United Liberty

We live in weird times, and in these weird times, the truth cannot be relied on from predictable sources. Take for instance New York’s Democratic Governor David Paterson, who said:

But the candidates are couching their support in economic terms. Gov. Paterson, who is facing an uphill battle against likely rival Andrew M. Cuomo, told a group of bankers recently: “In New York, Wall Street is Main Street. … You don’t hear anybody in New England complaining about clam chowder. If you say anything about oil in Texas, they’ll string you up near the nearest tree. We need to stand behind the engine of our economy in New York, and that engine of economy is Wall Street.”

Paterson’s comments bring to my mind my experience growing up in Seattle, in which the public school system was effectively modernized with computers by Bill Gates and new stadiums and buildings, which brought in a host of new jobs and replaced the dangerous eyesore that was the Kingdome, were put into place by Gates’ fellow tech pioneer Paul Allen. Allen also turned radio station KCMU into the powerhouse that is today KEXP, a move that brought alot of early criticism, alleging that KEXP would be just another bland, commercial radio station.

Despite modernizing Seattle during the 1990s and 2000s, to the benefit of everyone living and working in the area, envy can be heard by many (but not all, of course) Seattleites simply because Gates and Allen have done well for themselves.

In the latest Buttonwood post at the Economist entitled “Paper promises, golden hordes,” the writer notes that gold is coming back into vogue. The price has tripled over the last six years, says another researcher, David Ranson of Wainwright Economics.

It looks like the public has decided that paper money isn’t so attractive at this conjuncture, and even some central banks are thinking along those lines, to wit Russia, China, and India.

All this makes perfect sense. Gold is not only a store of value; it’s a barometer for currencies.

This flies in the face of a recent paper by Barry Eichengreen and Douglas Irwin, cited in the Buttonwood post. These two economists have come to the conclusion that “[d]ropping gold did work” i.e. that abandoning the gold standard has somehow shortened recessions and reduced the inclination to raise as many tariffs.

Other economists would disagree. They hold that, in fact, dropping the gold standard and instituting a process of monetary expansion through a central bank is what caused the distortions in the economy in the first place, which in turn led to the recessions and even the Great Depression itself.

In Germany, the art of the vending machine is at the forefront of its game. See this one in Wolfsburg, where you can choose your Volkswagen:

[Thanks to Jalobnik.com for the photo.]

Elsewhere, a fellow named Thomas Geissler has started a company that is installing 500 vending machines in various spots, and what do you suppose he sells? Gold. That’s right, buyers have a choice among a 1 gram wafer for 30 euros, a 10 gram bar for 245 euros, or various gold coins.

Texas Governor Rick Perry raised a few eyebrows recently when he used the “S” word in public. Secession, he said, was always an option on the political table as far as Texas was concerned.

Just a random thought today…

I may be betraying my ignorance of history, but I’m willing to take that risk.

I am trying to find a situation in all of recorded history analogous to the present U.S. economic crisis, where a government has spent $ TRILLIONS of fiat money within a few months to “solve a problem” and hyper-inflation (or massive taxation) DID NOT occur as a result.

If anyone out there in cyberspace knows of an example, please post a comment.

When President Obama arrives in London this week he will meet with the leader of Germany, a nation where his election has brought newfound goodwill towards America; but will the goodwill be enough to force the hands of Germany to conform to Washington’s desires for additional stimulus and bailouts? If the latest media reports, which point towards an Administration attempting to dial down expectations, are any indication, then the answer is most likely a soft no.

The NYT is reporting that little ground is expected to be made in regards to additional German stimulus, with Chancellor Angela Merkel expected to cite fiscal discipline as a reason for German non-cooperation with President Obama’s Administration on the issue-

Every year the Ludwig von Mises Institute in Auburn, AL hosts a conference for scholars of the Austrian tradition to come together and share essays and ideas.  This year’s conference was loaded with big names and reputable authors among the Libertarian and generally liberty-minded.