The Ultimate Money Guide for Bubbles, Busts, Recession, and Depression

Chapter 20. FUTURE FORTUNES

In the wake of bubbles, busts, recession, and depression, many old fortunes die, and many new ones are born. Out of poverty and suffering come good times and new wealth. Dad explains it in the context of his childhood:

Growing up in New York City in the early 1900s, the differences between the haves and have-nots were vividly clear to me, even as a child. We lived on the East Side of Central Park, which was tough and poor. The rich lived mostly on the West Side of Central Park, which was lavishly elegant.

But tough is not bad. My heroes were world-famous boxing champions that grew up in my neighborhood, and I ran errands for them. I learned how to fight, too. I had no choice. If you couldn't fight, you didn't have friends; and if you didn't travel with friends, you could never cross the line into other neighborhoods without getting beaten up.

Before I was seven, my brother and I began to invest in matches. We'd buy a case. Then we'd spend the whole day selling them on the busiest street corner we could find. We tried not to go home until the last box was sold. But keeping that money for ourselves was a no-no. Every single dime had to go back to my mother.

We used to practice gymnastics on the roof of our building, and I once found an injured bird there. I began nursing it back to health. But it happened to be a particularly tough month for my parents. One afternoon, I came home from school and learned we had "chicken soup" for dinner. I also learned it was ...