Sublime

We think we can take it as a given that there is another recession in front of the United States and/or Europe at some point. That is the natural order of things. But it would be better to have that inevitable recession as far into the future as possible, and preferably with a little inflationary cushion and some room for active policy responses. A

de reconcevoir la finance afin qu’elle soit au service de l’économie et de la société. C’est aussi une invitation à repenser la façon dont la monnaie devrait être créée – pas seulement par le marché, mais aussi par l’État et les communs –,

Today’s fiat currencies emphatically meet the above bubble criteria. The prices of government bonds denominated in euro, yen and dollars have risen to extraordinary levels (which is the same as saying interest rates have been forced to extraordinarily-low levels). And befitting its size and scope, this bubble is rationalized with two popular mantra

For reasons difficult to understand, when the creditworthiness of a country is evaluated, only one year’s revenue (GDP) is measured against total debt. It is as if the total of an individual’s debt, from home mortgage, car loans, and student debt, were measured against one year’s income. Obviously, that would be irrational.

Bernholz examined 12 of the 29 hyperinflationary episodes where significant data exist. Every hyperinflation looked the same. “Hyperinflations are always caused by public budget deficits which are largely financed by money creation.” But even more interestingly, Bernholz identified the level at which hyperinflations can start. He concluded that “th

the ability of portfolio investors to move money unfettered across national borders is a matter of controversy among economists, much more so than is the freedom of trade in goods. With regard to this aspect of global capitalism, the Argentine crisis underlines the need for major repair. It points inexorably to the conclusion that government effort

Each took place at a time when conflicting demands on finite government resources were high, and rentiers wielded reduced political power.6 Currently we’re beginning to see the financial oppression in developed countries. In the United States, the United Kingdom, and Europe, governments have forced their social security funds to only buy government

During the Asian financial crisis, the IMF would be accused—with considerable justification—of pushing countries such as Thailand and Korea too far in the direction of budgetary austerity, driving economies that were already headed for trouble even deeper into recessions. Paradoxically, in the case of Argentina, its pride and joy, the Fund's pushin