Comments for gonzoecon.com

Comment on Marketplace MegaFail Inflation Edition by Tony Lima

Tony Lima — Sat, 04 May 2013 03:10:31 +0000

You are an idiot. Go learn some economics — you can learn a lot by reading my blog — and come back when you’re ready to play with the professionals.

Comment on Marketplace MegaFail Inflation Edition by imppress

imppress — Sat, 04 May 2013 01:36:31 +0000

I admit I’m unclear on how the Fed reserve works in some ways, but when the prime rate is kept low, loans may be offered at rates below inflation in some cases. (not many is today’s rates are good examples.)

Furthermore,, like underwater mortgages, while our spending power stays the same as wages rise with costs, existing mortgages refi’d at lower rates will become less difficult to pay off, building equity which translates to spending power which can help reignite economies.

Much of this report was oversimplified, but the overall premise is not devoid of merit.

Comment on January Unemployment by Tony Lima

Tony Lima — Sat, 09 Mar 2013 22:36:54 +0000

Um, Jim, the Fed is expanding the monetary base plenty fast right now. The problem is that banks are holding a huge chunk of the monetary base as excess reserves — meaning the money supply isn’t increasing much despite what the Fed is doing. Meaning the Fed probably could buy all the government debt, but they won’t because (a) they already have a problem if banks suddenly start lending and (b) they’d like to preserve the private market for Treasuries.

Comment on January Unemployment by Tag

Tag — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 03:49:15 +0000

Why doesn’t the Fed just buy ALL the government debt? As long as they’re printing fiat dollars, why not keep all of that debt out of the hands of the Chinese. It can’t have any different inflationary effect; in fact it might keep it down because the Fed is likely to be less demanding than others.

Comment on The Unholy Trinity Driving Elections by Vaccines, Autism, and Low-Information Voters « gonzoecon.com

Vaccines, Autism, and Low-Information Voters « gonzoecon.com — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 22:49:37 +0000

[...] to voters who really don’t bother investigating issues in any depth before they vote. I have argued elsewhere that lack of information is only half the problem. The other half is their apparent inability to [...]

Comment on Jon Corzine Will Get Away With It With a Little Help From His Friends by The Justice Department Supports the US Postal Service Monopoly

The Justice Department Supports the US Postal Service Monopoly — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 19:09:11 +0000

[...] somehow, Jon Corzine is still free and looking for his next financial fraud scheme. I have almost lost my ability to [...]

Comment on January Unemployment by TonyLima

TonyLima — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 01:28:29 +0000

Here’s the problem: private sector jobs are disappearing but government is hiring more people. Who pays for government? We do today with our taxes. Our children, grandchildren, and other future generations pay in the future when our current government debt comes due. (In reality, that’s oversimplified because governments can continue forever in theory. However, the rate at which the U.S. is adding to the debt cannot be sustained even in the medium run. As one of my Twitter pals put it, “The U.S. is one failed Treasury auction away from disaster.” BTW, right now about 40% of newly issued U.S. government debt is purchased by the Federal Reserve.)

In any case, for better or worse it’s the private sector that creates income and wealth and, therefore, tax revenue. Government can do none of those things. An ever-growing government combined with an ever-shrinking private sector turns a country into Greece sooner or later. Please don’t hesitate to ask more questions. I just got home from a baseball game and may not be writing as coherently as I’d like.

Comment on January Unemployment by Otis Kershaw

Otis Kershaw — Sun, 24 Feb 2013 23:05:17 +0000

On an annual basis, the available job pool in the corporate world is shrinking by 3-5% every year. At the same time we are continuing in the US to train people to work in this system creating a declining job pool, with more people being trained to fill jobs that are disappearing creating huge unemployment. So why are we continuing to train people for jobs that won’t exist? Today the unemployment rate is running around 7.8%, but if we calculate that number in a real sense the number is closer to 15%. How you ask? We don’t count someone as unemployed if they haven’t looked for a job during the last 30 days. Tell that to those who can’t find a job in their field who are unemployed by the true definition.^ [extraneous ad deleted.]

Comment on Health Care: A Guy Named Bush Who Makes Sense by Health Care Shift to Electronic Medical Records Led to Rent-Seeking

Health Care Shift to Electronic Medical Records Led to Rent-Seeking — Sat, 23 Feb 2013 20:20:43 +0000

[...] No problem? Oh, wait, these companies are old and produce what should be legacy systems. I’ve written before about Jonathan Bush of Athenahealthcare. Here’s what he has to say about this clause in [...]

Comment on The Health Care Bill: Disaster for the Economy by Ah the French - gonzoecon.com

Ah the French - gonzoecon.com — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 19:53:25 +0000

[...] I’ve written about this issue many times before. You can read my thoughts by clicking here and here and [...]