Mises Wire

Presenting "saving lives" as a more or less equal alternative to commerce and community is a misguided view of what the lockdown debate is really all about.

Rather than spurring real economic gains, the Federal Reserve’s unorthodox QE program has supported and extended the debt grid and generated asset exuberance. But this can only go on as long as there's capacity for more debt.

How do the shutdowns increase ageism? Because millions have arguably been thrown out of work in the name of protecting the elderly. The resulting economic devastation comes at the expense of younger workers, parents, students, and families.

Prices of consumer goods have grown rather slowly in spite of sizable money supply growth. Why is there a gap?

While the Left has agitated for more government spying and harsher "lockdowns," Brazil's president—perhaps fearing economic implosion—has been reluctant to crack down.

The eurozone needs to understand that if it decides to increase taxes to address the rising debt due to the COVID-19 response, its ability to recover will be irreparably damaged.

Prices and purchasing power are determined by how individual consumers value goods and services. The "velocity of money" won't help us understand prices or the money supply.

In this crisis the money supply has already increased far more than during the last crisis. But it's hard to say when this will produce inflation because we're still in the midst of a demand shock and a collapse in oil prices.

If organizations like the Federal Reserve and governments were forced to compete in a real economy, they would have been forced to declare bankruptcy, reorganize, and split up into smaller pieces long ago.

Although politicians lecture private companies for raising prices, it is governments that have for decades raised the prices of goods and services by limiting supply and raising costs.