Guilty as charged.
MY grandfather told that 50 years ago. He said he learned it during the Great Depression.
I've seen very little since then to suggest he was wrong.
During the great depression, almost all goods used by Americans were made in America.
People can work only if there are jobs available. And to start a small business, there have to be people with money to purchase the goods or services offered, AND no red tape regulations that strangle small businesses.
In the county I live in, the are few jobs, and the onerous taxes and regulations cause almost every small business started to fail within 2 years.
The only solution is to either grow marijuana, which unfortunately many people do, or move to another location, which is very difficult. To rent a person needs a huge lump of cash and a job. And a lot of people here own their homes, and it’s very hard to sell anything now.
So, I disagree with your viewpoint.
Dad joked that the locals thought WPA stood for "We Putter Around".