A Roman lesson on inflation

‘While it is the duty of the citizen to support the state, it is not the duty of the state to support the citizen.’ — President Grover Cleveland

26 May 2022

GOLDMONEY — After two centuries of debasement the Roman denarius ended up with no silver content. The decline of the empire was accompanied by increasingly costly bureaucracy, stifling the economy. It was a template for today.

There are differences. But we share suffocating bureaucracy and the lack of specie in our currency systems. As Rome did from Nero onwards, we have lost the plot. A general deterioration in our sense of purpose is an additional factor.

Perhaps Diocletian was the Joe Biden of his day. He was infamous for his edict on maximum prices, which basically shut down the production of goods. Will Joe Biden introduce a similar edict? Don’t rule it out …

Intervention’s slippery slope

The point President Cleveland made back in the 1880s was that individuals and vested interests had no rights to preferential treatment by a government elected to represent everyone. For if preference is given, it is always at the expense of others. […]

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