"The [economic downturn] hit that year with whirlwind suddenness and created widespread economic devastation...The boom economy, fed by easy credit, abruptly ended."
Guess the year. I'll give the answer, as well as the source of the quote in the Comments section.
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The quote refers to the depression that began in the United States in 1819. But easy, unregulated credit seems always to be the culprit for downturns, recessions, and depressions.
The source is John Siegenthaler's book, 'James K. Polk,' part of the 'American Presidents Series' edited by the late Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr.
The year in question came early in Polk's career as a lawyer, legislative clerk, and would-be politician.
In the 1990s and 2000s, the vast financial services industry in the US was unshackled from the provisions of the Glass-Steagall Act, which has been one defense against economic calamity since the 1930s, and offered easy credit to people who would not have ordinarily qualified.
The plunge in 2008 was its predictable result.
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