Author Archives: Devin Smith

Wake Up Progressives: The Bad Guys Are Trying To Steal the Trillion Dollar Coin to Save the Financial Status Quo!

Posted on January 7, 2013 | 29 comments

By Joe Firestone

Among the many posts on the Trillion Dollar Coin (TDC) and Platinum Coin Seigniorage (PCS) we’re seeing this week, is a category of posts favoring using PCS in a limited way to avoid the debt ceiling crisis, rather than using it in a much more robust way, that would change the procedures underlying Federal spending, so that fiscal policies advocating austerity no longer have a political foundation in a visible and rising national debt that austerity advocates can constantly talk about fixing through “shared sacrifice.” Continue reading →

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News Conference for a Paradigm Shift

Posted on January 7, 2013 | 12 comments

By J. D. Alt

*A work of fiction

The President appeared surprisingly upbeat and confident: He grasped the sides of the lectern—not as he often had in the recent past, as if to support and steady himself in moments of national turmoil—but rather as if he were about to lift it up and toss it aside. Adjusting his papers, he quickly made eye-contact with each reporter in the front rows, usually with a quick nod of greeting, but sometimes with a stern hesitation. Continue reading →

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Neo-Liberals’ Dismissal of Latin Americans as “Idiots”

Posted on January 7, 2013 | 11 comments

By William K. Black
(Cross posted at Benzinga.com)

Alvaro Vargas Llosa (AVL) co-authored the Guide to the Perfect Latin American Idiot with two other journalists.  He revisited the subject with an article in 2007 entitled “The Return of the Idiot.”

“The ‘Idiot’ species, we suggested, bore responsibility for Latin America’s underdevelopment. Its beliefs — revolution, economic nationalism, hatred of the United States, faith in the government as an agent of social justice, a passion for strongman rule over the rule of law — derived, in our opinion, from an inferiority complex. In the late 1990s, it seemed as if the Idiot were finally retreating. But the retreat was short lived. Today, the species is back in force in the form of populist heads of state who are reenacting the failed policies of the past, opinion leaders from around the world who are lending new credence to them, and supporters who are giving new life to ideas that seemed extinct.” Continue reading →

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Trillion Dollar Coin: Posts on Legality and Constitutionality

Posted on January 5, 2013 | 132 comments

By Joe Firestone

Enthusiasm for using Platinum Coin Seigniorage (PCS) to produce a Trillion Dollar Coin, or coins totaling a few trillion dollars continues to increase. The twitterverse went mad two nights ago around #mintthecoin, a hashtag originated by MMT’s Stephanie Kelton, which by yesterday morning had become the 5th most highly trending topic on twitter.

Meanwhile, the blogosphere continued to produce more points of view on the Platinum Coin. The points of view divide into those that are very negative; either claiming that 1) using Platinum Coins would be illegal or unconstitutional, or 2) using them would be just ridiculous and financially irresponsible, and so should be avoided; and others that favor using PCS 3) either in a limited way to avoid the debt ceiling crisis, or 4) in a much more robust way, that would change the procedures underlying Federal spending, so that fiscal policies advocating austerity no longer have a political foundation in a visible and rising national debt that austerity advocates can constantly talk about fixing through “shared sacrifice.” In this post I’ll review new posts on legality and constitutionality. Continue reading →

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Randy Wray Appears on Beneath the Surface

Posted on January 4, 2013 | Comments Off on Randy Wray Appears on Beneath the Surface

Randy Wray is appearing on Beneath the Surface with Suzi Weissman. The discussion is about the good, bad and ugly of the Fiscal Cliff with Randy  on economic prospects and John Nichols on the political fallout.

The show airs at 5:0o-6:00 pm Pacific on Friday January 4, 2013 on Pacifica Radio – and streamed live from KPFK. It will be archived at KPFK after the broadcast as well.

 

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America’s Deceptive 2012 Fiscal Cliff – Part 4

Posted on January 4, 2013 | 16 comments

By Michael Hudson

[Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] […]

The ideological crisis underlying today’s tax and financial policy

From antiquity and for thousands of years, land, natural resources and monopolies, seaports and roads were kept in the public domain. In more recent times railroads, subway lines, airlines, and gas and electric utilities were made public. The aim was to provide their basic services at cost or at subsidized prices rather than letting them be privatized into rent-extracting opportunities. The Progressive Era capped this transition to a more equitable economy by enacting progressive income and wealth taxes. Continue reading →

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Paul Goes Platinum!

Posted on January 4, 2013 | 70 comments

By Joe Firestone

Another platinum coin surge in the Second Wave rippled through the mainstream media yesterday and this time hit the Congressional Progressive Caucus. Domenico Mantanaro of MSNBC kicked things off on one of the morning shows by mentioning the Trillion Dollar Coin (TDC) as a possible solution to the debt ceiling problem. Then, in the afternoon, on MSNBC’s the cycle, Krystal Ball, and Steve Kornacke, in discussing the coming debt ceiling conflict talked rather matter-of-factly, I thought, about minting some TDCs to get around the debt ceiling. Continue reading →

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Catch Randy Wray Discussing His Modern Money Theory Book on FDLSalon

Posted on January 3, 2013 | 4 comments

Firedoglake is hosting a book salon with Randy Wray discussing his new book Modern Money Theory: A Primer on Macroeconomics for Sovereign Monetary Systems.  NEP’s William K. Black will be the host for the salon.

When: Saturday, January 5, 2013 at 2:00 p.m. pacific /5:00 eastern

Where: fdlbooksalon.com

 

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The Washington Post’s tries again to create a moral panic sufficient to push the Grand Betrayal

Posted on January 3, 2013 | 18 comments

By William K. Black

The Washington Post’s mission has been to create a “moral panic” sufficient to cause the Obama administration to overcome the objections of Senate Democrats and adopt the “Grand Bargain” (sic).  The deal would actually constitute the Grand Betrayal.  The betrayal of Democratic Party principles and promises would inflict a recession through massive austerity via large cuts to the safety net and social programs and modest/moderate increases in revenues. Continue reading →

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The President’s Leverage: He Can Go Platinum

Posted on January 3, 2013 | 40 comments

By Joe Firestone

Well, that’s over. The President had a chance to go “over the cliff,” bargain hard with the Republicans, get more of what he said he wanted at the price of perhaps some more days of crisis with extreme pressure building on the Republican caucus, and he blinked. I don’t much care that he blinked on tax rates for the top 2% and on inheritance taxes, because tax rate increases for purposes of deficit reduction simply aren’t needed for getting deficit spending needed to create jobs, as the rest of this post will show. Here’s what I care about: Continue reading →

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