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It's All About The Benjamins

 

Benjamin Franklin at the Court of St. James, National archives, engraving from painting by C. Schussele.
 

     Having repented and looking locally , we must recognize that our monetary system is in shambles. It's all about the Benjamins.

     Contrary to popular belief, the country's financial condition is horrific. Fiat money is never a good idea. Sure, it brings about a temporary inflated standard of living, but that level of living is hard to maintain. That is, unless, we just print money. "Well, they're the government, Tim! They can do what they want!" Yes, they can, with dire consequences. The printing of money with no backing to it is highly irresponsible and inflates the cost of everything. This form of monetary policy is called Modern Monetary Theory. It is the idea that the strongest five countries can do whatever they want with their currency because no-one can do anything about it. It is a utopian money tree. This just doesn't fit with reality. Already there are countries buying more gold and disassociating themselves from the American dollar. China is one of those countries. They are also one of the five. We must understand that as powerful as America is, we are not above economics and finance.

     Interest rates rise when money is too loose. Banks are closing at an alarming rate as entities default on loans. (Read more on that here.) We are borrowing money to pay interest on money already borrowed and the national debt grows to epic proportions. Don't believe me? Check it out for yourself. The interest we are paying on our debt is approaching the same budget amount as what we spend on defense. Stop and think about that. No, seriously, stop and think about it. It is nauseating. And, no, I don't care what you hear on the news, this debt and interest is not the same as a mortgage. Please, read that again.

     "Tim! We've gotta have faith!" Faith that God will make it all go away? Seriously? Do we really think that He would reward gluttonous mismanagement? If you have that idea, we may want to revisit some of Jesus' parables. "It's not our fault this is happening!" Yes. Yes it is. That's why we have need to repent and then look to see who else has repented and rolled their sleeves up. We voted these folks in. We kept asking for the government or some politician to save us. Time and time again we have asked the government for some program or some service, oblivious to the fact that it must be paid for. We have to stop asking officials to do for us what we can do for ourselves

     Start expecting those in political office to run the government like a household budget. Sure, there are emergencies and borrowing may need to occur. But there must be balance. Some politicians do try to propose balanced budgets but they normally fall on deaf ears. Some say it is impossible; now who has no faith? Oh, it will take tough decisions and a dedicated execution of a plan but it can be done. How do we know this? We do it in our homes every month or we should be. The federal, state, and local governments have larger numbers and more hands in the cookie jar but at the end of the day it is the same thing. We need to vote anyone out who refuses to balance the budget. Start with spending. Always start with spending. Why? It is the only part of the budget you have absolute control over.

At the end of the day, it's all about the Benjamins. Franklin is shaking his head in disappointment.

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