$2.59 trillion sitting uninvested in bank accounts...

https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/news-insights/latest-news-headlines/private-equity-firms-face-pressure-as-dry-powder-hits-record-2-59-trillion-79762227

... while many workers struggle to afford the basics of life, let alone "luxuries" like a night out. This hurts them, but also the businesses who sell those things. The grocery stores throwing out unsold food. The cinemas screening films to 2 people per session.

This is what happens when economies don't redistribute enough money to workers. Living standards of drop, and productive businesses suffer.

@strypey that's not a lot of money. During COVID American households accumulated 2.4T in savings. Imagine the $2.59T you describe is distributed to Americans and their COVID savings accounts doubled. Would that somehow save America from continuing on the current trajectory?

Our problems are so much bigger than $2.59T but these numbers are too large to imagine. A couple trillion would be a Snoopy bandaid on a slashed carotid artery.

https://www.federalreserve.gov/econres/notes/feds-notes/excess-savings-during-the-covid-19-pandemic-20221021.html
Excess Savings during the COVID-19 Pandemic

The Federal Reserve Board of Governors in Washington DC.

@feld
There are a lot of ways I could respond to this, but just quickly...

> that's not a lot of money

That 2.59T is just one example of the Smaug hoards that pile up when the economy is rigged - in a multitude of ways - to take wealth from workers and give it to capitalists.

Yes, I think it would fix a lot of stuff if we unrigged the economy, and stopped capitalists hoarding money in places like private equity firms, so it could go to...

> workers struggle to afford the basics of life

@feld
The private equity system is incredibly corrosive to sustainable business, quality, working conditions, etc;

https://freakonomics.com/podcast/are-private-equity-firms-plundering-the-u-s-economy/

It would be more economically beneficial to set $2.59 trillion on fire (a la The KLF), than to let private equity firms get it.

Are Private Equity Firms Plundering the U.S. Economy? - Freakonomics

Are Private Equity Firms Plundering the U.S. Economy? - Freakonomics

Freakonomics
@strypey You're not addressing the root cause, you just keep pointing at symptoms that you think are outliers.

@feld
> You're not addressing the root cause

I'm pretty sure that was covered by...

> the economy is rigged - in a multitude of ways - to take wealth from workers and give it to capitalists

But by all means, educate me.

@strypey all these symptoms are from monetary policy which enable the resulting behaviors, period

@feld
> all these symptoms are from monetary policy which enable the resulting behaviors

What exactly do you mean by "monetary policy"?

@feld

Me:
> What exactly do you mean by "monetary policy"?

To be more specific;

(a) what makes a policy "monetary" by the definition you're using here?

(b) what "monetary policy" has been dominant for the past few decades

(c) how do you think that policy caused the "symptoms" we've been duscussing?

@strypey well, it starts in 1971 with the formation of the Petrodollar and continues forward through periods of easy-money policies which amplify inequality levels while chasing "growth" of the GDP. The decade of ZIRP we just exited was the most aggressive and damaging.

Until we fix the money nothing else matters.

@feld
> Until we fix the money nothing else matters

What would that fix look like in your mind?

@strypey ending government issued fiat. There are multiple avenues that could be pursued

@feld
> ending government issued fiat

Best of luck with that. I would have thought the crypto-token experiment would be enough to demonstrate the flaws in that line of thinking.

@strypey if you really believe democracy works you should believe the people can demand this change

@feld
> if you really believe democracy works you should believe the people can demand this change

Sure, but that's not really the point. Let's review. You're say that"fiat money" is the root cause of symptoms like economic inequality etc, and getting rid of it is the first step to "fix the money".

What I'm saying is that as crypto demonstrated nicely over the last decade, trying to decentralise money in isolation from all the other systemic forces it's tied into doesn't work.

(1/3)

@strypey What do you mean it doesn't work? Bitcoin has officially decoupled from the rest of the market