Inflation is a function of the money supply. by ObviousTroll (2.00 / 0) #20 Thu May 22, 2008 at 01:21:35 PM EST
It doesn't mater who is providing the money. A broad based increase in wages - whether the funds come from producers or from the government - will increase the money supply, driving up prices.

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Has anybody seen my clue? I know I had it when I came in here.
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It does matter who is providing the money by lm (2.00 / 0) #33 Thu May 22, 2008 at 04:31:16 PM EST
Decreased profits (or even a government payout) doesn't increase the money supply in the same way that printing new money (or issuing new government bonds or increasing or decreasing the federal funds rate) does. We're talking about the particulars of alternatives with regards to how existing money is being redistributed within the system.

On the face of it, redistributing existing money from the top to the bottom of the consumer chain will only cause inflation in those goods where there is some sort of scarcity. I suppose that in some cases, the equilibrium prices of some goods might shift if more people have more money to spend on discretionary goods, but I think you're overestimating how much more money would actually be out there.

Do you know if increases in the earned income credit in the US were followed by increased inflation? I don't know one way or the other, but I suspect that they weren't.


There is no more degenerate kind of state than that in which the richest are supposed to be the best.
Cicero, The Republic
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