Social activists now regard the minimum wage as another welfare program that can reduce the costs of programs like Medicaid and food stamps, and can reduce inequality. But the minimum wage is very poorly targeted for these purposes.
We're now hearing many calls for more antitrust legislation applied to Big Tech because these firms are allegedly monopolies. But old-fashioned antitrust was a disaster, as will be new efforts against tech companies.
Mainstream economists claim China needs more consumption and a bigger welfare state. They think China's high savings rate is a bad thing. These economists are wrong.
A divided America remains a wealthy America, and a postsecession America would be wealthy enough to retain a defensive military. Moreover, it's even cheaper to maintain an effective nuclear arsenal than to keep up a large conventional military.
"I am not against bank notes as such … I want to give everybody the right to issue his own banknotes. The problem then would be to get other men to accept such private banknotes; maybe nobody will take them."
Negative rates are a huge transfer of the wealth of savers and real wages to the government and the indebted. A tax on caution. The destruction of the perception of risk that always benefits the most reckless.
Regardless of how knowledgeable we are and regardless of various technological ideas, without an expanding pool of real savings, expansion in economic growth is not going to emerge.
