I had a dental bill for $1,200 last year. You thought that was a lot. Now my five credit card bills combined are more than ten times that. Millions of Americans are in debt. There are some who owe over $100,000. Forbes magazine says 18.6 millionaires in the US. There are 607 billionaires in America. Jeff Bezos is the CEO of Amazon. He is the richest man in the world. Corporate behemoth Amazon has gobbled up ToysR Us, Payless Shoes, Radio Shack, most recently Sears and many other stores. Some people still pay with cash. Some use debit and credit cards. Many people still enjoy shopping in stores. Other more well-off customers do almost all of their shopping online and have it all delivered. We stand as a nation divided. The Founding Fathers and Lincoln would abhor the current status quo. Science fiction author Brian W. Aldiss wrote a short story entitled Who Can Replace A Man? The answer now is that machines, computers, and robots can for many jobs now and more in the next few decades. Combine that with climate change and the coronavirus, and we will have a rough ride to the future.
Deuel Woodward resides in Chula Vista.
