This could be a useful lesson if it resulted in a direction where this would not occur again. But most people aren't aware of the prime causes of social development and how that affects their values and behavior. They do not learn anything from it, despite going through the suffering. There have always been wars, and booms & busts, but most people don't seem to learn much from them.

Unfortunately, even when rational solutions are presented, people are not educated enough to assess the validity of alternative proposals. Most people are not trained in methods of critical thinking, but only in how to perform a task to earn a living.