Why regime charity poses a big problem MacKenzie Scott, the ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, recently announced her intention to engage in another round of philanthropy by donating $640 million to charity. Of the $60 billion she received after splitting with her husband, Scott has already given over $16 billion to various nonprofit organizations. To most
Economics
The UK Economy – Lots of Problems, Few Solutions Introduction The United Kingdom’s economy is in very bad condition and has been for some time now. Britain’s economy is marked by low growth, rising debt, low productivity, prolonged high inflation, and a lack of investment. The British government is burdened by debt and has its hands tied
On the curious schemes of various activists, ideologues and politicians to minimise the emission of certain atmospheric gases by restructuring our energy supply and thereby our entire civilisation As the insanity of the pandemic era recedes, I find myself writing more and more about climate politics. Many of my posts on this matter – especially the last one – elicit disagreement from readers who believe that my arguments validate the premises of climate propagandists, who want me to know that
Line Go Up PART 2 How the elites benefit from mass immigration: part 2 Proposition 3 Migrant labour reduces labour costs Immigration is advantageous to those in industry that benefit by importing low-skilled, low-wage labour onto our shores. Immigration increases the size of the workforce and increases the government’s tax base as well. Immigration
The Green Paradox: Why unilateral emissions restrictions may actually increase fossil fuel production and will always fail to do anything about atmospheric CO2 levels Periodically, journalists realise that our climate policies are doing absolutely nothing to reduce CO2 emissions. The latest entry in this amusing genre of reporting comes from N-tv and the Deutsche-Presse Agentur: The planned global production of coal, oil and gas continue to significantly exceed levels required to mitigate climate change.
Line Go Up How the elites benefit from mass immigration: part one 1 in 6 people in the UK were born overseas. 700,000 Polish-born people are in the country.[1] Between 2001 and 2020, net migration accounted for 60% of the UK’s population growth.[2] Since 2000, the UK has had
Canada in Crisis “ If we consider that housing will continue to increase in cost given the proposed population growth, we know that multiplying the average housing price with the needed houses will give us the lowest estimated price possible. This equals $16,718,704,453,441.30.”
Empire of Dollars 4 How the United States of America maintains control of the global monetary system - part 4: U.S. Treasury bonds It is a mistake to think of the U.S. dollar as just one thing, as in just a unit of currency, because it is not. It is various nodes
Our Current Economic Malaise Debt is out of control. Inflation is out of control and reached double-digit levels in many countries. So, what is going on and how did we get here? There is no easy or simple explanation and there are many push and pull factors stretching as far back as the 2008
The Particularism of Joseph Schumpeter Re-reading Joseph Schumpeter’s Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy,[i] I’ve been struck by how insightful it is on many counts, not least his essentially elitist view of society inherited from Pareto and, related, his view that much of human thinking is non-rational and downstream of instincts, which is to
Empire of Dollars 3 How the United States maintains control of the global monetary system - part 3: The liquidity of the U.S. dollar 3. The liquidity of the U.S. dollar Liquidity refers to the ease, accessibility, speed and efficiency that a currency can be bought and sold without causing a significant
Destroying Europe: The Final Stage free, text Remember the story of multiple blind men describing the part of the elephant they are feeling? Medieval Europe was: * European * White * Christian * “Anarchistic” politically (my own emphasis with “Medieval Anarchy”), that is, politically de-centralized * Capitalist * Rationalist * Scientific * ...and more! However you want to think about it the "powers
Empire of Dollars 2 How the United States maintains control of the global monetary system - part 2: An overview of the benefits of the dollar system to the United States 2. An overview of the benefits of the dollar system to the United States Debt, Consumption and Sustainability Currently, the U.S. runs
The Beautiful Fantasy of Unconditional Basic Income On the new realities faced by the pro UBI lobby and how it fits into the grand scheme of things Liberal progressives with a socialistic streak have long held, deep in their hearts, a wonderful dream. They surveyed the societal landscape of the modern West, America in particular, and were
Empire of Dollars How the United States maintains control of the global monetary system - part 1: Introduction and overview 1. Introduction The United States is the dominant superpower in the world today, a position it has held since the end of World War II. The United States’ gross domestic product (GDP) is
OVERSEAS INTERVENTIONS BY THE US: PART 3 Nicaragua Nicaragua is a country whose relations with the U.S. stretch back many years. The United States occupied Nicaragua from 1912 to 1933. During World War II, Nicaragua offered a second line of defense for the Panama Canal, protecting American control of the isthmus and shipping by allowing the
Overseas Interventions by the United States: part three Nicaragua and Argentina Nicaragua Nicaragua is a country whose relations with the U.S. stretch back many years. The United States occupied Nicaragua from 1912 to 1933. During World War II, Nicaragua offered a second line of defence for the Panama Canal, protecting American control of the isthmus and shipping
Bitvana or the bitcaust "It's all money. Always has been." Nobody has any respect these days. But I feel that since I was writing about the game theory of hyperbitcoinization in 2006, folks should have some respect for my opinions. At least on that subject. Ya know. But now it’s 2023 and everyone
THE 1913 FEDERAL RESERVE ACT The Federal Reserve is the central bank of the United States of America. It issues the U.S. dollar, which happens to be the world reserve currency. The Federal Reserve is the most powerful institution in the world today, arguably the most powerful ever: this is because it has total
How the United States Gained Control of the Global Monetary System: part three Stage 3 - The 1971 Nixon Shock free, text Stage 3 1971 Nixon Shock Summary of Key Points * The fiat dollar is born * Removing the link to gold allows for infinite expansion of the money supply and money creation no longer has any restraints With the Federal Reserve system now
How the United States Gained Control of the Global Monetary System: part two Stage 2 - The 1944 Bretton Woods Conference free, text Stage 2 1944 Bretton Woods Conference Summary of Key Points * The U.S. dollar becomes the world reserve currency. * In the aftermath of World War II, American power is now formalised in the eyes of the world and the United
How the United States Gained Control of the Global Monetary System: part one Introduction; Stage 1 - The 1913 Federal Reserve Act Introduction In this series I will attempt to explain how the United States gained control of the global monetary system, at least as this humble author sees it. The monetary system is, at its core, a dollar-based, central bank controlled, fiat
The Petrodollar: part three The petrodollar wars and the consequences of American foreign policy In part two of this series we looked at America’s military engagements and why preserving the dollar system is essential for the United States. In this, the final part in the petrodollar series, I examine the consequences of American
The United States, The World Bank and The IMF: Partners In Power Introduction The World Bank and the IMF (International Monetary Fund) were founded at the Bretton Woods conference in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire in 1944. These multilateral institutions wield tremendous power and influence across the world today. Indeed, depending on how you look at it, they can legitimately be said to
The Nixon Shock: part two How the Nixon shock changed the world forever Globalisation of Fiat System The creation of the fiat dollar changed the world forever because the reality is that as the dollar became a floating fiat currency so, by necessity, did all the other currencies in the world. This is because the
The Nixon Shock: part one The creation of the fiat dollar It is August 1971. America is in the grip of an inflationary crisis the likes of which has not been seen since the era of The Great Depression. Owing to the declining value of the dollar, countries were scrambling to exchange their dollars for
The Petrodollar: part two The petrodollar wars - U.S. foreign policy and the dollar system The first instalment of this series dealt with the origins and the mechanics of the petrodollar system and the benefits it brings to the United States. In this part, I will explore how U.S. foreign policy is
The High Bretton Woods Era The mass reindustrialization and suburbanisation of the United States in the post-war era, along with an American centred global economy, allowed Americans to live an affluent lifestyle far beyond anything that had come before it. On the surface, the Bretton Woods system was generally working well as member states adhered
The Petrodollar: part one The origins of the petrodollar and its role in the global financial system free, text If you have never heard of the petrodollar system, it would not surprise me. It is certainly not a topic that makes its way out of the State Department or Wall Street and on to
Bretton Woods – The Birth of the American Empire The Louisiana Purchase and westward expansion. The 1913 Federal Reserve Act. The Monroe Doctrine. The Ford Model T. The Nixon shock in 1971. The global realignment after World War One and the decline of the British empire. The end of the Cold War. It is no easy task defining when