Economics as a verb 3
Following on this line of thought.

Big discussion of income inequality today, based on a new poll. Mentions the stereotypical right and left views: Right says ZERO TAXES to make the economy grow, lift all boats. Left says MORE STIMULUS, redistribute false value arbitrarily to the Left's currently defined aristocrats.

We've tried both separately and simultaneously. They don't work because most of the "value" is not Real Value. It's arbitrary numbers typed in by the Chosen Ones through keyboards like the Federal Reserve and LIBOR. The keyboards were created by the Chosen Ones to serve their own purposes, and no alterations in taxes or welfare will change the fact that these are NUMBERS WITHOUT VALUE. These mechanisms run faultlessly to increase the nominal riches of the Chosen Ones, without affecting Real Value in the slightest.

Rising tide can lift more boats if the tide is Real Value, and if the real value is being created by the people in the boats. The water analogy fails at this point, so I'll get down to the verb stuff.

Consider the original meaning of interest. It's a verb.

Inter-est. He is among. He takes part. He has a share.

In concrete form: He plows his land and plants crops. She grinds the wheat and bakes bread. He sells the bread and delivers it. All of these people are among this one line of value-creation. All take part in the increase. All have a share of the creating, and all receive a share of the money paid for the final product.

All of these boats are in the water of Real Value, and all benefit when the Real Value in this particular reservoir rises. When the bread feeds the customers well enough that they feel like having more kids, there's more need for bread. More need for wheat and grinding and baking and selling and delivering. Nobody is standing on the shore betting on the rise. Nobody is getting paid to blame Evil KKKarbon for the rising tide.

The existing analogies are wrong because they refer almost entirely to the bettor and the blamer. Growth means increasing activity at the Betting Parlor and increasing activity in the Church of Blame. (Of course we use different words: we call the betting parlor "The Dow" and we call the Church of Blame "insurance.")

Labels: Blinded by Stats, Natural law = Sharia law

  ¶ 5:16 PM