GDP shrinkage leading to a major decline in level of economic development.
> We can certainly still produce necessary goods while the majority of the workforce stays home.
Sure, I'm not claiming that we will starve to death en masse -- though that might indeed be a problem in India, it won't be in the US.
> How will my 401k ever recover in the next six months?!? Think about all that risk to my capital!
Not sure why you keep bringing up this strawman. Are you aware that the economy and the stock market are not the same thing? And that economic downturns cause real misery for real people, especially poorer people who don't even have 401(k)s at all?
I’m not sure why the GDP is a concern, frankly. How does this affect citizens in a material way? That is why I keep bringing up the 401k—to illustrate the absurdity of using an abstract measurement (GDP) to justify material loss of life.
GDP per capita is one of the most strongly correlated metrics to quality of life.
If you think people are living better in Denmark or Ireland than in Mexico or Turkey, how do you explain this other than GDP per capita?
Again, this has nothing to do with 401ks or the stock market. Some countries have been rich and others have been poor since well before stock markets were invented.
If you don’t think life is better in richer countries than in poorer countries, I’m not sure I can convince you of anything.
GDP shrinkage leading to a major decline in level of economic development.
> We can certainly still produce necessary goods while the majority of the workforce stays home.
Sure, I'm not claiming that we will starve to death en masse -- though that might indeed be a problem in India, it won't be in the US.
> How will my 401k ever recover in the next six months?!? Think about all that risk to my capital!
Not sure why you keep bringing up this strawman. Are you aware that the economy and the stock market are not the same thing? And that economic downturns cause real misery for real people, especially poorer people who don't even have 401(k)s at all?