If there’s one thing to understand about what’s going on in the political economy today, it is the fundamentals of debt. You do not need to be a bean counter or get too deep into the weeds to get a handle on things.
What you must understand is this. Debt – public and private – has grown to such massive extremes that it will never be repaid.
But it will be settled one way or another. Through default or inflation, or a combination thereof. Moreover, the impending debt reconciliation will be legendary.
In the meantime, as debt has grown, it has distorted prices. This is the reason why housing prices and stock prices make little sense. And this is also the reason why consumer prices continue to rise.
Federal debt recently eclipsed $35 trillion. In practice, the Treasury is responsible for the abundance of debt that has been issued. However, the Treasury is merely funding the deficits dictated by politicians in Washington who are beholden to the vast cadre of special interests. Continue reading