Worse Than 1930. Much Worse.

The dominos are falling fast now.

Dude! Do you seriously want to know what's happening? Read Jim Kunstler this morning. He's the only person I know of who saw the tsunami coming before the earthquake even struck.

Best possible outcome: the dollar will retain some of its value. Pension funds and Social Security will continue to disburse a small portion of what they've promised. Gold and silver will return as media of exchange. Some food and some gas will be available, but will be delivered strictly on a C.O.D. basis. There will be few jobs and very little money available, but people will tough it out somehow.

Worst possible outcome? Kunstler again:

Will millions stop receiving paychecks due to the turmoil in banking? It's certainly possible, starting with the poor drones in Mr. Schwarzenegger's motor vehicle bureau and eventually ranging to every payroll office in the land. Will Sarah Palin's fellow Six-packers line up around the parking lagoons of the suburban banks trying desperately to withdraw the last seventy bucks in their checking accounts? (And will their thoughts in the event be: this economy is fundamentally sound....) Will the supermarket shelves of chipoltle-flavored crunchy snacks and power drinks go empty as truckers refuse to deliver their loads without up-front payment? And how long does it take a hungry public to turn mean?

We could see a parallel problem in the motor fuel supply sector. So far, gasoline shortages have only appeared in parts of the Southeast USA, due to interruptions caused by two hurricanes. If the oil tankers quit offloading now for lack of credible payment, then the whole nation will get an interesting lesson in the shortcomings of the suburban development pattern.

I'm not in very good health, but I hope to stay alive a few more years so I can watch this. The pink swine of buccaneer capital and the lords of global finance are finally going to get theirs -- doubled down and redoubled. I sincerely wish my grandfather Sam Brice, the oldest pinko in Spokane, Washington, had lived to see this day.