Great observations. Part of GDP considers population. It factors in heavily. That's why they bring in huge amounts of immigrants, to fudge the numbers. We were first to use the technique here in the US and then Europe caught on. They can't find the discipline to reduce spending so they bring in the immigrants. They can't skim what doesn't exist.

CPI was adjusted to include durable products and removed commodities. What affects your every day life is commodities. I don't buy a new refrigerator, TV or car every year. Nixon was the beginning of all this. Normalized relations with China brought about the cheap durable products to hide real inflation. I expect to see automobile imports from China to grow dramatically because they've about played out the other durable products.

We live in a Pyramid scheme economy. The people who see it coming are trying to buy homesteads because history teaches us farms didn't experience much difference when we were in a depression. Life was never easy for farmers before, but it really didn't get much worse for them either.

All that said, a reality exists that we need to continue on the best we can within the current system until we figure out a better way. Divesting a small portion of your income to a self managed insurance policy in the event of a worldwide crash would likely be a wise move. For some that may be starting a homestead. Others may choose to purchase precious metals (such as lead) or digital currency. I have no intention of buying gold, silver or digital tokens because none of those can be eaten or provide shelter. If I have food and shelter, no amount of precious metals can purchase that from me unless I see things coming back around.

Yes, the numbers are bogus but as long as the vast majority are playing along, nothing is going to change