Looking at historic economic data can sometimes be a bit bleak. Over the last five decades wages have been left behind by economic productivity, houses have gone from an essential good to a coveted investment, we are saving less money than ever before, prices for everyday goods have outpaced earnings, the financial industry has become the largest sector in the economy, debt around the world has spiked to unsustainable levels, and inequality has broken new records. For the first time since the Gilded Age the top 0.1% in America controls more wealth than the bottom 90% combined. Elon Musk alone recently became the richest person in history, topping even the generous inflation‑adjusted estimates of John D. Rockefeller in his prime—although Rockefeller’s prime lasted a lot longer than Musk’s. All of this data tells a concerning story of a world heading in a bad direction, a direction that has ended in catastrophe many times throughout history. If you have keen eyes (or you just read the title of this video) you might have noticed that all of these alarming indicators took a bad turn at around the same time. So what happened in 1971?
