WTF Happened in 1971?

[DakotaHale]

https://wtfhappenedin1971.com/  

[Dobs]

We left the gold standard. That can’t possibly not be the answer they’re going for.

[DakotaHale]

7 minutes ago, Dobs said:

We left the gold standard. That can’t possibly not be the answer they’re going for.

Agreed. Most right-wing economists attribute this to the ending of the Bretton Woods system, whereas most left-wing economists seem to attribute this to the Powell Memo or "late-stage capitalism" (which in my opinion is a buzzword with no real validity and a fictional concept).

[DakotaHale]

2 minutes ago, Patine said:

Of course, the, "one event (or sometimes, person) that is to blame for a big problem or set of problems down the line," narrative is very, very common - even for professional, well-educated academics and experts. Though, in most cases of these big issues or sets of issues, it is almost always just as many different causes reaching a bottleneck, to be honest. However, targeting, "the one cause," seems sociologically soothing, if not really productive.

Well if you have an explanation we'd love to hear it.

[DakotaHale]

20 minutes ago, Patine said:

I don't personally. I'm not an economist. It just strikes me that there are probably many more factors to blame and at play for the economic issues, not just in the U.S., but globally, since 1971. Saying it is all because of the taking off the gold standard as a singular reason is very likely about as accurate as saying Gavrilo Princip is the sole reason for WW1.

Many men, wish death upon me, blood in my eyes dawg and I can't see, i'm trying to be what I'm destined to be and fellas tryna take my life away

[vcczar]

1 hour ago, DakotaHale said:

Agreed. Most right-wing economists attribute this to the ending of the Bretton Woods system, whereas most left-wing economists seem to attribute this to the Powell Memo or "late-stage capitalism" (which in my opinion is a buzzword with no real validity and a fictional concept).

It’s a combination of factors, including Bretton Woods. You also had the rapid decline of both unions and US manufacturing. There are arguably other factors. It’s like 5 or more things that were all going on at once. 

[MrPotatoTed]

1 hour ago, Dobs said:

We left the gold standard. That can’t possibly not be the answer they’re going for.

That's a solid answer.

Another possibility is the development of computers (not that it happened precisely in 1971, but as a trend of becoming a more computerized society, especially in business.

And manufacturing moving overseas.  

Some combination of the three, I'd suppose.

[Dobs]

5 minutes ago, MrPotatoTed said:

That's a solid answer.

Another possibility is the development of computers (not that it happened precisely in 1971, but as a trend of becoming a more computerized society, especially in business.

And manufacturing moving overseas.  

Some combination of the three, I'd suppose.

For sure, I was more so commenting on the tone of the website. You could just tell that’s the answer to which they were leading the reader. 

My comment wasn’t really about answering the question, just analyzing how the given source would answer it. You provide very good solutions as well. I do tend to agree, however, that the collapse of Breton Woods is the primary issue.