As I see It, the masses are not spending because we no longer feel are employer will continue to employ us. The regular worker is doing two jobs now, and is threaten by being replaced also we are no longer being offered incentives, benefits, or pay increases.  We will do without now, downsizing just like are employers.  We have stop buying, our hope for the a retirement, & affordable health insurance, is now fizzling out, and fear is now ruling the middle class. 

if you read between the lines you understand that the debt of governments is catching up to them.   if they don't grow businesses that pays salaries and taxes then they dont have the tax revenues to redistribute as gdp and you cant take what is not being generated..(example:​ government spending in the US is 45% of gdp, france is 56%, they confiscate more but yet run deficits like the rest of europe except germany)

 The home values are down so local government has less taxes, incomes are down so state and federal have less taxes.  debt spending is bad spending and when it ends the economy contracts because they cant raise more. if they debt spend we pay later for the hope of growth but government spending is not productive.  its a cost to the economy not a long term plan.    its very simple.   its a basic fundamental.     add the fact that investments and saving rates are nil makes everything stop.    this contraction will continue until asset values improve and debt amounts reduce.   we have not reached bottom in a braod way.  the debt problem is a train wreck thats been going on since 2008.  in the great depression FDR wanted to pass an unused profit tax.  basically he wanted to confisdcate all of this money people have on the side lines to spend to improve gdp and reduce unemployment.  business were in the same situation. they held due to the outlook being negative.  all he would have done was canabalize his future.  thank god it got shot down.  government needs to get small, get out of the way and let those with the funds direct them to their best use when the time is right.  now is not yet.        

and yet we're doing the same sociliast things that turned europe into the financial slog it is