Re: Sweden - Monetary Policy

["Gunnar Tomasson" <tomasson@xxxxxxxx>]

> First, monetary policy can and should be used solely to
> maintain the value of the currency. The fable that it can
> "prime the pump" or any other such nonsense purporting to
> overcome the tautological certainty that printing money only
> rearranges the chairs; it doesn't and can't actually cause
> economic production.

Fiddlesticks!

This is the viewpoint of James Mill and David Ricardo, whose trashing of the
contrary view stated by Jeremy Bentham in the early 1800s has - or should -
long since have been assigned to the dustbin of history.

Gunnar



----- Original Message -----
From: "John O'Donnell" <jackodonnell@xxxxxxxx>
To: <pkt@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>; "Sven R Larson" <larson@xxxxxx>
Sent: Friday, April 27, 2001 9:13 PM
Subject: Re: Sweden


> Sven R Larson wrote:
> >
> > I get the feeling that there might be more interest in Sweden following
> > the postings about the EU demonstrations, and since the mere topic
> > "Sweden" makes my stomach turn upside down I'll make one and only one
> > contribution. After this one I don't want to have anything to do with
> > that topic anymore. So please excuse me for writing a long one here.
>
> Why is it that economists insist there are only two sides to
> economics? Give a little thought to a third way.
>
> First, monetary policy can and should be used solely to
> maintain the value of the currency. The fable that it can
> "prime the pump" or any other such nonsense purporting to
> overcome the tautological certainty that printing money only
> rearranges the chairs; it doesn't and can't actually cause
> economic production. For a fuller explanation of this
> tautological certainty see _Supply and demand, Again_ at:
> http://www.geocities.com/jackodonnell.geo/chap13r3.html
>
> Second, the FORM of taxes is as important or more so than
> the amount of taxes. Taxes that resolve to "variable costs
> of production" ALL create a wedge between buyer and seller
> that reduces the point of maximum profit for producers while
> taxes that resolve to "fixed costs of production" do not.
> For a further explanation of this truth see _Taxing
> Monopoly_ at:
> http://www.geocities.com/jackodonnell.geo/c03r5a.html with
> further explanation in _Sharing Nature_ at:
> http://www.geocities.com/jackodonnell.geo/c04r4a.html
>
> Thirdly, recognize that the burden placed on welfare
> recipients trying to enter the workforce is typically
> greater than that placed on any other members of society.
> However, a grant to ALL citizens without any conditions of
> income will tend to reduce the wage level that increases
> variable costs of production while it concurrently increases
> the standard of living. The tale continues in part 2 of
> _Sharing Nature_ at:
> http://www.geocities.com/jackodonnell.geo/c04r4p2a.html
>
> <SNIP>>
> --
> -- jbod
>
> Tax Privilege, Not People
> ___________________________________________________
> Come visit and see a new economic perspective --
>        http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/1067
>            Comments/arguments welcome.
> .
>
>