Modern Monetary Theory - How the US Government really pays for things

[the1]

One thing I will agree with is if the Fed were to disappear today the world economy will implode and I also agree that they are doing a terrific job of managing the current crisis, even though they, and the US Government, has deemed it over. However, we can't simply give the Fed a grade of A without looking back into time and examining the extent of their involvement in <b>causing</b> the current crisis we are in. And then there is the issue of how the Fed came into existance in the first place. If what I've read on the topic -- Jeckyl Island -- is actually true then we can light a couple of cigars and have a different discussion altogether. I wasn't around in 1913 and I'm not sure I trust the source I'm basing my theory on so I suppose it's a moot point.

That being said, however, there is one thing I'm sure of -- the Central Banking System (the Fed, et al.) epitomizes theft and greed. Although it's an unstated element of their mandate, their primary objective is to fleece the citizens of what was once a great nation (and hopefully will be again someday) for one and only one reason -- to enrich the bankers sitting at the top. Blankfien, after all, must certainly be deserving a pretty penny for doing "God's work."

Quote from intradaybill:

There is nothing wrong with the way the FED operates, historically or recently. I have said many times in these threads that the FED is just doing its job in accordance to its mandate and it does it well. Those who attack the FED do it either because of their hidden political agenda or because of their misunderstanding about its operation and mandate.

The recent rounds of QE were absolutely necessary to avoid a deflationary spiral and to stimulate the economy. Actually, I even think the FED did not stimulate the economy enough. Bernanke is doing a fine job. Do you want to see unrest like in Europe because of unemployment reaching 20% like in Spain and other countries?

The only true conspiracy here is by the oligarchs of Europe who do not want the US to print money because they are afraid of losing wealth. The Germans do not want inflation because they have a surplus that will lose purchasing power. They want to lend this surplus to other EU countries at a high interst rate instead of printing money. This will cause tremendous suffering in those countries which Germany used for years to unload its overcapacity.

The FED is doing an excellent job. Those who argue it should be abolished are the true conspirators because they want to have the power of printing money after the economy collapses when the FED won't be there and they will appear as saviors.

 

[MarketMasher]

Someone in another thread posted something supposedly Ron Paul said:

"The Fed is the arsonist and the firefighter."

Then I remembered Hank Paulson, claiming that he had stopped the financial system from collapsing (firefighter). Meanwhile in 2004 he was among other bankers that got the SEC to allow them to increase bank leverage on subprime and derivatives. (arsonist).

They seem to want to take credit for the firefighting, but everyone should be exploring and publicizing their role as arsonist (esp when they take out insurance on the mark first).

 

[chartman]

Quote from intradaybill:

Do you want to see unrest like in Europe because of unemployment reaching 20% like in Spain and other countries?

News Bulletin!! The true unemployment rate is the USA is now more than 20% not counting the millions that are underemployed. In a couple of weeks, the January/February 2009 that were unemployed during this time period will no longer have unemployment benefits. The extension of an additional 13 months will not apply to these people nor those that have already exhausted their benefits. What now?

 

[Martinghoul]

Quote from Misthos:

...
Apparently, I am not alone in my skepticism. So who is being naive here?

Well, I am happy to discuss the substance of your argument and my disagreement with it, but why don't we leave the whole "the masses are blind" and "the truth is suppressed" stuff out of it?

 

[Misthos]

Quote from Martinghoul:

Well, I am happy to discuss the substance of your argument and my disagreement with it, but why don't we leave the whole "the masses are blind" and "the truth is suppressed" stuff out of it?

Sure thing. But I'll have to respond tomorrow. It's night time here... I'm heading out on the town soon.

 

[jack hershey]

Quote from Misthos:

Has anyone heard of this? It is actually a description of how the US fiat monetary system works. I believe there are a lot of misconceptions out there, and they are reinforced by the media, politicians, and economists.

From my blog:

http://fiatcollapse.blogspot.com/2010/12/modern-monetary-theory-or-how-us.html

Basically, these are the facts:

China does not fund the US deficit.

Income Taxes do not fund US government spending.

There is a reason that the US Federal Reserve was created around the same time that the US Federal Income Tax was created. The two work together to control aggregate demand, and combined with debt issuance, to hit the target rate.

The government is not operationally constrained - it buys whatever it wants, whenever it wants, without reliance on tax revenues or debt markets.

Sounds crazy, right? But that's actually how the system works. I'm not saying I support the current system, and I'm not saying that the current system is sustainable either. I'm just making an objective statement.

Does that mean we can run deficits forever? No. Because at the end of the day, a free-floating currency is judged by the market and is also subject to geopolitical factors.

It is probably a good Idea for you to create a time line in order to see how ideas came into being and the ideas did manifest practical applications to build shell after shell from a core which occurred when the US of A was formed from 13 colonies.

Fast forwarding to the Present, my belief is that all individuals need to have an "immunity" from the lack of functionality of the current multishelled system.

The hierarchy of:

Information

Power, and

Money

comes to mind.

Power struggles for information to solve problems they are responsible for.

Often money puts people in power.

All of us, today, are part of a borderless free enterprise system.

Because of my immunity to my environment, I get to enjoy doing anything I want.

I'll mention here that a lot of teenagers have recently become billionaires. It is fun to watch.

You are in the fifth year of a Depression.

Upcoming is the greatest period of price change ever experienced in an economy that does not require full employment.

Obviously as we go through this a lot of people supported by money will need a lot of good high quality information to grease the wheels to maintain their constituent populations.

Very few people here have supply problem solving information directly requested by four different Presidents, assorted legislators and those associated with members of the Supreme Court. I have. You can observe your daily life as affected by me, if you wish. In order consider the advewnt in your lives of PL 92-500. the EIS, and when you first put oxygenated fuel in your tank.

Justice Douglas coined a term for my associates and me: the "Green Mafia".

Here is the thought to consider: better have personal "immunity" for what is coming down the pipe. You need information that works to solve the personal problem that indiviuals are facing due to circumstances way beyond your control. Talk is cheap.

When the foxes in the chicken coop eat all the chickens, then all they have to work with is feathers, guano and anaphage.

 

[nooby_mcnoob]

Quote from goodgoing:

That is what you think. Regardless of who is right and who is wrong, this is extraordinary measure and not the fundamental operational mode of the system.

Really?

The panic of 1907, caused by over leveraging, set the stage for a chosen few to over leverage themselves without repercussions via the Federal Reserve Act passed in 1913.

What about the panic of 2008? Also caused by over leveraging resulting in more free money for selected banks.

This has been the fundamental operational mode of the system for almost 100 years. I bet even the creators of that system couldn't have imagined the complete pwnage of the economy through keystrokes.

In my opinion, if fractional reserve banking is not destroyed, it will destroy the economy. Each subsequent financial "crisis" (defined as when banks become richer than ever before) is worse.

Eventually the banks will own 90% of the system for providing their services.

 

[the1]

The Fed's unstated "mandate" is to pilfer from the public with periods of outright, blatant, monumental theft.

"If the American People allow private banks to control the issuance of their currency, first by inflation and then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around them will deprive the People of all their Property until their Children will wake up homeless on the continent their Fathers conquered." --Thomas Jefferson

Quote from nooby_mcnoob:

Really?

The panic of 1907, caused by over leveraging, set the stage for a chosen few to over leverage themselves without repercussions via the Federal Reserve Act passed in 1913.

What about the panic of 2008? Also caused by over leveraging resulting in more free money for selected banks.

This has been the fundamental operational mode of the system for almost 100 years. I bet even the creators of that system couldn't have imagined the complete pwnage of the economy through keystrokes.

In my opinion, if fractional reserve banking is not destroyed, it will destroy the economy. Each subsequent financial "crisis" (defined as when banks become richer than ever before) is worse.

Eventually the banks will own 90% of the system for providing their services.

 

[jem]

The video was interesting and so was your article.

But, it left out one important point.

The U.S. has the power to print without borrowing... but as far as we can tell it keeps account of it expenditures and tries to match them up with revenues and borrowing... hence the overspending should not be creating inflation.

QE 1 and QE 2... were deemed very likely to create inflation because there was not borrowing to match the spending.

Lately, with the Fed buying the Govt bonds... that is like running the presses without borrowing.

Hence we are seeing rapid inflation in food prices. The price of gold and oil are going up...

Lately the U.S. has gone of the fiscal responsibility cliff.
In the past it had the option but it did not do so.

Now we are running off the cliff... and it is to bail out over priced real estate and insolvent banks.

Note... most residential mortgages were sold off to investors...
but commerical real estate loans were usually held on the banks books.

 

[FerdinandAlx]

Quote from jack hershey:

It is probably a good Idea for you to create a time line in order to see how ideas came into being and the ideas did manifest practical applications to build shell after shell from a core which occurred when the US of A was formed from 13 colonies.

Fast forwarding to the Present, my belief is that all individuals need to have an "immunity" from the lack of functionality of the current multishelled system.

The hierarchy of:

Information

Power, and

Money

comes to mind.

Power struggles for information to solve problems they are responsible for.

Often money puts people in power.

All of us, today, are part of a borderless free enterprise system.

Because of my immunity to my environment, I get to enjoy doing anything I want.

I'll mention here that a lot of teenagers have recently become billionaires. It is fun to watch.

You are in the fifth year of a Depression.

Upcoming is the greatest period of price change ever experienced in an economy that does not require full employment.

Obviously as we go through this a lot of people supported by money will need a lot of good high quality information to grease the wheels to maintain their constituent populations.

Very few people here have supply problem solving information directly requested by four different Presidents, assorted legislators and those associated with members of the Supreme Court. I have. You can observe your daily life as affected by me, if you wish. In order consider the advewnt in your lives of PL 92-500. the EIS, and when you first put oxygenated fuel in your tank.

Justice Douglas coined a term for my associates and me: the "Green Mafia".

Here is the thought to consider: better have personal "immunity" for what is coming down the pipe. You need information that works to solve the personal problem that indiviuals are facing due to circumstances way beyond your control. Talk is cheap.

When the foxes in the chicken coop eat all the chickens, then all they have to work with is feathers, guano and anaphage.

The American economy seems to have found an inflation sink by maintaining a high un(der)employment rate. The idea behind the current economic policy is that by immunizing financial companies and large corporations the American economy can continue growing, but only if this means that a large portion of the population is as vulnerable as possible. The result is the exact opposite of what you're proposing as it effectively creates immunodeficiency to the economic enviroment of a large number of individuals.

Ofcourse this policy can only be extended so far and pretty soon it'll become clear that replenishing bank reserves will not lead to continued economic growth when the ability to take on debt isn't there.