The term “fractional reserve banking” is commonly used in a confusing manner in both mainstream economics and within lay conversations about economics. I hope this article will clear up some [ … ]
Category: Resources
Understanding Government Liabilities
I keep running into a strange issue in macroeconomic discussions – no one seems to agree on how we should account for government liabilities. For instance, Gold standard economists believe [ … ]
The Psychology of the Stock Market, in One Image
What a wild year it’s been. You could say that the pandemic was like an entire market cycle all rolled into one year. A boom, a bust and a boom. [ … ]
40 Things I’ve Learned in 40 Years
I turn 40 years old today. Since I hate birthday presents I figured I’d pass along some of the presents people have taught me over the last 40 years. 1) [ … ]
Why is Shorting Stocks so Difficult?
Did you hear about Tesla? Yeah, it’s up a lot. A lot. A lot. Like, hundreds of percent a lot. Or, 400% from its recent lows. Now, that might not [ … ]
Let’s Stop Talking About “Paying Off the National Debt”
When we talk about personal finance we often talk about paying off our debts to become financially free. But this is a fallacy of composition. While some households can pay [ … ]
Is Government Debt “Equity”?
I’ve noticed a trend in some economic circles that seems to stem from the Positive Money and MMT people – this idea that government “debt” is “equity”. While the taxonomy [ … ]
The Monetary Duration Dilemma
I’ve been careful in my research on money not to call money a “store of value”. There’s a good reason for this which I will try to explain in this [ … ]
My View on MMT
The concern in this environment is that Greece will merely be the first of the dominoes to drop. A mismanaged Greek default or defection could result in a chain reaction from Ireland and Portugal. So, while a Greek default wouldn’t cause an enormous strain on the banking system as a whole it has the potential to result in contagion.