Life, 1927-04-07 · page 55 of 59
Life — April 7, 1927 — page 55: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
This page features a satirical dialogue between two characters—Blintz and Fishbein—debating Depression-era economic philosophy. Blintz argues for aggressive consumer spending to stimulate business and employment, proposing "National Loosen Up Weeks" to convert savers into spenders. He contends that savings per capita don't help the economy; spending does. Fishbein counters with traditional financial wisdom: that savings indicate prosperity and that people who save eventually do buy goods. The satire mocks both positions through Blintz's malapropisms and working-class dialect, while critiquing the era's competing economic theories during economic hardship. The debate reflects genuine 1920s-30s disagreement about whether saving or spending drives recovery. The page also contains period advertisements (travel, car products) typical of *Life* magazine's commercial content.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
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