Recession Wisdom, Quotes and Jokes

Since 1929, the United States has survived 13 recessions and learned some hard lessons from them.

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13. That's how many recessions the United States has endured since the crash of 1929 (not including the one we're in). Most were short, you'll be happy to know, and were followed by long periods of prosperity. Only three lasted more than a year.

But who among us couldn't use a little balm for our economic woes right about now? In 87 years and 1,042 issues of Reader's Digest, there's been plenty of wit and wisdom to soothe the savaged savings account—not to mention strong opinions on what should be done to avert future calamity.

Here are some gems, jeremiads, and jokes from recessions and depressions past, along with new quotes that offer bracing advice for the times we're in.

On Keeping Perspective
April 1930
There is something about the possession of wealth which is not good for the soul, perhaps. It places artificial value upon secondary things. A man losing a million metal tokens will put a revolver to his temple and pull the trigger. But he has lost nothing but money. He has deprived himself of life because misfortune has deprived him of luxuries.
--Clarence Budington Kelland, The American Magazine

December 1933
Surely the ability to get laughter out of trivial things, under miserable conditions, is not an entirely worthless result of the depression. I have little hope of getting started again in my former business, so I can have the thrill of planning my future all over again.
--B. Gordon Byron, Survey Graphic

October 1982
Money … can symbolize work, power, love won, or love denied. It can take the form of expensive homes, expensive clothes, expensive presents. Luxuries become necessities. Debt compensates for all shortcomings. "For people to admit they can't afford things they want means placing themselves in a position of weakness," says Dr. Edward J.Khantzian, associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. "They have to say no to themselves, and nobody likes that."
--Time

Surviving Tough Times
September 1953
You may suppose it is impossible to cut your spending; but changes sweeping enough to reduce expenses all along the line may seem not only possible but desirable. You would not be lowering your fundamental standards, but maintaining your integrity and independence.
--Sylvia Porter, The Atlanta Journal and Constitution Magazine

February 1974
Even the simplest kind of budget-keeping should involve planning for a much longer period than the year ahead. It should provide a long-range master plan for at least five years ahead.
--Changing Times, The Kiplinger Magazine

December 2008
We who have had the misfortune of learning firsthand from this experience-and in a bust this big, that group includes just about everyone-can take pains to make sure that we, personally, never make similar mistakes again. Specifically, we can save more, spend less, diversify our investments, and avoid buying things we can't afford.
--Henry Blodget, The Atlantic

Fixing the Blame
Writers have often had strong opinions on what is causing our problems and on what to do about them. Their words remain surprisingly relevant today.

October 1923
The truth is that Wall Street gamblers are one of the causes of our frequent business depressions.
--Floyd W. Parsons, The Saturday Evening Post

November 1926
The economics of installment selling [buying on credit] is far worse even than at first it seems ... Installment buying, as a habit, is enervating to character because it leads straight to serfdom. If anything is un-American, surely that is!
--J. George Frederick, The Independent

January 1930
There are two great dangers to the continuance of prosperity. The first is the false idea that business is still governed by a cycle of boom and depression, and the second is that the leaders of business will think that the country is broke because some of their friends are. And also there is the danger that many executives who have been playing the market instead of working will not know how to get back to real work.
--Samuel Crowther, The World's Work

October 1958
Those who favor a deficit as an alleged anti-recessionary measure tell us that it will be "temporary." But there is no such thing as temporary large-scale deficit financing.
--Harry F. Byrd, U.S. senator from Virginia

February 1974
Let's not kid ourselves. Our birthright as Americans, if it is anything, is independence. It's up to us to see that we don't sell that birthright for a barrel of oil.
--Walter J. Hickel, governor of Alaska, 1966-1969, secretary of the interior, 1969-1970

May 1982
Tomorrow's needs are getting short shrift because the Great American Majority-the broad middle class—is choosing to consume today rather than save for tomorrow.
--Peter G. Peterson (now chairman of Blackstone), The New York Times Magazine

December 2008
People, especially Americans, started believing that they can live on other people's money. And more and more so. First other people's money in your own country. And then the savings rate comes down, and you start living on other people's money outside. At first it was the Japanese. Now the Chinese and the Middle Easterners.
We—the Chinese, the Middle Easterners, the Japanese—we can see this too. Okay, we'd love to support you guys—if it's sustainable. But if it's not, why should we be doing this? After we are gone, you cannot just go to the moon to get more money.
--Gao Xiqing, president of China Investment Corporation, The Atlantic