In the historical long run, few people have ever had financial security until the 20th century. People have much more financial security now than in, for example, the 19th century when there was no welfare safety net or bank deposit insurance.
Yes, it sucks to have trouble coming up with $400 for an emergency. But it's not a serious threat to the ongoing stability of society.
I'm pretty sure most people would not be okay with going back to the 19th century living conditions, to say nothing of the medieval era or before that.
I believe I've been hearing stories like this (about the lack of liquid savings for Americans) for something like 30 years now. Anyone able to dig up the historical data on this? I kind of think Milton Friedman wrote about this in one of his books.
Yes, it sucks to have trouble coming up with $400 for an emergency. But it's not a serious threat to the ongoing stability of society.