Martin Armstrong: The Forecaster
Mercatus Center’s New Program on Monetary Policy
The Mercatus Center at George Mason University has just launched the Program on Monetary Policy under the direction of Scott Sumner, Professor of Economics at Bentley University and editor of the influential blog The Money Illusion.
Markets Restrain Bank Fraud, But Central Banks Enable It
Originally, paper money was not regarded as money but merely as a representation of a commodity (namely, gold). Various paper certificates represented claims on gold stored with the banks. Holders of paper certificates could convert them into gold whenever they deemed necessary. Because people found it more convenient to use paper certificates to exchange for goods and services, these certificates came to be regarded as money.
Is the Use of US Dollars Mandatory in the United States?
Are you required to use dollars for all transactions in the United States? Sometimes, I receive submissions from columnists that suggest or even outright assert that it is illegal to use currencies other than the US dollar in the United States. This is not the case. Federal legal tender laws — by themselves — do not outlaw the use of foreign currencies in trade, nor does it make the use of the US dollar mandatory. Federal law does make the US dollar (namely, Federal Reserve notes) the preferred currency via government edict.
How Greek Default May Still Unravel the EU
Greece is back in the headlines. This should surprise no one. It was naïve to think that Greeks would accept being debt slaves forever.
Despite all the rumblings that Greece will be forced to leave the Euro, there is in reality no mechanism by which EU countries can force a Eurozone member to exit the currency union. It really is all a bluff. This is a standard scare tactic used by governments to induce people to give up freedom for a little security.
Legal Pot’s First Birthday in Colorado
The True Cost of the Homeownership Obsession
In 2014, the US homeownership rate fell below 65 percent, which means it’s back to where it was during the 1970s and much of the 1990s.
What a Swiss Surprise!
A surprise move from Switzerland’s central bank (SNB) sent European stock markets into panic today. Although a few months ago, the public voted no in a referendum demanding the SNB keep higher gold reserves, the Swiss are returning to a more traditional stance in their monetary policies.
