There has never been a full stop in economic markets, production, and the exchange of goods and services like is currently going on with COVID-19. The GDP of the U.S. is expected to drop by over 25% in the 2nd Quarter. There are over 26 million recently unemployed and rising. Millions are without funds to pay rent, buy food, and provide for other essentials of life.
Small businesses have been the hardest hit. Up to 30 million small businesses and entrepreneurs in the U.S. alone have been affected. Sales and revenues have falled off a cliff and even when the lockdown has ended it will only be a trickle at first of those resuming normal circulation and purchase habits. Many will never reopen.
The SBA loans were a joke, over 85% went to millionaires and Wells Fargo and other banks blatantly ignored applications from true small businesses and instead pocketed larger fees by processing the simpler and more lucrative applications from large clients. There was insider access, preferential treatment, and crony capitalism which has always exisited in the U.S. but even to a greater and more extreme level since the great financial crisis of 2018.
Small businesses remain abandoned and many will be sold and consolidated by corporate speculators and holding companies and be bought up at pennies on the dollar. Assuredly these corporations will only higher a fraction of any previous workers while offering pay and benefits inline with the deleterious trends of the gig economy. In several months many workers in a holding pattern of being laid off will be officially terminated and the number of long-term stagnant members of the true unemployed class will likely reach over 30%.
This will only present more waves of populism, disaffection, and general inequality in the United States of Have n Have Nots. But no worry, the sociopathic U.S. stock markets continue to trend higher in the short-term violating any rules about earnings, incomes, employment, or any traditional patterns of growth. They are only bolstered by the trillions in reserve for the upper 10%, 1%, 0.1%, and 0.01% in an ever escalating pattern of enrichment and political protection for the ruling oligarchies of the United States. More about that in an upcoming post.
Say a prayer for your small business neighbors.
Peace on the Hive Blockchain @ClumsySilverDad
