Testing The Financial Apologists

Perfect example of an echo chamber. As long as you agree with you they are a valid source.

Who gets to decide what reasonable taxation is? What in the world are you talking about?

For centuries now, citizens of the US have considered regressive taxes to be unfair. Instead, society strongly favors progressive taxes. The more you make, the more you pay in taxes. Nothing but trust and history. When was the last time the US forfeited on debt payments? This is why the US has such a high credit rating.Of course, with the yahoos about to take control of the House that could change. They seem to think forfeiting on debt is just fine. EVERYTHING is magically assigned a value. EVERYTHING. What is it about this that you don't understand?Can debt increase forever? Obviously not. Debt has been paid down before, and there is no reason it can't again.

Fantasizing about evil progressives seems to be a common thing among conservatives. Why is that?

But what is it with fantasizing about progressives?What it tells me is that you can't point to what progressives are actually doing, so you have to invent stories. Modern Monetary Theory does not say that you can create an unlimited amount of debt with no repercussions. You are foolish if you think that is what MMT says. Baloney.

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The U.S. Dollar Index started 2022 in a solid uptrend. From late April through late September, the Dixie—as the index is often called—ripped to new 20-year highs. U.S. tourists traveling abroad were big beneficiaries, but the dollar’s rapid climb pressured earnings growth for U.S. companies that have overseas units.
https://www.forbes.com/advisor/investing/strong-dollar/

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The US dollar is currently the strongest currency around. There is no hard asset that stabilizes ANY currency. All currencies in all countries are fiat currencies. WHY???? US T-bonds are considered one of the safest investments in the world. Why will it spread? How is that a problem? We already spend more on defense than the rest of the world combined. That currency would be a fiat currency just like the US dollar.

The stock markets have also been on a big rally. For example, the S&P 500 is up almost 22% over the last year. My retirement fund is showing a 43% increase over the last year, so the last year has been pretty good for stocks. This makes up for the 30% loss in 2022 and a mediocre gain in 2023. The bulk of my money is in ticker QCGRIX if you want to check it out.Gold looks to be half of gains seen in the stock markets, although gold will usually be less volatile. Gold may work for a few rogue states that find themselves under sanctions, but there isn't enough gold in the world to be used for even a fraction of international trade.I suspect that many nations were quite happy that the US used the dollar as a weapon, especially those European countries that are facing possible invasion in the future.

Gold has value because you can trade it for fiat currencies. Gold's value is determined by how much fiat currency someone is willing to trade for it. Because fiat currencies are used for more than buying gold. Even you list the value of gold as how much you fiat currency you can get for it. Gold fails as a currency because you can't automatically make more of it in order to stimulate an economy during an economic downturn. Fiat currencies are way more flexible than gold for guiding an economy which is why fiat currencies are preferred over hard currencies.Yes, it does take a firm hand at the wheel. This is why the US has an independent system that controls the currency, so that it isn't as strongly influenced by short term political expedience. For example, politicians would be strongly tempted to lower interest rates in order to get elected, but the independent Federal Reserve Board knows that keeping interest rates high is keeping inflation in check.Argentina can show us what happens when currency policies are influenced by political whims.

You heard wrong.

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Brazil's foreign trade in goods, some US$ 640bn annually is done mostly in US dollars, some 95%, but there are some inroads to other currencies such as the Euro and its own Brazilian Reais. These figure come from an annual report on trade operations’ currency statements compiled by Brazil’s Foreign Trade Secretariat of the Ministry of Development, Industry, Trade, and Services (Secex-MDIC), and revealed last week.

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March 13, 2024

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Brazil's massive goods foreign trade is in US dollars but there are incipient deals in Euros and Reais — MercoPress

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95% of Brazil's international trade is still done in US dollars. BRICS was invented by US foreign bond dealers who invented the acronym to represent 5 of the larger and more profitable foreign bond markets. It isn't a real thing. They may get together now and then, but it's all for show. Some of the countries are even openly hostile towards one another, such as the two big populations of India and China. Any trade league would be dominated by China, who is currently in a massive economic decline.

On one side, we have a certificate that says it is good for a certain amount of gold supposedly held somewhere in some vault in Russia, China, or Iran. No, really. They promise, it's all there.On the other side, we have US greenbacks. Not a certificate that you will be given US dollars, but real US dollars.I think I know what 99% of people would prefer, outside of Russia, Iran, and China.

Reminds me of the Jehovah's Witnesses who have been saying the End Times are just a couple of years away . . . for the last 140 years. Perhaps you should revisit history.

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In November 2018, the United States officially reinstated all sanctions against Iran that had been lifted before the United States withdrew from the JCPOA.[58][59]

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In April 2019, the United States threatened to sanction countries continuing to buy oil from Iran after an initial six-month waiver announced in November expired.[60]

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In June 2019, Trump imposed sanctions on Iranian Supreme Leader Khamenei, his office and those closely affiliated with his access to key financial resources.[61][62]

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On 31 July 2019, the United States placed sanctions on Iran's foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif.[63]

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In August 2018, Total S.A. officially withdrew from the Iranian South Pars gas field because of sanctions pressure from the United States,[64] leaving CNPC to take up their 50.1% stake in the natural gas field, of which it had already 30%.[65] It held this 80.1% share until it withdrew its investment in October 2019 due once again to the U.S. sanctions, according to Oil Minister Bijan Zangeneh and the SHANA news agency.[65]

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On 19 May 2020, the United States sanctions targeted Shanghai Saint Logistics Limited, a PRC-based company that provides general sales agent services for Mahan Air. The United States claimed that Iran used Mahan Air to carry gold of fuel sales of Venezuela.[66] Also, Iran denied the allegation.[67]

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On 8 June 2020, the United States imposed new sanctions of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL) and its Shanghai-based subsidiary, E-Sail Shipping Company Ltd (E-Sail).[68]

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The individuals and companies that had been added to United States sanctions list in 2018:[69]

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[see wiki for long list of companies sanctioned by Trump]
United States sanctions against Iran - Wikipedia

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In a previous post you were speaking of gold being pumped up with increasingly inflated dollars, and you spoke as if it were a good thing. Current growth of the US debt is unsustainable. It just means we have to slow it down. Why is that a problem?

Like I have mentioned elsewhere, there really isn't a good alternative to the US dollar. There isn't enough gold in the world to support all international trade. No other currency has enough money supply to replace the dollar. Stacked on top of that, what poor candidates for a replacement that do exist are also less trustworthy. For example, does anyone trust China not to manipulate their currency in their own favor? Or rather, does anyone trust that China will stop their continued manipulation of their currency?It's also worth asking if the US sanctions are unfair. Russia invaded a free and democratic European country. Why shouldn't they face consequences?

A $100 bill isn't credit. It's money.Credit is when someone gives you a $100 bill today and expects you to pay back $110 in future. When they sell their goods to other countries the majority of those payments will be in US dollars. The only reason gold has value is that it can be traded for fiat currencies. If you couldn't trade gold for fiat currencies then people wouldn't buy it in bulk.

I agree. A mix of stocks, commodities, and bonds is a good mix for a dependable return. My retirement is all stocks, but that is because I am playing the long game (although 65 is only 15 year away now) so I'm not worried about short term fluctuations. Once I start withdrawing in retirement I will seriously consider commodities like gold and bonds. For many aspects, that is true. However, it isn't hard to figure out that the gold standard is dead in the water. Gold could play a minor role in specific trades between specific nations, but there is no chance that gold is going to replace fiat currencies across the world. Gold simply can't physically replace fiat currencies.

That would wipe out about 95% of wealth in the entire country. Why would you do that?Current US dollar supply is 20 trillion. Our gold reserves are 500 billion. The quickest way to collapse the US economy would be to institute a gold standard. 95% of money gone in an instant.