The National Debt

By: Finnbar Fachtan

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

The US national debt passed the $35 trillion mark in late July of this year, and the interest payments on it will be unserviceable with current taxation schemes in the US by 2030. In nominal terms, the debt is high and unpayable, but it's really nothing to worry about. First, all currency is fiat, and this is a good thing as nothing is restraining a central bank except for the economic output of the country that is issuing a fiat banknote and its military prowess of it. Real money has historically been gold and silver, but money can be anything that two parties consider of value, that is, any commodity or service. The beauty of the modern-day banking system is that by creating money out of thin air money there isn't anything restraining the financial institution that issues it. The money can then be lent to more people, it can be adopted throughout the world at a greater rate, and the velocity of it within the financial system that uses it is much higher, which means there is more economic activity, higher GDP growth, etc... Jim Rogers is correct in stating that peasants like to keep a bit of silver around, and this is good advice. But, gold and silver are for a restart or to preserve wealth for the future as they historically move in tandem with inflation, meaning they should be used to preserve one's purchasing power. The use case for gold and silver in today's world outside of manufacturing and jewelry making is quite limited, so in reality, restraining money by tying it to something may create sound money but results in less economic activity and more poverty. In relation, to the national debt, this is a good thing as it bolsters the relationship between the borrower and lender, and it can assist in keeping a currency stable as lenders hope to profit from contracts in the future. Thus, if a loan is dollar-denominated, this benefits the dollar and the strength of it in the future. Dollar adoption is also good, and by having foreign central banks and countries using the dollar for local transactions, whether they be legal or illegal, we benefit as the nature and strength increase as the dollar adoption rate rises. Theoretically, the national debt, including municipal debt, could be paid off in a single trading day through open market operations, but it would lead to a collapse of our currency as it would be viewed by our lenders as an unethical devaluation of it, similar to what was done with the German Papiermark following WWI. The US national debt is here to stay, and we will most likely see it pass $50 trillion by 2035 and keep on going for years to come. This is a good thing as it leads to increased dollar adoption, and it can help preserve the "wealth effect" of fiat, specifically the dollar, that was intended when President Nixon took the US off the gold and silver standard in the 1970s. What makes a currency sound is the country that issues it, its economic strength, its military might, its geopolitical standing, and its use outside the country in which it is issued!

"The modern banking system manufactures money out of nothing. The process is perhaps the most astounding piece of sleight-of-hand that was ever invented."-Josiah Stamp