Sunday Reading - The Changing Face of the Long Slow Decline

Nothing will drive home whats in store for us quite like spending some time with a couple of van loads of government employees chatting among themselves. I routinely get them in groups of five or six and begin dropping them off at their various offices which are scattered around these days as opposed to 30 years ago when they were mostly centrally located. I guess each department had to have a special bond to build a shiny new building once every five years or so.

It seems there is one common topic that transcends governmental departments and is as common a ground for conversation to government employees as the weather is to us rural folks.....

When they are set to retire.

I never hear that topic from the (very) few private sector employees I get but it's the first thing that pops up among the public sector folks. Each and everyone of them know what the date will be and can mostly even tell you what hour and day of the week it will fall on. They either already have a double dipping job set up with that very department or the first of their vacation cruises booked.

Every so often however there is the odd ball younger worker mixed into the group and even if they don't say a thing you can see the look on their face as they start counting heads with that same question in their eyes.

Who's going to pay for all this?

Which leads me to the second most often heard topic among the older workers. How their children are doing.

More and more often these days I hear about children and grandchildren moving in and living with these parents. Tales of suddenly changed plans, job loss and making room for the younger members of the family. What many of us don't take into account is that although the story we are given hasn't changed the way everyday people or forced to adapt to the this long slow decline is still happening and it is also changing the face of how it will appear afterwards.

Everyday families are being forced back together again. Younger family members especially who may see themselves as failures are finding alternate means of income and lifestyle back under their parent's roof. It may cause them some mental stress at the moment but in truth situations like these will improve our chances of recovery once this decline runs it's course.

Slowly but surely despite the lies and bogus numbers presented to us by the government our society is adapting to the decline. How far this adapting can go before the decline picks up speed is anyone's guess but it is happening bit by bit.

Will it be enough to make a difference in the end?

Keep Prepping Everyone!!!!!!