Monthly Archive: January 2024

Navigating the Complexity of Climate Change: A Closer Look at the Scientific Method and Its Challenges

2024-01-31

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2024-01-31

The physical sciences have greatly advanced knowledge by elucidating the workings of simple phenomena. In a simple phenomenon, we have a limited number of important variables, all of which are identifiable and measurable. This allows us to run a scientific experiment. In such an experiment, we hold all other variables constant and examine the influence of one variable on the phenomenon. We can therefore measure this variable’s direction and how...

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Secession’s Opponents Embrace Colonialism and “Enlightened” Central Governments

2024-01-31

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2024-01-31

The idea of secession for some regions of the United States—sometimes simplistically called "national divorce"—has increasingly been mentioned as a way to deal with the apparent growing divide between what are crudely called "red states" and "blue states." Polls suggest that perhaps a third of the American population "indicated a 'willingness to secede'"  Vehement opposition to the idea remains plentiful,...

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Biden’s Absurd New Economic Messaging Strategy

2024-01-31

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2024-01-31

After spending months trying to sell his economic agenda under the banner of “Bidenomics,” the president’s team is frustrated. Voters aren’t believing them when they say that the economy is doing excellent and that Joe Biden deserves the credit. Rather than make a meaningful attempt to understand the American people’s economic pain and recognize why it isn’t being detected by traditional economic indicators, the president’s team has settled on a...

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US Tech Sell-Off Challenges Risk Appetites Ahead of the FOMC

2024-01-31

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2024-01-31

Overview: Ahead of the US Treasury's quarterly refunding announcement and the outcome of the FOMC meeting, the dollar is trading higher against all the G10 currencies. With US high-flying tech stocks posting steep losses after disappointing earnings reports, the currencies most sensitive to risk-appetites, the dollar bloc and the Norwegian krone are the weakest. Emerging market currencies are mixed. The South African rand, Philippine peso, and...

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Reflections on the Libertarian Role in Society

2024-01-30

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2024-01-30

As the recent election of Javier Milei in Argentina shows us, there still is a place in the political world for libertarian thinking. Liberty is a goal still worth pursuing. Original Article: Reflections on the Libertarian Role in Society

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The War on Producers and Entrepreneurs Is Based on False Notions of Profits

2024-01-30

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2024-01-30

Since Adam Smith, economic thinkers have failed to understand that profits in a market economy are not extractions of wealth from laborers. In truth, profits lead to higher wages and higher living standards for those workers. Original Article: The War on Producers and Entrepreneurs Is Based on False Notions of Profits

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Does Government Spending and Money Expansion Create New Wealth or Destroy It?

2024-01-30

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2024-01-30

Government efforts to expand “aggregate demand” involve new spending and money creation. In reality, these activities destroy wealth in the name of expanding it. Original Article: Does Government Spending and Money Expansion Create New Wealth or Destroy It?

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What is Money? Who Controls Money?

2024-01-30

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2024-01-30

What Is Money? Who Controls It? Gold is money! Silver is money! Everything else is credit! J. P. Morgan famously said this in his testimony before Congress in 1912: “Gold is money. Everything else is credit.” J. P. Morgan was the founder of JPMorgan Chase & Co., an American multinational financial services company headquartered in New York City. It is the largest bank in the United States and the world’s largest bank by market capitalization as...

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Contra Krugman, Policies of Countering Unemployment Are Costly

2024-01-30

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2024-01-30

When the economy goes into a recession, most economic commentators believe that the government and the central bank should take steps to counter the rise in unemployment. Some economists believe that lowering unemployment can be achieved without any cost, given that the unemployed workers are idle. According to Paul Krugman, “If you put 100,000 Americans to work right now digging ditches, it is not as if you are taking those 100,000 workers away...

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EMU Q4 23 GDP Stagnates, Underscoring Divergence with the US

2024-01-30

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2024-01-30

Overview: The US dollar is mixed ahead of the start of the FOMC meeting and is mostly in its recent ranges. The euro, which was sold below $1.08 yesterday for the first time since mid-December is holding above it today. The less-than-expected projection of US Treasury borrowing requirements for Q1 and Q2 weighed on US rates, which, in turn, dragged the greenback lower against the yen. It is trading near a four-day low, a little above JPY147.00. The...

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US Foreign Policy Is a Far Cry from the Founders Intent

2024-01-29

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2024-01-29

In July 2021, the Watson Institute of Public Affairs at Brown University reported that since September 11, 2001, 7,057 US military personnel have been killed in military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan alone. Civilian contractor deaths reached 8,000, although the institute admits this is an estimate considering many contractors were not US citizens, so some deaths went unreported. Finally, 30,177 US service members would commit suicide after...

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Washington’s Planned Theft of Credit Card Benefits

2024-01-29

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2024-01-29

Our vacation airline tickets in September were funded by accumulated miles on our Alaska Airlines credit card. While on vacation this summer, my brother-in-law graciously hosted eight of us for dinner. He tried to downplay the generous hospitality by saying he had just gotten his “cash back” award from his credit card company. The “cash back” credit card had accumulated a tidy sum of money, paying for a very nice dinner. At home in Brookfield, a...

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Oil Retraces Initial Surge, Euro Slips to Marginal New Low, while Sterling Hugs $1.27

2024-01-29

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2024-01-29

Overview: Key developments today include the Hong Kong court ordered liquidation of China's Evergrande and the reversal of oil prices after a sharp rally initially in Asia after separate attack in the Middle East that killed US troops in Jordan and struck a Russian oil tank in the Red Sea. March WTI, which settled near $78 ahead of the weekend, its best level since the end of last November, rallied to about $79.30 before returning to almost $77.50...

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Can Classical Economics Explain the Approaching Fiscal Disaster?

2024-01-29

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2024-01-29

There is a lack of buyers for US Treasury debt. Rating agencies have recently downgraded the US debt, and entitlement benefits’ “trust funds” will go into the red in a few years. The classical economists offer few answers to the depth of this problem.  Original Article: Can Classical Economics Explain the Approaching Fiscal Disaster?

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The Decisive Driving Force to Victory for Javier Milei

2024-01-29

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2024-01-29

Javier Milei has begun his presidency by taking action against much of Argentina’s vast welfare state. One hopes it is the beginning to a successful term in office. Original Article: The Decisive Driving Force to Victory for Javier Milei

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The Government Is Making the Economy Appear Better than It Is

2024-01-29

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2024-01-29

By borrowing money and “creating” new jobs, the government is creating the illusion of a strong economy. This does not end well. Original Article: The Government Is Making the Economy Appear Better than It Is

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The December Jobs Report Is Mostly Bad News

2024-01-29

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2024-01-29

The job market is still hanging on—but not nearly as well as the headline numbers and media pundits would have you believe.  Original Article: The December Jobs Report Is Mostly Bad News

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February 2023 Monthly

2024-01-27

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2024-01-27

The coming weeks will likely continue the correction of the trends that began last month. The markets recognize that tightening cycle is over. However, they swung hard, pricing in aggressive easing by most of the G10 central banks, including the Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank. Official comments and some high-frequency economic data have encouraged participants to rein in their expectations, reducing the odds of a rate cuts in Q1 and...

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Measure 110 and Property Rights

2024-01-27

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2024-01-27

In this week's episode, we replay Mark's recent appearance on the Rob Taylor Report. Mark and Rob take a deep look at the practical impact of socialist ideology in Oregon when mixed with the partial "decriminalization" of all hard drugs in the state.  The main issues they discuss are the lack of respect for private property rights, and woke government causing social chaos in Oregon; but, it's a lesson for everyone, everywhere....

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Are Free Market More Dangerous than Regulated Markets?

2024-01-27

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2024-01-27

As a frequent X/Twitter user, I follow a variety of accounts that touch on a number of niches: whether that is economics, finance, Catholicism, college football . . . or in this case, Lord of the Rings. A popular Twitter account that regularly shares content related to J.R.R. Tolkien’s work broke from character to offer an insight on another tweet. In the tweet he refers to, a food inspector is shown interrupting the business of a diner, which the...

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