Kunstler Today: "America’s Standard of Living has to Be Reduced by 20 to 50 Percent."

In his regular Monday morning essay, James Howard Kunstler says America will reduce its standard of living by as much as 50 percent, whether it likes it or not:

"The lowering of living standards by 20 to 50 percent essentially eliminates all but the must critical commerce, meaning that most of the stores in the malls and strip malls lose their customers and shed employees, while the mall and strip mall owners lose their rents, and the bankers lose performing commercial real estate loans. As all this occurs, tax revenues go way down, schools can’t pay their employees or buy diesel fuel for their yellow bus fleets. More people lose the ability to carry health insurance. Hospital emergency rooms are overwhelmed. Health care descends to Third World levels."

Much more at Kunstler's blog.