The difference that's been apparent in the current downturn is how little unemployment has risen. 500 000 immigrants two years in a row, little economic growth, but unemployment has only risen from 3.5% to just over 4%. I could be wrong but it doesn't seem that a recession now would look like the recessions of the 1980's or 1990's where unemployment hit double digits. The big risk is probably a sovereign debt default setting off a financial crisis, but there are plenty of countries whose governments would fall over before ours. I don't know if sovereign debt had anything to do with it, but the stock market fall a month or so ago happened when Japan lifted interest rates. Japan's debt to GDP ratio is over 260%. For context Greece's debt was about 140% of GDP when their economy collapsed about a decade ago.
