Executive Summary

The heart of economic growth is an expanding subsistence fund, or the pool of real savings. This pool, which is composed of final consumer goods, sustains individuals in the various stages of the production process. The increase in the pool of real savings permits the expansion and the enhancement of the infrastructure, and this strengthens economic growth. An increase in economic growth for a given stock of money implies more goods per unit of money. This means that economic growth, all other things being equal increases the purchasing power of money.

This will be brief, appropriate to the topic at hand. It consists of a quote from Milton Friedman found in Joseph Salerno’s outstanding book, Money: Sound and Unsound:

If a domestic money consists of a commodity, [such as] a pure gold standard or cowrie bead standard, the principles of monetary policy are very simple. There aren’t any. The commodity money takes care of itself. (emphasis added)

Can you imagine giving people who are already suffering from mental illness a drug that you know will make them worse? Sounds like something out of a sadistic horror movie. Long-term mental illness sufferers experience such torturous states of mind that they might try just about anything to escape them—from the extreme of suicide to taking just about any drug their doctor says holds the hope of helping them. It takes a particular brand of evil to exploit that condition. But that’s exactly what Pfizer did with Neurontin (also prescribed as gabapentin.)