I am willing to bet the government will deny collapse for as long as possible, just like they are denying we are in a war right now while our financial system is being attacked.

The majority of people will be in blissful ignorance about the situation until it becomes dire — long after it’s too late to act. So many folks are surprised to learn that Congress can pass huge spending measures for war with bipartisan support in a span of 24 hours, but can’t raise minimum wage, get us healthcare, freeze prices, address housing, tax the rich or address all the insider trading. They don’t get it. This has completely surprised many that both parties are actively working against the public good.

Collapse is highly personal. For a majority of Americans, it’s already here. This holiday shopping season will be so bad, I expect them to lie about how bad the numbers are — if for no other reason than to keep the peasants from realizing their power.

I predict Spring and Summer of 2024 will usher in a slew of retail closures and not from small struggling companies. I fully expect commercial real estate to get so bad, cities will buy up downtown areas and turn them into something else. I think Starbucks will close locations, so will drugstore and even grocers.

I think many more agile companies (or at least the smart ones) will move from retail to an online with same-day delivery in order to survive. This will further disrupt commercial real estate markets.

And all this will be ignored as it occurs.