The following must-see 60 Minutes segment further highlights the deteriorating economic conditions across the United States.

It turns out some families are losing their grip on the motels and discovering that the homesless shelters are full. Where do they go then? They try to keep up appearances by day and try to stay out of sight at night – holding on to one another in a hidden America, a place you wouldn’t notice unless you ran into the people we met in the moments before dawn.

There are millions of Americans right now that are struggling to keep a roof over their heads. Inevitably, as things get worse, many more will join those who have already been forced to abandon their old lifestyles to live in short-term low cost motels, homeless shelters, tent cities or in their cars. To be sure, some of those living on the streets made mistakes and poor decisions that have brought them where they are today. Others, however, are the collateral damage from a government run amok and the decades long unfettered sociopathic thievery of law abiding hard working Americans.

The longevity of homelessness continues to rise. So people are running out of resources. The unemployment runs out. Their savings run out. The family that lent them money does not have it anymore because they are looking at economic hardship. And, before you know it, they find themselves living in their car because they just ran out of all options.

For those whose timetable for economic collapse lies at some arbitrary time in the future, take a serious look at what’s happening around you. Millions have lost their homes. Even more have lost their jobs. Those who are still spending are doing so with the money they have left in their savings or the available credit left on their charge cards. Record numbers of people are living in poverty and the same is true for those seeking food assistance from the government. The collapse is here. It’s staring us in the face. It can’t be ignored. And, it’s not even close to being over.

None of us will remain untouched by the events playing out in the world around us. We can take steps to prepare to the best of our abilities, but circumstances may get the better of us. If and when hard times befall us – and there’s a strong possibility they will – and the seemingly uncontrollable feelings of helplessness and failure take hold, we can only hope to have the strength, optimism and realistic perspective of the 15 year old girl featured in the 60 Minutes story:

It’s not really that much of an embarrassment. It’s only life. You do what you need to do, right?

Hat tip John Rolls