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A call for a return to backed currency, part 1
Conservatives across the right side of the spectrum have historically agreed that a market economy is worth conserving. Inflation is inimical to a market economy. Saving is de facto discouraged. Fiat currency, as opposed to specie currency or specie-backed currency, has no intrinsic value. Cloth paper, ink and chlorophyll do not trade on the open market at anywhere near the purchasing power of gold or silver.
As Judy Shelton of the Wall Street Journal has pointed out, fiat-system “inflation undermines capitalism by destroying the rationale for dedicating a portion of today’s earnings to savings. Accumulated savings provide the capital that finances projects that generate higher future returns; … inflation makes suckers out of savers.”
Americans have been shocked into the realization that “kooks” like Ron Paul (so-called by radicals, socialists, and charlatans like Keith Olberman or John McCain of “Cap and Trade,” amnesty, and McCain-Kennedy infamy) have been pointing out the nakedness of the emperor, when all along their 401ks were soothing them with delirious descriptions of the fine threads and shimmering gossamer translucence of his new robes.
Here are some reasons why a return to a backed currency should be – and can be – pursued at the present critical juncture. Continue Reading »
