Fiat Money and the Federal Reserve:

Printing "Funny Money" and Stagflation

Progressives

When it comes to finance, Progressives are everywhere.  They are in Democratic and Republican circles.  They push an array of policies designed to empower government officials to manipulate everything about our money; particularly when it comes to its supply and value.  Remember, the tell-tale sign of a Progressive is the goal of control.  Characteristically, once Progressives get control of something, they want to be as free as possible to exercise that control.  Call it the "Progressive Paradox."

Consider the Progressive approach to managing the United States dollar.

The dollar is still the world's premier currency.  It is accepted in nearly every corner of the world as a medium of exchange.  One would think the dollar's popularity would be linked to its value, which in turn would be tied to an independent commodity like gold.  That notion is wrong.  The dollar severed its last, frayed ties to a gold standard on August 5, 1971, after decades of increasing the ratio between dollars and gold.  Why?  Because Progressives on both sides of the political aisle want to enhance their power through the illusion of wealth creation.

Here's how it works.  Progressives start by rejecting the idea of a gold standard because it fixes the amount in circulation to the amount of gold held in reserve.  Thus, a gold standard "arbitrarily" restricts the amount of money in circulation.  That, in turn, concentrates wealth in fewer hands because there are less dollars to go around.  To Progressives, that's a problem because dollars equal wealth.

So for Progressives, the way to create more wealth is to create more dollars.  Enter the Federal Reserve System.  Unlike any other federal agency, the Fed exercises complete discretion in its decisions.  It has no congressional oversight committee.  It has never been audited.  When the Fed decides to print more dollars, it does.  And since the only guarantee of a dollar's value is the United States government's word, the printing of more money makes the United States taxpayer the ultimate guarantors of the Fed's print jobs.

That leads to problems.  Big problems.  Problems like a steadily devaluing dollar and inflation.  Since dollars are worth less, the price of everything goes up.  Eventually, people realize that more dollars in circulation do not equal more wealth...

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