[vtsnowedin]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Ludi', 'A')nd yet most people would see my way of life as very precarious and insecure. But I have a mortal terror of debt and avoid it like the plague (we do have a small mortgage, however).

But I also know that debt has become a way of life for most Americans.

[mos6507]

There have been too many cases of positive feedbacks which have conditioned americans to feel entitled to move up the ladder and make more and more money, save money for retirement, and so on. This is the american dream, after all, and it WORKED more often than not. To lead an austere life is to walk away from what most people feel is a pretty good shot at material prosperity. Even today I suspect that those who are most worried about the economy feel that it will eventually pass and we'll get back on the growth-train. They may be hunkering down, but they continue to have high aspirations. They are in for a terrible disappointment.