Yes, financialization crept in and in its own way, it demoralized many. What's interesting is that it wasn't really until the 2010 decade that it really accelerated, and that of course has most to do with the GFC "solution". You could easily make things meet in the 2000s, and even for most until the social breakdown from smart phones, 2013-2016, life was materially good. The leadup to 2020 and the scamdemic was the final straw though; that much printing was just obscene.
Now, the only way out is AI/robotics but neither of those will legitimately be ready, regardless of what they say, for at least 10 years. They'll be lying and marketing it all until the rug pull happens. A version of that "rug pull" could just be the continued, absurd printing, that ultimately is just a way to finally equalize the USD as world reserve. It will lose so much value we won't really be able to maintain any standard of living for most people (also the plan). The only protections are what I've talked about ad nauseum on the forum. Why are those clearly the protections? Few have them. If you doubt, do your research.
