Are you trying to say that the US economy isn't actually thriving right now?

He’s not. I am. The wealth of a nation is the goods and services available to its common people. We’ve shifted a lot of economic measures so that we’re really just paying attention to the value of assets as opposed to what they represent.

An example: In early February, retail sales numbers came in strong. The stock market went down. Why? Because analysts know that strong retail means a lower likelihood of our central monetary planners lowering interest rates, and lower rates mathematically cause asset values to grow because you’re making the denominator smaller.

Stocks should not thrive on denominator changes, but on a growing numerator: earnings. Earnings reflect actual economic activity.

But most people have their economics education provided by this regime and think it’s totally fine for the market to be determined by interest rates instead of productivity.

The rich are getting richer, for sure.

https://www.victorpest.com/articles/what-humans-can-learn-fr...

I understand that. So am I. I just don't follow what that has to do with my concerns.

We can perform a thought experiment.

You say you're getting richer. I'm getting poorer.

Want to give me some money to balance things out?

Probably not.

The rich don't care about the outcome for the rest of us. They're building bunkers. You should do the same if you can. Sam Altman, or Sama, as people affectionately call him, has guns, anti-biotics, etc. stockpiled in a remote bunker where he can survive the collapse of society.

You may be getting richer in dollar denominated value, and you may even be getting richer in purchasing power for assets right now, but if asset prices (say housing) are increasing 10%-15% year on year can you maintain that 'getting richer'?

Also from the sounds of it, and the fact you are both on HN and doing well in the market right now, implies you are in a pretty good position, compared to the general population.

To answer your question more directly, the market is doing well because both the metrics and mechanics of markets are heavily heavily gamed. The 1 trillion dollars that is being added to the US debt is going _somewhere_. You happen to be getting a piece of it which you think is great (understandably), but you can be assured that there are many people above you in the chain getting much bigger pieces, and people lower in the chain getting less and less.

A dog hanging around the table of warlords will be a lot better fed than the dogs whos owners just got their harvest taken from them.

> you can be assured that there are many people above you in the chain getting much bigger pieces

This bothers a lot of people but it doesn't bother me. I see it so often that it feels like a flamebait tactic to elicit envy.

What about the people further down the chain getting less and less? Presumably that doesn't bother you either.

It seems like you weren't really asking an objective question of 'why this is happening' but rather a subjective one of 'why should I care, I'm doing fine'

It's a valid question, why should you care, if you are doing well in this moment. I can't answer it for you.

"Why don't other people care about my safety," and "Why should I care about other peoples' safety," are your questions.

The second one answers the first.

You can't have both - either you're part of a community, or you're on your own.

Are there any wealth redistribution efforts that bother you? Like perhaps student debt forgiveness? Or welfare for single mothers?

None of the "wealth redistribution" efforts that are in effect bother me.