[StitlyDute]

I'll grant you that. As for housing, I think people could make due with less, just as they do everywhere else in the world, including most affluent countries. Manhattan is pricey, but most of the US has very inexpensive housing and people live comparatively like kings in a US suburb even when compared to other affluent countries. We're spending beyond our means,partically because there isn't enough incentive to invest.