New Deal Art: "The Barn and the Sky"

Above: "The Barn and the Sky," a lithograph by Dayton Brandfield (1911-1993), created while he was in the WPA, ca. 1940. Image courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The New Deal filled our piggy banks

Above: A WPA poster, ca. 1941-1943. Image courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago.

The New Deal saved our savings

The Personal Savings Rate is the percentage of our disposable income that we save for the future. After the Stock Market Crash of 1929, Americans could save less and less, or not at all. They were just trying to survive. New Deal policies & programs changed all that, and Americans began to save again. 

Here are the annual Personal Savings Rates from 1929-1941 (data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis):

1929: +4.7%
1930: +4.5%
1931: +4.4%
1932: -0.2%
1933: -0.7% (the New Deal begins)
1934: +1.7%
1935: +5.1%
1936: +7.1%
1937: +6.7%
1938: +2.9%
1939: +5.4%
1940: +6.8%
1941: +13.9%

In recent decades, our savings have been decimated by right-wing economics

From 1942 to 1984, a time period where New Deal polices were still the dominant policies in America (things started changing significantly in 1981), the Personal Savings Rate exceeded 10% annually 38 times. Since 1984, i.e., since tax-cuts-for-the-rich, financial industry deregulation, and anti-unionism have really taken hold (think Reaganism, Bushism, Trumpism, and the Democratic Party's embrace of neoliberalism), the Personal Savings Rate has never exceeded 10% (or even reached 10%) when measured annually.

And yet still... tens of millions of Americans keep bumbling along, trusting in the "free market"; trusting in right-wing economics; and trusting in their millionaire & billionaire overlords. And the super-wealthy are loving every minute of it, enjoying their record wealth. Yes, they're bathing in cash, laughing at our dwindling savings, but we... like gleeful doofuses... keep fetching more buckets of warm bath money for them, grinning stupidly at our own economic humiliation. 

There is no word in the English language that adequately describes this level of stupidity. Idiocy? Imbecility? Foolishness? Lunacy? No, they don't cover it. We have reached this new level of stupidity so quickly, so thoroughly, that there hasn't been time to invent a new word for it. Until such time, the best way to describe our new reality is to say that we are living in the Stupid Age. Yes, there was the Bronze Age, the Dark Ages, the Renaissance, the Victorian Era, the Gilded Age, the New Deal Era, and now, unfortunately for us, the Stupid Age.

Recent Headlines:

"58% of Americans Have Less Than $1,000 in Savings, Survey Finds," Yahoo Finance, December 21, 2018

"1 in 3 Americans have less than $5,000 saved for retirement—here’s why so many people can't save," CNBC, August 27, 2018 (the main reason, according to a survey: "Income hasn't changed or has decreased.")

"For most U.S. workers, real wages have barely budged in decades," Pew Research Center, August 7, 2018

"Americans Haven't Saved Enough for Retirement. What Are We Going to Do About It?" Harvard Business Review, March 28, 2018

WPA handicrafts in Florida. Could these type of recreational projects reduce social maladies today?

Above: In this WPA adult recreation project in Ocala, Florida, 1937, women and men put together metal, wood, and other handicrafts, using "inexpensive native materials." Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

New Deal programs brought people together

During the 1930s and early 40s, New Deal policymakers facilitated many recreation projects for children, teens, and adults, for example, sports, summer camps, art classes, handicraft workshops, model plane classes, pet shows, discussion groups, and dances. Part of the rationale & result of these programs was more social interaction. For example, in the final report of the Work Division of the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (a predecessor to the WPA), we learn that in Illinois:

"The extensive development of recreation projects has brought about a new attitude toward the constructive use of leisure time, both for the workers employed on the project and for those who--many for the first time--have had the opportunity to play, to make something which is their own, and to make friends with others in the group who are also enjoying these leisure time activities" (p. 96).

Modern America's unnecessary and destructive hermit culture

Many Americans today have an infantile obsession with "rugged individualism." But humans are social animals, and we thrive and feel better when we interact with others, when we help each other, and when we socialize and work together. Many of the social maladies we're suffering from today, for example, racism, suicide, mass shootings, and loneliness, stem, in part, from social isolation.

Scholars Erica and Nicolas Christakis write: "To combat loneliness in our society, we should aggressively target the people on the periphery with interventions to repair their social networks. Even better would be to prevent some of these individuals from ever becoming socially isolated" ("Navy Yard shootings: What role does social isolation play in mass killings?" Washington Post, September 19, 2013).

Princeton University researchers Angus Deaton and Anne Case have found that deaths of despair (suicides, drug overdoses, liver disease from heavy drinking, etc.), are linked to "poorer health and mental health, social isolation, obesity, marriage (or lack of marriage), poorer labor market opportunities, and weaker attachment to the labor market" ("Is the US facing an epidemic of 'deaths of despair'? These researchers say yes," The Guardian, March 28, 2017, emphasis added).

A group of French and Canadian researchers recently performed a meta-analysis of 40 studies and found that "The main social constructs associated with suicidal outcomes were marital status (being single, separated, divorced, or widowed) and living alone, social isolation, loneliness, alienation, and belongingness" ("Suicidal thoughts and behaviors and social isolation: A narrative review of the literature," on the website of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, emphasis added.)

A Veterans Affairs (VA) study found that "Among five forms of social connectedness, loneliness was tied to the highest levels of depression and suicide ideation" ("The loneliness factor: How much does it drive depression in Veterans?" VA, February 28, 2018).

In 2018, the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) studied the topic and found that 22 percent of adults in the United States "say they often or always feel lonely, feel that they lack companionship, feel left out, or feel isolated from others, and many of them say their loneliness has had a negative impact on various aspects of their life." The KFF study also found that low-income people are more likely to be lonely, and that Americans are "divided as to whether loneliness and social isolation are more of a public health problem or more of an individual problem (47 percent vs. 45 percent), and a large majority (83 percent) see individuals and families themselves playing a major role in helping to reduce loneliness and social isolation in society today and fewer see a major role for government (27 percent)."

Above: A young woman discusses news and current events with a man at a senior citizens home in California, as part of a National Youth Administration (NYA) project. Between 1935 and 1943, the New Deal's NYA employed millions of young men and women on projects of public benefit. Would it be useful to do the same today? (See, "The Risks Of Social Isolation For Older Adults," Forbes, November 29, 2017). Photo courtesy of the National Archives. 

The answer lies in solidarity, not more solitude

It's ironic that so many Americans view social isolation as an individual's own problem to fix (recall my observation--not entirely novel of course--that a lot of Americans have an infantile fascination with "rugged individualism"). Essentially, many Americans seem to be saying, "Lonely? Tough sh*t, your on your own." Now, think about that for awhile.

Instead of the individualism-cures-loneliness philosophy, I agree with the Christakis's argument (see above): "To combat loneliness in our society, we should aggressively target the people on the periphery with interventions to repair their social networks." They also write: "our society doesn't do well at bringing vulnerable people at our margins back into the fold. It's not just for their sake that we should do so, however, but for our own." 

In other words, sometimes people fall into a hole and need our help getting out. Sometimes they lose their social connections and need help developing more. So let's help them, it's not that big of a deal. We don't have to flop around on the ground in political despair, screaming in agony, "Rugged individualism! Pull yourself up by your bootstraps!! Self-reliance!!!"

I believe that our national obsession with "rugged individualism" is about as healthy as flesh-eating bacteria. We are, in effect, trying to force a square peg (our biological. evolutionary need to be social) into a round hole (selfishness and sociopathic individualism). And this obsession with "every man for himself" helps fuel many social maladies, like suicide, loneliness & depression, deaths of despair, racism, and mass shootings. Unfortunately, and for a variety of reasons, a lot of Americans are isolated and stewing.

Among other strategies for combating America's unhappiness, we should look to the New Deal (which successfully reduced suicides and despair in the 1930s). For example, national and wide-ranging recreation programs, for all ages, supported by both federal and philanthropic funds.

Above: A WPA recreation project at Winnekenni Park, Haverhill, Massachusetts, January 15, 1938. Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

New Deal Art: "Curtain Time" and "Encore"

Above: "Curtain Time," a lithograph by Carlos Anderson (1905-1978), created while he was in the WPA, ca. 1935-1943. Image courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Above: "Encore," another WPA lithograph by Carlos Anderson, 1938. Image courtesy of the Smithsonian American Art Museum.

New Deal Art: "The Fair Sex"

Above: "The Fair Sex," a lithograph by Claire Millman Mahl (1912-1988), created while she was in the WPA, ca. 1935-1943. This artwork seems to show the Great Depression's effect on different income & wealth groups. Notice that the women in the foreground, presumably from the upper crust of society, have sunken and starved faces too. Image courtesy of the General Services Administration and the Sheldon Museum of Art.

Above: A close-up view of the most dispirited character in Millman's "The Fair Sex."

Suicide rates since 1900: Indifference, progress, and now back to indifference

Above: "Gone," a wood engraving by Albert Abramowitz (1879-1963), created while he was in the WPA, ca. 1935-1943. Today, in our age of sadistic capitalism, suicides and other deaths of despair are becoming more frequent. Photo courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Suicides and other deaths of despair rising in the United States

According to recent data from the CDC, "More than 150,000 Americans--a record number--died due to alcohol, drugs and suicide in 2017" (New York Post, March 5, 2019).

Suicides and other deaths of despair have been going up for a number of years now. This should come as no surprise, of course, because the ruling elite have pounded the middle-class and the poor into the ground with merciless, neoliberal, winner-take-all capitalism over the past several decades. Wages have stagnated to please shareholders; citizens have been loaded-up with debt while Congress severely restricted their debt relief options; unions have been demonized and union participation has dropped (thereby replacing steady fixed pensions with roulette wheel 401Ks), and so on.

Here are two charts from the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics, covering suicides and drug overdoses from 1999-2017. Look at the staggering increases in raw numbers and rates per 100,000:

Suicides:

Drug Overdoses:

And here are America's suicide rates, per 100,000 people, since 1900:

1900: 10.2

1901: 10.4

1902: 10.3

1903: 11.3

1904: 12.2

1905: 13.5

1906: 12.8

1907: 14.5

1908: 16.8

1909: 16.0

1910: 15.3

1911: 16.0

1912: 15.6

1913: 15.4

1914: 16.1

1915: 16.2

1916: 13.7

1917: 13.0

1918: 12.3

1919: 11.5

1920: 10.2

1921: 12.4

1922: 11.7

1923: 11.5

1924: 11.9

1925: 12.0

1926: 12.6

1927: 13.2

1928: 13.5

1929: 13.9

1930: 15.6

1931: 16.8

1932: 17.4

1933: 15.9

1934: 14.9

1935: 14.3

1936: 14.3

1937: 15.0

1938: 15.3

1939: 14.1

1940: 14.4

1941: 12.8

1942: 12.0

1943: 10.2

1944: 10.0

1945: 11.2

1946: 11.5

1947: 11.5

1948: 11.2

1949: 11.4

1950: 11.4

1951: 10.4

1952: 10.0

1953: 10.1

1954: 10.1

1955: 10.2

1956: 10.0

1957: 9.8

1958: 10.7

1959: 10.6

1960: 10.6

1961: 10.4

1962: 10.9

1963: 11.0

1964: 10.8

1965: 11.1

1966: 10.9

1967: 10.8

1968: 10.7

1969: 11.1

1970: 11.8

1971: 11.7

1972: 12.0

1973: 12.0

1974: 12.1

1975: 12.7

1976: 12.5

1977: 13.3

1978: 12.6

1979: 12.4

1980: 11.9

1981: 12.0

1982: 12.2

1983: 12.1

1984: 12.4

1985: 12.4

1986: 12.9

1987: 12.7

1988: 12.4

1989: 12.3

1990: 12.4

1991: 12.2

1992: 11.9

1993: 12.0

1994: 11.8

1995: 11.8

1996: 11.5

1997: 11.2

1998: 11.1

1999: 10.5

2000: 10.4

2001: 10.8

2002: 11.0

2003: 10.9

2004: 11.1

2005: 11.0

2006: 11.2

2007: 11.5

2008: 11.9

2009: 12.0

2010: 12.4

2011: 12.7

2012: 12.9

2013: 13.0

2014: 13.4

2015: 13.8

2016: 13.9

2017: 14.5

Data from: (1) Federal Security Agency, U.S. Public Health Service, "Vital Statistics Rates in the United States, 1900-1940," Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1947; (2) U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, Public Health Service, "Vital Statistics Rates in the United States, 1940-1960," Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1968; (3) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "Vital Statistics in the United States, 1939-1964," accessed March 6, 2019; (4) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "Vital Statistics in the United States, 1965-1979," accessed March 6, 2019; (5) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "Vital Statistics in the United States, 1980-2003," accessed March 6, 2019; (6) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, "Fatal Injury Reports, National, Regional and State, 1981-2017," accessed March 6, 2019.   

The New Deal helped prevent suicides and continues to do so today

As you can see from the data, suicides spiked to record rates after the Stock Market Crash of 1929, reaching a record high of 17.4 per 100,000 in 1932. The New Deal began to lower those rates immediately. Social scientist David Stuckler and epidemiologist Sanjay Basu credit this to increased government spending to help the people ("How Austerity Kills," New York Times, May 12, 2013).

Suicide rates dropped further again from about 1943 through 1971, never reaching 12 per 100,000. Even from 1972 through 2012, the rate only went above 13 once. Over the last several years though, it's been routinely over 13, and it was 14.5 in 2017, the highest it's been in three-quarters of a century.

Since economics, finances, and employment (or lack thereof) are significant factors in the overall suicide rate, it makes sense that New Deal policies prevented the type of suicide explosions that Americans witnessed from 1907-1915 and from 1929-1932. Over time, federal policies like FDIC, unemployment insurance, and protections for unions, stabilized American life. And recent research indicates that Social Security may be an effective barrier against suicide spikes too (see, e.g., "Social Security: Suicide Prevention Tool," Pacific Standard, March 17, 2017).

But it seems like the more we move away from the New Deal, replacing it with tax cuts for the rich, deregulation, funding neglect, and Ayn Rand-style sociopathy, the more miserable we are. So, the question is: Is it worth it? Is the constant pursuit of private fortune, above all else, worth watching our fellow citizens kill themselves in ever-greater numbers? I think a lot of Americans have answered this question with a verbal silence and an internal "Yes." And if I'm right, that is truly terrifying.

"Happiness lies not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort."

--President Franklin Roosevelt, Inaugural Address, March 4, 1933

AOC's Green New Deal and FDR's Green New Deal

FDR: "A forest is not solely so many thousand board feet of lumber to be logged when market conditions make it profitable. It is an integral part of our natural land covering, and the most potent factor in maintaining Nature's delicate balance in the organic and inorganic worlds. In his struggle for selfish gain, man has often needlessly tipped the scales so that Nature's balance has been destroyed, and the public welfare has usually been on the short-weighted side."

--"Statement on being awarded the Schlich Forestry Medal," January 29, 1935.

Above: A work crew on the New Deal's Withlacoochee Land Use Project, Florida, 1937. Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress.

Above: A sign at the Withlacoochee Land Use Project. The Resettlement Administration was a New Deal program that addressed "soil erosion, stream pollution, seacoast erosion, reforestation, forestation, and flood control" (see "Resettlement Administration," Living New Deal). Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress.

AOC's Green New Deal is inspiring, not terrifying

On February 7, 2019, Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC, D-NY) introduced House Resolution 109, "Recognizing the duty of the Federal Government to create a Green New Deal." AOC's ideas have sent the political right into a teeth-gnashing frenzy of fear, anger, and disbelief. Some are afraid that the Green New Deal will be the end of all modern technology and force them, perhaps under threat of imprisonment, to trade in their cars for bicycles. They're afraid that airlines will be replaced by stagecoach lines.

The reactions to AOC's Green New Deal are unhinged and absurd, to say the least. For example, with respect to the fear that we will no longer have modern modes of transportation, the Green New Deal promotes "overhauling transportation systems in the United States to remove pollution and greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector as much as is technologically feasible, including through investment in (i) zero-emission vehicle infrastructure and manufacturing; (ii) clean, affordable, and accessible public transit; and (iii) high-speed rail" (emphasis added).

The irrational fear that our cars will be taken, is the same type of irrational fear that makes some on the right fear that our guns will be confiscated if we allow, for example, more comprehensive background checks. Wealthy Republican donors, politicians, and talk show hosts prey on this fear, whipping up as much hysteria as they can in order to win elections and power, and to avoid being taxed more. They want their followers to live in perpetual fear of progress. FDR called it the "gospel of fear" and warned: "This policy of seeking to win by fear of ruin is selfish in its motive, brutal in its method and false in its promise."

The fact is, AOC's proposals are not that extreme (especially in light of our repeated climate science findings & warnings) and much of the Green New Deal is similar to FDR's (Green) New Deal. In other words - many of the proposals have already been done before, to greater or lesser degrees. For example...

Better Public Works:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to "to invest in the infrastructure and industry of the United States to sustainably meet the challenges of the 21st century." Above we see a bridge in Chicago, built by the New Deal's Public Works Administration (PWA), ca. 1935-1940. Most Americans don't know that business, the middle-class, and the economy expanded after World War II along New Deal roads, across New Deal bridges, and out of New Deal airports. New Deal infrastructure met the needs of the 20th century. We can do the same today, for the 21st century, if we put fear aside. Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

More Efficient Buildings:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to upgrade "all existing buildings in the United States and [build] new buildings to achieve maximum energy efficiency, water efficiency, safety, affordability, comfort, and durability..." The description for the photograph above, taken in 1938, reads, "Montgomery, Alabama. Roof of State Highway Building, showing how water is used to insulate against heat. Building constructed by WPA." Many New Deal-constructed buildings were innovative and aesthetically pleasing. Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

Healthy Food For All:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to build "a more sustainable food system that ensures universal access to healthy food." The description for the photograph above, taken in 1938, reads, "August, Ga. - WPA garden project - Produce raised here is used for school lunches and surplus commodities." WPA school lunches brought healthy food to undernourished children, and New Deal surplus commodities brought food and goods to struggling Americans (see "Federal Surplus Commodities Corporation," Living New Deal). Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

Climate Science:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to promote "the international exchange of technology, expertise, products, funding, and services, with the aim of making the United States the international leader on climate action, and to help other countries achieve a Green New Deal." In the photo above, a woman and a man work with climate data on the WPA's Ocean Climate Survey Project in New Orleans, Louisiana, ca. 1935-1943. Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

Respect for American Indians:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to obtain "the free, prior, and informed consent of indigenous peoples for all decisions that affect indigenous peoples and their traditional territories, honoring all treaties and agreements with indigenous peoples, and protecting and enforcing the sovereignty and land rights of indigenous peoples." In a multitude of ways, for example, jobs in the Civilian Conservation Corps and the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, the New Deal restored and improved American Indian land, provided jobs and economic hope, and facilitated a degree of sovereignty through self-government. In the photo above, taken in Washington state, ca. 1935-1940, Charlie Edwards of the Swinomish Tribe works on a totem pole to recognize the assistance provided by President Roosevelt. Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

Protecting Biodiversity:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to restore and protect "threatened, endangered, and fragile ecosystems through locally appropriate and science-based projects that enhance biodiversity and support climate resiliency." In the photo above, taken in 2011, we see the Merriam Laboratory building at the Patuxent Research Refuge (PRR) in Maryland. PRR was built by the WPA and CCC, and in subsequent years scientists at PRR conducted extensive research on the effects of DDT and lead shot on birds and waterfowl, resulting in protective legislation. Photo by Brent McKee.

Trees:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to "remov[e] greenhouse gases from the atmosphere and reduc[e] pollution by restoring natural ecosystems through proven low-tech solutions that increase soil carbon storage, such as land preservation and afforestation [new forest creation]." In the photo above, CCC boys perform tree surgery at Fort Hunt Park in Fairfax County, Virgnia, just south of Washington, DC, ca. 1933-1942. The CCC planted billions of trees, worked on sick trees, removed dead trees, fought wildfires, and built cabins and campgrounds that we still use today. Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

Clean Water:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to guarantee "universal access to clean water." This is important because today our water supplies and delivery systems are frequently compromised by contaminants, not the least of which is lead. To ensure our water is clean, drinking water must be kept affordable and free of pollutants, sewage must be properly handled and treated, waterways must be kept clean, and Americans must be able to afford plumbing upgrades in and around their homes. In the photo above, workers are laying new, PWA-funded sewer lines in Goshen, Indiana, ca. 1935-1940. Many thousands of miles of new water and sewer lines were installed by New Deal work programs; hundreds of new utility plants were constructed; and rivers and streams were cleaned of trash. Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

Cleaner and more efficient transportation:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to invest in "clean, affordable, and accessible public transit; and high-speed rail." The description for the photo above, taken in New Jersey, ca. 1935-1940, reads, "High speed line (Camden-Philadelphia) view of train and station. PWA financed this work." Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

Unions:

Above: The Green New Deal resolves to partner with labor unions, create "high-quality union jobs," and strengthen & protect "the right of all workers to organize, unionize, and collectively bargain free of coercion, intimidation, and harassment." The description for the photo above, taken in 1936, reads, "A Workers Education group discussing the American Labor Movement. This group is comprised of members of a Philadelphia Garment Union in cooperation with WPA." The New Deal also protected collective bargaining through the Wagner Act. Photo courtesy of the National Archives.

Economic Security:

Above: The Green New Deal promotes economic security in several ways, for example, "guaranteeing a job with a family-sustaining wage, adequate family and medical leave, paid vacations, and retirement security to all people of the United States" (this is reminiscent of FDR's Second Bill of Rights). In the photo above, we see WPA Administrator Harry Hopkins (left) and Assistant Administrator Corrington Gill arriving at the White House for a meeting with President Roosevelt, March 13, 1936. Both men were advocates of some type of job guarantee. For example, Gill wrote: "I believe that a program of large public works ought to become a permanent part of our public investment program, complemented by an employment program of the WPA type" (Corrington Gill, Wasted Manpower: The Challenge of Unemployment, 1939, p. 272). Photo by Acme News Pictures, scanned from personal copy and used here for educational, non-commercial purposes.

Progress or unjustified terror?

Make no mistake about it, we can do all of the things that the Green New Deal resolves to do... if we ignore the merchants of fear, i.e., wealthy conservative donors; Republican politicians; President Trump; the mouthy and well-funded talking heads who peddle "limited government" (in other words, limits on We the People); as well as the centrist Democrats who whine, "we can't afford it!"; and the right-wing, multi-millionaire talk show hosts who try to brainwash us into voting against our own economic well-being (thereby, and just coincidentally of course, preserving their own economic well-being... and dominance).

As the merchants of fear repeatedly try to scare us with their bogeyman cries of "Socialism!"--when all we really seek (in our traditional and long-standing mixed economy) is a better balance between social programs and private profit--and as they repeatedly try to convince us that we can't afford anything but tax breaks for the rich and perpetual war, we would do well to remember FDR's thoughts about fear, spoken at the very beginning of the New Deal:

"[T]he only thing we have to fear is fear itself - nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance." (First inaugural address, March 4, 1933)

FDR was able to get the nation to overcome its fear, and then implement ambitious, nationwide programs that we still enjoy today - Social Security; new and improved state and national parks; financial regulations to stabilize the markets; unemployment insurance; restrictions on child labor; wide-ranging public works; and more.

The accomplishments and legacy of FDR's Green New Deal prove that AOC's Green New Deal is sensible and achievable. So let's move forward with courage... and let the merchants of fear retreat under their beds, blabbering to themselves about the horrors of clean water.