Meta Econ Takeover Day 23
2117 sats \ 13 comments \ @Undisciplined 9 Nov 2023 meta
The Federal Reserve is Running Losses. Does This Cost Anyone Anything? By Jane L. Johnson "The Federal Reserve is losing money, according to its official books. Does that matter, or does the Fed operate outside the bounds of the laws of economics?"
  • Other than being deeply ironic, what is the significance of a central bank losing money?
If the Economy Is So Great, Why Are Tax Revenues So Weak? By Ryan McMaken "Federal deficits continue to spiral upward, but deficits aren't just a function of federal spending. Deficits aren't necessary if tax revenues increase to match spending."
  • The federal government can paper over their deficits by running the printer, but states and municipalities might start entering fiscal death spirals if their tax revenues collapse.
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195 sats \ 3 replies \ @BitcoinIsTheFuture 10 Nov 2023
Losing money? They have NO money. It’s OUR money they steal and misuse it!
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0 sats \ 2 replies \ @Undisciplined OP 10 Nov 2023
In the US at least, it is their money. The Federal Reserve is a cabal of private bankers that produce the money we're forced to use.
I think in other nations, it probably still makes sense to think of the local fiat in that same way. We are not the regime (with the exception of any feds lurking in the comments).
Their money is fiat. Our money is, or soon will be, Bitcoin.
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195 sats \ 1 reply \ @BitcoinIsTheFuture 10 Nov 2023
Regardless of fist or Bitcoin they don’t have any money they take from others and with fiat they can manipulate the supply. Even on a Bitcoin standard they will tax you
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0 sats \ 0 replies \ @Undisciplined OP 10 Nov 2023
The Federal Reserve doesn't tax anyone. The money originates with them.
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370 sats \ 3 replies \ @SimpleStacker 9 Nov 2023
"The Federal Reserve is losing money, according to its official books. Does that matter, or does the Fed operate outside the bounds of the laws of economics?"
This reminded me of the question, "If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?"
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0 sats \ 2 replies \ @Undisciplined OP 9 Nov 2023
Depends on how you define "sound"
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370 sats \ 1 reply \ @SimpleStacker 9 Nov 2023
If made-up numbers in a made-up book are changing, and no one is around to see it, did any of the numbers change?
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10 sats \ 0 replies \ @Undisciplined OP 9 Nov 2023
all numbers are made up
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370 sats \ 3 replies \ @grayruby 9 Nov 2023
I think when everyone is looking at the federal debt they are forgetting that some municipalities and states are in worse shape and will need to be bailed out. So add some more fuel on the federal deficit fire.
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100 sats \ 2 replies \ @Undisciplined OP 9 Nov 2023
They don't always get bailed out, at least not entirely. During the last recession, when Detroit collapsed, the state of Michigan was just installing emergency officers in a bunch of cities to override the local mayors and manage the bankruptcy processes. There were also a few municipalities in CA that went through something like bankruptcy a few years later. That's my recollection anyway.
I think there's a real chance that we see some of the major cities, that have been hemorrhaging capital and labor, collapse under the weight of decades of mismanagement.
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195 sats \ 1 reply \ @grayruby 10 Nov 2023
Chicago?
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50 sats \ 0 replies \ @Undisciplined OP 10 Nov 2023
People were talking about Chicago being right on the brink during the last cycle. I feel like California's really started falling apart since then, so I'd probably put my money on San Fransisco. I have some extended family in Portland and it wouldn't surprise me if Portland went down in flames either.
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0 sats \ 0 replies \ @Undisciplined OP 9 Nov 2023
I had just mentioned this on someone's post about the environmental impact of bitcoin. My point was that all the devastation from America's military adventures should be put on the cost side of the dollar system.
Dollar Hegemony Fuels America's Foreign Crusades "Mises Institute president Thomas DiLorenzo joins Ryan and Tho to discuss the moralistic claims behind American foreign policy. These claims intensified with the American Civil War and became a creed of American nationalists by the twentieth century. With the rise of the global dollar and dollar hegemony, America's foreign crusades became ever larger and more frequent. "
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