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High Wire: The Precarious Financial Lives of American Families

by Peter Gosselin

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573460,534 (3.5)1
The U.S. economy has had 25 years of some of the strongest, smoothest growth in its history--economists have even named it: "the Great Moderation." So why have so many of us arrived at the new century with a gnawing sense that events are moving against our families and ourselves? Drawing on interviews with hundreds of Americans and new statistics he developed, economics journalist Gosselin traces a quarter-century shift of economic risk from the broad shoulders of business and government to the backs of working people, a shift that has shaken the pillars of most families' lives--stable jobs, solid benefits, government protections. The change means that the benefits of growth come at greater peril, and your financial fall will be steeper if you stumble. This threat to working Americans' security--and what to do about it--is a pressing concern to economists, policy-makers, and everyone who works for a living.--From publisher description.… (more)
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Adult nonfiction; economics/current events. A seriously scary (and, given the events of the last 6 months since it was published, very prophetic) book about what could happen to you, and subsequently bring financial ruin. Gosselin writes about the dangers of a booming economy and what happens when seemingly "well off" people find they are not as secure as they thought they were. He tackles health care, retirement plans, disaster insurance, and other important issues. ( )
  reader1009 | Jul 3, 2021 |
This is a pretty scary book, with a lot of ideas that it would behoove the new administration to look at. The author's thesis is that, in spite of the prosperity of the past 20 years and the lessened likelihood of unemployment, the risks most people run (reduced income, catastrophic medical bills, insurance problems, pension problems, etc) have actually increased. A lot of Gosselin's examples were familiar stories, but the chapter on homeowner's insurance was a definite eye-opener for me. Not the most fun read you'll ever have, and lots of statistics, but frequent case studies add interest. Recommended. ( )
  auntieknickers | Apr 3, 2013 |
Illustrates the fine line between apparent financial security and ruin. Documents the exit of business and even the Federal and State governments from providing a financial and medical safety net to families facing financial and/or medical ruin. A condemnation of the "ownership" society. Illustrates the pitfalls of the "two income" family--the income is really one, and it is cut in half when the two-worker arrangement is endangered or destroyed by illness, divorce, childbirth (all common family upheavals) or unemployment. See also the comments about this book voiced in NYRB Fall 2008. ( )
1 vote ddonahue | Nov 24, 2008 |
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The U.S. economy has had 25 years of some of the strongest, smoothest growth in its history--economists have even named it: "the Great Moderation." So why have so many of us arrived at the new century with a gnawing sense that events are moving against our families and ourselves? Drawing on interviews with hundreds of Americans and new statistics he developed, economics journalist Gosselin traces a quarter-century shift of economic risk from the broad shoulders of business and government to the backs of working people, a shift that has shaken the pillars of most families' lives--stable jobs, solid benefits, government protections. The change means that the benefits of growth come at greater peril, and your financial fall will be steeper if you stumble. This threat to working Americans' security--and what to do about it--is a pressing concern to economists, policy-makers, and everyone who works for a living.--From publisher description.

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