Time Preference, Interest Rates, and Stagflation
Strong increases in money supply result in an exchange of nothing for something, which weakens the process of…
Continue readingFrank Shostak
Fiscal Stimulus vs. Economic Growth
As the pace of government spending increases, a situation could emerge in which the…
Continue reading“Equilibrium Prices” and Real Prices: Supply, Demand, And The Prices Of Goods
By the popular way of thinking, the determination of the prices of goods is summarized by means of supply and demand curves, which describe…
Continue readingDeflation Doesn’t Undo the Problems Caused by Past Inflation
Freeing the economy from central bank interference with interest rates and money supply will arrest the process of wealth destruction. This is going to…
Continue readingWhy Government Stimulus Sometimes Looks like It Revives the Economy
More government and central bank stimulus policies are likely to further weaken the pool of real savings and place the economy on the path of…
Continue readingA Drop in the Money Supply Was Not the Cause of the Great Depression
The Great Depression of 1930s occurred because of the Fed’s loose monetary stance from October 1920 to August 1924, which undermined the…
Continue readingHow Easy Money Creates the Boom-Bust Cycle
Whenever the monetary stance is loosened, it sets in motion an economic boom by means of the diversion of real savings from wealth generators to…
Continue readingWhy Asset Bubbles Involve So Much More Than Just Rising Prices
To prevent the emergence of bubbles one needs to arrest the monetary pumping by the central bank and to curtail the…
Continue readingMoney Supply Vs Liquidity: What’s the Difference?
Changes in money supply and liquidity are not the same thing…
Continue readingPrinting Money at a “Constant” or “Stable” Rate Won’t Prevent Boom-Bust Cycles
A pure gold standard is immune from boom-bust cycles, since on the pure gold standard an increase in the money supply does not trigger an…
Continue readingWhy There’s So Much Confusion over What “Inflation” Means
On a gold standard, an increase in the money supply unbacked by gold constitutes an increase in the money supply out of “thin air”. In the modern world…
Continue readingShould Investors Focus on Risk Rather Than Profit?
Proponents of the modern portfolio theory hold that diversification is the heart of investment. The key should be evaluation of the profitability and…
Continue readingWe’re Headed Toward Stagnation (Unless the Fed Reins In Its Money Printing)
If money pumping can grow the economy, then why not pump plenty of it to generate massive economic growth?
Continue readingWhy Economics Cannot Be Understood through Experimentation
In the natural sciences, a laboratory experiment can isolate various elements and their movements. There is no equivalent in the discipline of economics…
Continue readingWant to Really Cut Taxes? Cut Government Spending
A cut in the income tax rate while government outlays continue to increase will lead the government to impose greater burdens in the future…
Continue readingThe Origins of the Dollar’s Value
The central bank’s paper certificates are fully backed by the bank certificates, which have the historical link to gold…
Continue readingSavings Are Critical to a Prosperous Economy
The heart of economic growth is the expanding pool of real savings. Monetary pumping destroys the flow of real savings and in turn…
Continue readingHow Central Banks And Lockdowns Are Making The Crisis Worse
Instead of the government presenting us with “Stay Home” advice, we should be presenting them with “Do Nothing” advice. Here’s why…
Continue readingWe Can’t Just “Restart” the Economy Where We Left Off
The imposition of lockdowns to counter the spread of the infection from the coronavirus is likely to severely damage the real economy. As a result…
Continue readingPeople Are Seeking Answers From The Government, But Bureaucrats Can’t Fix This
The government has no money of its own, and monetary pumping won’t help ailing businesses, but this will…
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