. Your dragging the economy even lower.........

Since the chart you posted was from the CBO, I was guessing that it was restricted to government spending.

[jeffkrol]

Yes I just grabbed a spending chart.. Made the point though.. Gee What are we going to spend money on in the future... 17% of our money.....




http://ucatlas.ucsc.edu/spend.php

[GeneV]

They had a very good interview on NPR yesterday afternoon with Thomas Friedman about his new book.


Thomas Friedman On 'How America Fell Behind' : NPR

What made america great isn't what we consumed, it was what we produced.

Just the quote trashing your parents' generation, alone, would have gotten Friedman your book purchase.

All of the generations went to borrow and spend. The "Greatest Generation" was the last generation to have the employment and financial stability to save.

However, these are such disjointed excerpts given, I can't say I really know what his main point is.

[seacapt]

What made america great isn't what we consumed, it was what we produced.

wow I really love that quote