Categories
Economics

Simple Aquarium – Understanding Liquidity and Asset Inflation

You observe an aquarium filled with an assortment of small trees. The trees on the right seem larger, healthier, and more robust compared to those on the left. In fact, the further you look to the left, the less healthy the vegetation appears. You notice a water spigot located in one corner of the aquarium […]

Categories
Economics

Q&A, Mom, Dad and the Financial Manager, Fiscal Spending, The Treasury, The Federal Reserve

Question:  When it comes to the U.S. Treasury selling bonds, whether short-term or long-term, such as bills, do they have to coordinate at all with the Federal Reserve or are they acting completely independently and selling bonds only when and if the federal government needs money for their fiscal spending? Answer:  The U.S. Treasury and […]

Categories
Economics

Financial Instability, Sovereign Debt, Inflation, Fiscal Spending – Q&A Session

Question: Excessive money printing and fiscal spending are often cited as causes of financial instability.  However, if a government issues bonds and the central bank buys them (essentially monetizing the debt), wouldn’t this just lead to inflation without necessarily creating other problems? Answer: Excessive money printing and fiscal spending can indeed lead to financial instability, […]

Categories
Economics

Walled Garden Economics

Our economy is a Walled Garden, with a lone security guard who has a gun, sets the rules, and issues vouchers that can be traded for fruits and vegetables.  Security is the only entity in the Walled Garden with the power and authority to print and issue these vouchers. In the Walled Garden, agents produce […]

Categories
Philosophy

Time Compression and Frame Rates

The passage of time is a fascinating perception of reality.  The way our mind interprets the “experience” of time is truly mysterious.  Our perception of time’s passage is not a constant, but a flexible construct shaped by our unconscious engagement.   Your brain is a recording device. When experiencing novel stimuli, like those encountered during travel, […]