BTC
$104,374.27
+
2.46%
ETH
$2,670.02
+
9.31%
XRP
$2.5699
+
3.97%
USDT
$1.0002
+
0.01%
BNB
$666.87
+
1.61%
SOL
$179.02
+
4.96%
USDC
$1.0000
-
0.01%
DOGE
$0.2393
+
6.55%
ADA
$0.8273
+
4.00%
TRX
$0.2709
+
0.10%
SUI
$4.0143
+
3.54%
LINK
$17.46
+
7.08%
AVAX
$25.51
+
5.72%
XLM
$0.3137
+
1.66%
SHIB
$0.0₄1630
+
6.38%
HBAR
$0.2161
+
2.47%
HYPE
$26.10
+
10.31%
TON
$3.3902
+
2.65%
PI
$1.1815
+
6.98%
BCH
$411.63
+
2.48%
Logo
  • News
  • Prices
  • Data
  • Indices
  • Research
  • Consensus
  • Sponsored
  • Sign In
  • Sign Up
Advertisement

Consensus 2025

Consensus 2025

Prices Increase This Friday

17:00:58:04

17

DAY

00

HOUR

58

MIN

04

SEC

Register Now
Policy
Share this article
X iconX (Twitter)LinkedInFacebookEmail

America, Let’s Try Optimism This Thanksgiving

Inflation is certainly a cause for anxiety, but it could be seen as a price worth paying for keeping the economy going during unprecedented calamity.

By David Z. Morris
Updated May 11, 2023, 6:21 p.m. Published Nov 26, 2021, 1:30 p.m.
(Tim Mossholder/Unsplash)
(Tim Mossholder/Unsplash)

You’re reading this on Friday, but I’m writing it on Wednesday because of the Thanksgiving holiday. So I suppose it makes sense to think about the future, and about America. Many Americans seem to have lost that urge, despite economic signs showing things are turning a major corner. One of the reasons crypto is winning so big right now is that it offers an escape from a society that in many ways can seem like it’s traveling a long, dark tunnel to nowhere.

Whether crypto represents a real alternative or not, of course, remains to be seen. But with political tensions, COVID-19, looming climate catastrophe and apparently contagious social-media brainworms, America is in the midst of a period of extreme cultural pessimism, alongside what many are describing as a mental health crisis. Tragically, this has been particularly concentrated among children, but it’s also obviously hitting adults. I’m personally fixated on the rise of violent incidents on airplanes, among the most clearly terrifying places to lose your mind.

STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the State of Crypto Newsletter today. See all newsletters
By signing up, you will receive emails about CoinDesk products and you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy.

This article is excerpted from The Node, CoinDesk’s daily roundup of the most pivotal stories in blockchain and crypto news. You can subscribe to get the full newsletter here.

More specifically, survey data shows surges in anxiety and depression (unfortunately, better medical data seems hard to come by). Individual anxiety and depression are such pernicious little bastards because they trap you in a loop of cursing yourself for inaction while also being terrified of taking the wrong action. That’s a fairly decent analog for the broader paralysis, malaise and fear that have taken over our cultural discourse as a whole.

Unlike a lot of individual cases, America’s collective mental health crisis has some serious real-world justifications. But on at least one front there’s a strange disconnect: The U.S. economy is absolutely burning up the charts. I saw this first hand recently when I trekked out to Jamaica, Queens, to renew my driver’s license at the excellent Motor Vehicles department there. It’s a working-class neighborhood on the far eastern outskirts of New York City, and I was amazed by the crowds, the number of people in the streets and the boxes of new goods piled on the sidewalks. People were just out there shopping their tails off.

The numbers back up the anecdote. JPMorgan this week revised its fourth-quarter GDP growth estimate to 7%, per CNBC’s Carl Quintanilla, which is so good you’re tempted to use bad words. Goldman Sachs’ estimate is 6%. Meanwhile, wages are rising, unemployment is at 4%. It’s all looking really good.

And these growth numbers, by the way, are adjusted for inflation (credit to Fabian Stolzenburg on Twitter for this point). U.S. nominal (non-inflation adjusted) growth for 2021 could wind up at over 10%, which is the kind of growth you’d expect from a country that just got its first power plant – scratch that, its first light bulb – and not the world’s biggest and most advanced economy.

Yet, you’re much more likely to hear people doomsaying about inflation. That’s a reasonable anxiety! But it seems, perhaps thanks to fearmongering by some politically motivated pundits, many Americans are totally unaware of the connection between this increasingly face-ripping economy and recent inflation increases. The two are almost always entwined: Inflation is a product of too many dollars chasing too few goods. So it’s what happens when people are spending a lot of money instead of, say, saving it.

Of course, that doesn’t apply if you’re Argentina or Venezuela or Turkey and you have some actual kook just spinning up the money printer. There is absolutely such a thing as bad inflation. But mixing up what’s happening in Turkey with what’s happening in the U.S. is a drastic category error.

See also: Turkey Makes the Case for Bitcoin as Erdogan Runs the Autocrat’s Inflation Playbook

At its best, inflation is a measure of optimism. You know when else it was high? In 1942, U.S. annual inflation was 10.2%. In 1946, it was 8.5%. In 1947, it was 14.4%. You know what those spikes represented? Sending our soldiers across the pond to save millions of people from a delusional little cokehead named Hitler, then buying the boys steaks and Chevrolets to celebrate (and also sending the white ones to college. Irony!). We spent the money, did the thing, then basked in the fruit of our labors. And it all seems to have pretty much worked out.

We haven’t quite kicked COVID’s ass as thoroughly as we kicked Hitler’s. We’ve fallen short on unity and self-sacrifice this time around – though looking around the world, it’s not clear at this point there was any real way to stop the spread of COVID-19. What we could do, and did with admirable foresight and determination, was keep the economy’s pipes from freezing while it was on lockdown. We prevented massive amounts of misery and kept things ready to roar when the time was right.

And boy, we’re roaring now. So do yourself a favor and indulge in some optimism, Americans, on the economy if nothing else. Happy holidays. You deserve it.

Note: The views expressed in this column are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of CoinDesk, Inc. or its owners and affiliates.

The NodeNewslettersOpinionInflation
David Z. Morris

David Z. Morris was CoinDesk's Chief Insights Columnist. He has written about crypto since 2013 for outlets including Fortune, Slate, and Aeon. He is the author of "Bitcoin is Magic," an introduction to Bitcoin's social dynamics. He is a former academic sociologist of technology with a PhD in Media Studies from the University of Iowa. He holds Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and small amounts of other crypto assets.

X icon
David Z. Morris

Only 2 articles remaining this month.

Sign up for free

About

  • About Us
  • Masthead
  • Careers
  • CoinDesk News
  • Crypto API Documentation

Contact

  • Contact Us
  • Accessibility
  • Advertise
  • Sitemap
  • System Status
DISCLOSURE & POLICES
CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk has adopted a set of principles aimed at ensuring the integrity, editorial independence and freedom from bias of its publications. CoinDesk is part of the Bullish group, which owns and invests in digital asset businesses and digital assets. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive Bullish group equity-based compensation. Bullish was incubated by technology investor Block.one.
EthicsPrivacyTerms of UseCookie SettingsDo Not Sell My Info

© 2025 CoinDesk, Inc.
X icon
Sign Up
  • News
    Back to menu
    News
    • Markets
    • Finance
    • Tech
    • Policy
    • Focus
  • Prices
    Back to menu
    Prices
    • Data
      Back to menu
      Data
      • Trade Data
      • Derivatives
      • Order Book Data
      • On-Chain Data
      • API
      • Research & Insights
      • Data Catalogue
      • AI & Machine Learning
    • Indices
      Back to menu
      Indices
      • Multi-Asset Indices
      • Reference Rates
      • Strategies and Services
      • API
      • Insights & Announcements
      • Documentation & Governance
    • Research
      Back to menu
      Research
      • Consensus
        Back to menu
        Consensus
        • Consensus Toronto
        • Toronto Coverage
      • Sponsored
        Back to menu
        Sponsored
        • Thought Leadership
        • Press Releases
        • CoinW
        • MEXC
        • Phemex
        • Advertise
      • Videos
        Back to menu
        Videos
        • CoinDesk Daily
        • Shorts
        • Editor's Picks
      • Podcasts
        Back to menu
        Podcasts
        • CoinDesk Podcast Network
        • Markets Daily
        • Gen C
        • Unchained with Laura Shin
        • The Mining Pod
      • Newsletters
        Back to menu
        Newsletters
        • The Node
        • Crypto Daybook Americas
        • State of Crypto
        • Crypto Long & Short
        • Crypto for Advisors
      • Webinars & Events
        Back to menu
        Webinars & Events
        • Consensus 2025
        • Policy & Regulation Conference
      Select Language
      English enEspañol esFilipino filFrançais frItaliano itPortuguês pt-brРусский ruУкраїнська uk