The primary neurosis of economics is inflation.  This is by design.  The real culprits don’t want to be identified.  The definition is altered by politicians, but this doesn’t alter the true meaning.  Inflation is an expansion of the money supply.  It is not the increase in prices.  This is a hard truth.  Higher prices are the near inevitable result of inflation.  Inflation can only come about by printing more money.

There are endeavors to expand the money supply.  This is an easy source of revenue for the state.  This is unobservable by many, as Keynes pointed out.  There is far more resistance to taxation because it is observable.  While mining for gold can be profitable, it is also expensive and difficult.  Printing money is much easier and cheaper.  The state has essentially accomplished the alchemist trick of turning metals into gold.

There are always big cash induced changes to the purchasing power.  It’s never a dollar here, a dollar there.  We wouldn’t notice if it was.  It’s always quite a bit more.  Prices will almost always rise as a result.  This is no different than taking money from your bank account, retirement account, and future pay checks.  If you’re still working, your pay will rise eventually.  This is especially harmful on retirees and others on fixed incomes.

Printing more money doesn’t create more goods.  It is impossible that social wealth can increase.  Printing money just redistributes property titles.  For example, everyone’s money doubled over night.  Who will benefit?  Clearly this will benefit the early risers.  The late risers will be harmed at the expense of the early risers.  That is never how inflation works.  It does always benefit the early receivers at the expense of the late receivers.  The early receivers are always the state and their closest friends.

The semantic revolution is not new.  However, it has been kicked into overdrive.  Don’t be fooled.  It’s only printing more money.  The real culprit is the federal reserve, which operates based on the direction of the state.  They want to pretend like it’s higher prices so businesses are blamed, but that’s just not true.  Higher prices are the symptom.  I know the federal reserve pretends like it’s impartial and above politics, but it is extremely partial.  Be friends with the truth.  It’s time to capture freedom.

Reference

Ludwig von Mises; Human Action