Quote:Yes inflation is a major problem, for sure. Do you think wages should be remaining stagnant in response to profits increasing?
Profits are only increasing for the monopolies. A major problem is that there is no competition to drive prices back down. If your power company or cable company or telephone company continually has outages, what are you going to do? Cancel and go without them?
Quote:Anti-semetic, nazi's, hitler. They have their own terms they like to use.
I've seen some use those, but very rarely. Its pretty common to see the race card pulled.
Quote:Yes inflation is a major problem, for sure. Do you think wages should be remaining stagnant in response to profits increasing?
No I think companies should compensate their workers and compensate them well. But I don't want the government coming in and forcing them to do it either, bad companies will lose good employees to companies that pay better.
The solution is competition not government intrusion.
Quote:Okay, now, do you understand what its actual function is and what QE actually is? And manipulating our currency isn't the correct answer.
Not the Ron Paul version, but what it actually is.
Come on man, we're going to go around and around. Of course I know what QE is, and it's the main reason you're having inflation today. Quantitative Easing is a dangerous strategy and almost EVERY major economist agree's it's only kicking the can down the road.
Quote:No I think companies should compensate their workers and compensate them well. But I don't want the government coming in and forcing them to do it either, bad companies will lose good employees to companies that pay better.
The solution is competition not government intrusion.
Come on man, we're going to go around and around. Of course I know what QE is, and it's the main reason you're having inflation today. Quantitative Easing is a dangerous strategy and almost EVERY major economist agree's it's only kicking the can down the road.
QE doesn't cause inflation because it's not money in the actual market. It's bank money spent buying securities before maturity meant to make it cheaper for banks to lend money, in the hopes it would increase liquidity in the market. However, lent money isn't wealth and doesn't cause inflation.
Inflation is currently pretty mild by historical standards.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/co...lation.svg
Quote: 
Yes, good, beat that unfounded belief out there.
As an aside, do you understand fractional reserve banking, liquidity, and what those terms mean?
If so then please let me know how bank liquidity affects inflation and if inflation is so high why there isn't a lending run going on over everything since the low interest rates in the market currently would essentially make borrowed money at low rates free money if inflation is really as high as you think.
Quote:Yes, good, beat that unfounded belief out there.
Definition of 'Quantitative Easing'
An unconventional monetary policy in which a central bank purchases government securities or other securities from the market in order to lower interest rates and increase the money supply. Quantitative easing increases the money supply by flooding financial institutions with capital in an effort to promote increased lending and liquidity. Quantitative easing is considered when short-term interest rates are at or approaching zero, and does not involve the printing of new banknotes.
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When you increase the supply of money, the value of the money already available is decreased. That's the laws of nature for anything, the more there is the less valuable it is. So while no "new money" is being "printed" you're still injecting Capital into the market place without any real exchange of goods, thus leading to more of the money on the market and devaluing the purchase power.
Quote:Definition of 'Quantitative Easing'
<div style="font-size:15px;">An unconventional monetary policy in which a central bank purchases government securities or other securities from the market in order to lower interest rates and increase the money supply. Quantitative easing increases the money supply by flooding financial institutions with capital in an effort to promote increased lending and liquidity. Quantitative easing is considered when short-term interest rates are at or approaching zero, and does not involve the printing of new banknotes.
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When you increase the supply of money, the value of the money already available is decreased. That's the laws of nature for anything, the more there is the less valuable it is. So while no "new money" is being "printed" you're still injecting Capital into the market place without any real exchange of goods, thus leading to more of the money on the market and devaluing the purchase power.
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Like I said, inflation is at historically normal, or even below historical normal levels. If you really think there's going to be significant inflation you should be borrowing now to buy as much as you can, since, like I said, it would essentially be free money as the actual value of the money you borrowed decreases over time in spite of interest rates.
Quote:Like I said, inflation is at historically normal, or even below historical normal levels. If you really think there's going to be significant inflation you should be borrowing now to buy as much as you can, since, like I said, it would essentially be free money as the actual value of the money you borrowed decreases over time in spite of interest rates.
How do you think we plan on paying off 17 trillion :whistling:
Quote:No I think companies should compensate their workers and compensate them well. But I don't want the government coming in and forcing them to do it either, bad companies will lose good employees to companies that pay better.
The solution is competition not government intrusion.
Come on man, we're going to go around and around. Of course I know what QE is, and it's the main reason you're having inflation today. Quantitative Easing is a dangerous strategy and almost EVERY major economist agree's it's only kicking the can down the road.
I understand the point of view of competition being the savior in this situation as well as the desire to remove gov regulation as plausible theory. I do not, however, think for a second, that left to their devices companies will not collude with each other to rig pricing and pay. I don't see how anyone can believe that companies, who's sole mission, is to make as much profit is possible will "do the right thing" or even truly compete with each other.
In the small business world sure that's the case. But as companies grow larger and larger they aquire even more wealth to the point they just buy out competitors to stifle competition.
Quote:How do you think we plan on paying off 17 trillion :whistling:
Who said anything about paying it off? :mellow:
On a more serious note there's two possibilities, either increasing taxes significantly (and there's room for it, regardless of what republicans will scream) or simply "printing money".
I'm not worried about the latter possibility because if it came to that then the currency would already have been deemed worthless by the rest of the world before we actually even undertook such action.
Quote:I understand the point of view of competition being the savior in this situation as well as the desire to remove gov regulation as plausible theory. I do not, however, think for a second, that left to their devices companies will not collude with each other to rig pricing and pay. I don't see how anyone can believe that companies, who's sole mission, is to make as much profit is possible will "do the right thing" or even truly compete with each other.
In the small business world sure that's the case. But as companies grow larger and larger they aquire even more wealth to the point they just buy out competitors to stifle competition.
Big mega corporations that have bought up the business only exist in industries with heavy regulation, think about it. Cable, Power, Phone and Retail are the big mega corporations, they all receive support from the government allowing them to play by a different set of rules.
You don't have one big mega lawn service buying out all the little guys, there's not one big mega dealership shutting down all the other car dealers, there's tons of industry where competition drives wages up and prices down every day.
Quote:Who said anything about paying it off? :mellow:
On a more serious note there's two possibilities, either increasing taxes significantly (and there's room for it, regardless of what republicans will scream) or simply "printing money".
I'm not worried about the latter possibility because if it came to that then the currency would already have been deemed worthless by the rest of the world before we actually even undertook such action.
increase tax revenue is the only option, that would be done by eliminating the production penalty on the population. Give people more freedom and they'll produce more.
Sadly I expect higher taxes and inflation in the future.
Quote:Big mega corporations that have bought up the business only exist in industries with heavy regulation, think about it. Cable, Power, Phone and Retail are the big mega corporations, they all receive support from the government allowing them to play by a different set of rules.
You don't have one big mega lawn service buying out all the little guys, there's not one big mega dealership shutting down all the other car dealers, there's tons of industry where competition drives wages up and prices down every day.
How about Walmart, Apple, Google, and Koch industries? Lot of regulation in the retail, computer, internet advertising, and paper manufacturing industries?
Quote:increase tax revenue is the only option, that would be done by eliminating the production penalty on the population. Give people more freedom and they'll produce more.
Sadly I expect higher taxes and inflation in the future.
No, people are already producing at the maximum capacity of current technology. Lowering taxes would only continue to lower tax income. There's a lot of room to increase it both on the personal income/capital gains and corporate income fronts.
Quote:How about Walmart, Apple, Google, and Koch industries? Lot of regulation in the retail, computer, internet advertising, and paper manufacturing industries?
Google doesn't have a monopoly they're the most used because their the most efficient and user friendly. There's a ton of search engines, same with Apple there's tons of competitors. You're not talking about eliminating monopolies you're talking about taking success and breaking it up when it becomes to successful.
Quote:No, people are already producing at the maximum capacity of current technology. Lowering taxes would only continue to lower tax income. There's a lot of room to increase it both on the personal income/capital gains and corporate income fronts.
umm how many people have dropped out of the work force in the last 8 years? We're operating at no where near full capacity.
Quote:Google doesn't have a monopoly they're the most used because their the most efficient and user friendly. There's a ton of search engines, same with Apple there's tons of competitors. You're not talking about eliminating monopolies you're talking about taking success and breaking it up when it becomes to successful.
Both of those corporations do a lot of innovation through acquisition and have dominant market position in their segments.
Quote:umm how many people have dropped out of the work force in the last 8 years? We're operating at no where near full capacity.
Okay, so what would they be hired to do?
Keep in mind that businesses don't pay taxes on the segment of income that goes out in payroll, so lowering taxes on them doesn't actually incentive them to hire.
Also keep in mind that people on the lower end of the income scale already have a nonexistent or negative income tax rate and only people making a decent amount of money to start with would have a notable increase in income by lowering income taxes, and people of higher means have a lower propensity to spend additional marginal income.
So, what does lowering already low tax rates accomplish for the economy other than lowering government tax receipts?
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