My wife informed me that the last few blogs have been too "data heavy" (I think this is her way of saying "boring") so I figured what better way to break that string with a story about the zombie apocalypse. What's this zombie apocalypse you speak of, you ask? It's what's coming when Russia drops a nuclear bomb in Ukraine, social security goes bankrupt, civil war breaks out between Democratic states and Republican ones and the general order of things completely breaks down. It's coming later this year. Or maybe 2024. Of course, it was supposed to happen in 2017 but it got delayed.
Before I go any further, let's be clear - all of the things just mentioned are serious concerns and difficult problems we, as a country, face. Without careful and deliberate action all of them could happen. Just like many of them (or something similar) could have happened in the 1960s. And just like some of them have happened in Europe. It also goes without saying that making light of them doesn't mean we shouldn't construct a financial plan that at least acknowledges their risks.
However, and this is what's most important, even if some of them do happen, life will go on. Since 1945, the threat of nuclear war has always been present. Countries like France, England & Spain have seen multiple political systems over their thousands of years of existence. During The Great Depression, ~75% of people who wanted to go to work each day still had jobs to go to. The sun came up and went down, people went to church on Sundays, and young adults marveled at their favorite athletes. So, even if some of these things do happen, or any number of a litany of other "bad" things we might read about come to pass, please don't think we're all doomed to wander the earth in search of twinkies and bullets. Life will go on. And we should plan & invest accordingly.