My Uncle is 91 years old (born 1920) and is sharp as a tack. What he remembers is just amazing. I was talking with him recently about the GD and he said his family was not affected at all. His Dad (my grandfather) had emigrated with his family from Danzig, Germany to NYC in 1927 and soon thereafter moved up to Thornwood, NY. Grandpa was an engineer with an elevator company in NYC and elevators were in huge demand then with the boom in skyscraper construction due to the growth of the structural steel industry. My Uncle says that our family was hardly affected.
My Mom passed away last year at age 84. She grew up on a very small farm in Northern Idaho and they were always dirt poor. They endured.
Both families were very frugal and thrifty.
When talking about national economic issues we tend to overlook what the people themselves were doing wrong or right.
Of my two sets of great grandparents, one set saved and lived frugal. They kept their farm. The other set took advantage of easy loans, bought a car, and lived the high life. They lost their home.
Look at today. We’ve doubled down as a population and there is no painless way out.