what would be the living standard if we didn't have banks or usury?  also assuming that we had all of our manufacturing to boot? one of my relatives decided to live in a literal luddite cult and the economy seems to be totally flipped on its head. foodstuffs basically cost next to nothing due to everyone owning a garden + chickens/goats. houses are (relatively) cheap because they have no modern insulation, no nails and no electricity, and everyone comes together to build houses for newly weds in a communal gathering. the most expensive thing people own is usually their clothing, their tools (including kitchen stuff), and animals. everything is made in house so to speak and imports of finished goods from elsewhere are not allowed. despite making poverty level wages, pretty much everyone lives comfortably and money stretches much further. would this be the norm for the usa, at least economically speaking, if we were more isolationist, had our own industry and had no banks? 850 dollars is the norm for the entire month for a day worker after both income tax and local tithe, and if often stretches into savings or into next month.
United States