Mises Wire

Truths lost in the rhetoric

Truths lost in the rhetoric

Here are just five of the truths lost in the rhetoric. There are many more missing from the political debates.

One: Without real savings, there is no division of labor, no roundabout production, and no modern economy. Money in the bank is not real savings.

Two: Credit requires real savings. Notations on the FED's accounts are not real savings and, therefore, cannot provide real credit.

Three: A nonperforming asset - a bad asset - always results in a loss; a loss suffered by someone (asset owner, taxpayer, holder of currency, etc.). Moving bad assets from brick bank to phantom bank simply deposits the loss in the taxpayer's account.

Four: Earning an income by satisfying the wants of the consumer (without violating the person or property of others) is a benefit to the community, always. Volunteering on government projects and programs never produces benefits when weighed against the unseen -- the alternate costs. Mandating volunteering is justifying slavery, regardless of the project or program.

Five: Government is an aggregation of the worst characteristics found in your friends, neighbors, and local crooks. The cream does not rise to the top, so to speak, in government agencies. Also, since politicians and government agents are neither omniscient nor altruistic as individuals, they are neither omniscient nor altruistic as a collective body.

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