Ummm, growth is still happening in the U.S., and has continuously happened aside from a few quarters here and there. The point is not if we're growing, but how much faster we can grow. This is very basic economics.
"The growth has been primarily in the financial industry."
Completely false and absurd. Supply follows demand. GDP has grown throughout every industry that hasn't seen a decrease in its demand (e.g. railroads, newspapers, etc.). That includes technology, consumer goods, and technology. The economy doesn't exist in a vacuum. The finance industry provides capital to all industries.
If the financial industry hadn't been bailed out, it would have contacted. In its case, supply hasn't followed demand. Supply is artificially high, because demand has been produced by force.
