GD2

I started reading John Steinbeck's Grapes of Wrath a few weeks ago. I picked this book because I loved East of Eden and I wanted to read another Steinbeck. As I started reading it, I noticed the unbelievable parallels between the great depression, the dust bowl movement, and our current economic state. I remember reading about the great depression in history and economy classes years ago but to reread a story during our current economic crisis put it in a much different perspective. It hit very close to home.
Christa showed me a Newsweek article discussing the San Joaquin Valley and the impact it has faced over the past few years. I was blown away by the statistics and beautiful black and white pictures capturing the hardships the valley is working through. It looks like a scene out of the great depression. Part five of the article parallels the depression and even references the Grapes of Wrath.
It's sad and amazing to me that we have found our way back to the same situation our great grandparents worked to dig the economy out of, and that the central valley is once again stuck.
I am so thankful that I got out of there in time and found a career in a company that has been fairly steady throughout this downturn. I am also really sad that my family has been directly affected and is struggling. Luckily, not half as bad as the folks in the article but a struggle none the less.
Check out the article, it really is something:

http://www.newsweek.com/id/211399

No wonder they are calling this the GD2 (Great Depression 2). I think we will all look back on this and have stories of how we overcame it. And hopefully pave a better future for our great grandchildren that they can learn from it and not fall to the same fate as us because obviously, we didn't learn the first time around.