Originally Posted by GregE

Government intervention didn't cause the 1929 stock market crash but it most certainly would have mitigated (if not actually prevented) it.

Ditto re the 2008 meltdown.

Moreover, the 1930's depression didn't really end until after the government started spending unprecedented amounts of money preparing for and eventually entering WWII.

TRANSLATION: It took massive government spending to get us out of the last depression.