|Peter Boettke|
Scott Beaulier and I have a new policy paper out with the Cato Institute, dealing with the deficit, debt and debasement cycle in public policy. Our main message is a play on Adam Smith's discussion of the "juggling tricks" that government engage in to cover over their debts (literally in our world with paper).
Whenever I think about these issues, I am reminded of a scene in Buffy the Vampire Slayer (the movie), where Paul Reubens (of Pee-Wee Herman fame) faces off with Buffy after he had lost an arm in an earlier battle. He says to her basically that it is futile for her to resist the vampires because "We're immortal Buffy, we can do anything." She responds, "Oh yea? Clap!" I think of Geitner as Paul Reubens, and I'd love it if we had in place strong enough institutional restrictions on the juggling tricks of government that they could in fact NOT be able to juggle at all, and then I could say "yea, clap you one armed bastard." Unfortunately, that is not our reality, so the juggling continues in a frenzy.
A wise advisor once told me to separate my thoughts into a left column and a right column. The phrase "yea, clap you one armed bastard." definitely goes into the left column.
Posted by: Will Luther | July 22, 2011 at 05:16 PM
If you're in a not good position and have got no money to get out from that point, you will need to receive the business loans. Because that would aid you unquestionably. I get short term loan every time I need and feel myself fine because of that.
Posted by: Barbra21Kelly | July 23, 2011 at 02:44 AM
Immortal not immoral
Posted by: Daniel J. D'Amico | July 23, 2011 at 04:13 PM
Well, that too.
Posted by: FC | July 23, 2011 at 06:47 PM
Will,
I never said that for a blog post! That is about journal articles. And I actually think you can make a journal quality argument on why "cutting the arms off" those jugglers is the right 'constitutional political economy' position, rather than expecting policy makers to engage in optimal monetary or fiscal policy as if they were benevolent social planners. Don't you? And if so, then what if we endogenize that public choice insight? Wouldn't that give second thought to these policy plans to get the budget in control over time, or to engage in QE? to stabilize whatever we need to stabilize? We lock our bikes when we ride down town, we lock our doors when we go to sleep at night, don't you think we need to do a better job of "locking" when it comes to political decision makers and our financial stakes?
So when those politicians engage in endless juggling, we either have to take the balls away, or we have to cut off their arms. To me the more sensible solution is to cut off the arms. As Hume wrote long ago, when designing a government we must presume that all men are knaves. I don't want those knaves juggling with my, my children and my grandchildren's financial future.
Posted by: Peter Boettke | July 23, 2011 at 11:13 PM