Comments on: Revealed at Last: The Greatest Threat to "Liberaltarianism!" http://www.theartofthepossible.net/2008/07/04/revealed-at-last-the-greatest-threat-to-liberaltarianism/ Thu, 20 Nov 2008 16:23:45 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 By: quasibill http://www.theartofthepossible.net/2008/07/04/revealed-at-last-the-greatest-threat-to-liberaltarianism/#comment-5420 quasibill Mon, 07 Jul 2008 15:10:22 +0000 http://www.theartofthepossible.net/2008/07/04/revealed-at-last-the-greatest-threat-to-liberaltarianism/#comment-5420 "The most facially plausible-sounding theory I’ve heard is that some of the money that used to be in US mortgage-backed securities and real-estate has moved to oil futures in an attempted “flight to quality." You didn't go far enough back on the chain. When you double (or more) the supply of money over a short period of time, alot of people come to believe that they are wealthy because of all the new paper, because the market has not re-valued the money with respect to real goods. Once the paper starts to re-value due to supply and demand forces, these people who believe they are wealthy will desperately do whatever is necessary to save their "wealth". It's almost like gravity. Once you shoot something up, you know it's eventually going to come back down. Once you print a lot of new money, you know there will be an excess of speculation until the value of the money re-equilibrates with fundamentals. “The most facially plausible-sounding theory I’ve heard is that some of the money that used to be in US mortgage-backed securities and real-estate has moved to oil futures in an attempted “flight to quality.”

You didn’t go far enough back on the chain. When you double (or more) the supply of money over a short period of time, alot of people come to believe that they are wealthy because of all the new paper, because the market has not re-valued the money with respect to real goods. Once the paper starts to re-value due to supply and demand forces, these people who believe they are wealthy will desperately do whatever is necessary to save their “wealth”.

It’s almost like gravity. Once you shoot something up, you know it’s eventually going to come back down. Once you print a lot of new money, you know there will be an excess of speculation until the value of the money re-equilibrates with fundamentals.

]]> By: Dain http://www.theartofthepossible.net/2008/07/04/revealed-at-last-the-greatest-threat-to-liberaltarianism/#comment-5258 Dain Fri, 04 Jul 2008 19:37:38 +0000 http://www.theartofthepossible.net/2008/07/04/revealed-at-last-the-greatest-threat-to-liberaltarianism/#comment-5258 Oh, that human greed that fails to account for why these prices weren't this high (or higher yet, as greed is boundless!) for years before the current spike? But it's true that given the relative inelasticity of the demand for the commodity called gasoline, combined with the world demand <i>for</i> it, consumption and price patterns wouldn't exactly track each other as nimbly as do other products. Oh, that human greed that fails to account for why these prices weren’t this high (or higher yet, as greed is boundless!) for years before the current spike?

But it’s true that given the relative inelasticity of the demand for the commodity called gasoline, combined with the world demand for it, consumption and price patterns wouldn’t exactly track each other as nimbly as do other products.

]]> By: Shill We Gather by the River? § Unqualified Offerings http://www.theartofthepossible.net/2008/07/04/revealed-at-last-the-greatest-threat-to-liberaltarianism/#comment-5252 Shill We Gather by the River? § Unqualified Offerings Fri, 04 Jul 2008 15:59:46 +0000 http://www.theartofthepossible.net/2008/07/04/revealed-at-last-the-greatest-threat-to-liberaltarianism/#comment-5252 [...] I complain about liberal talk radio. This of course means I’ve been listening to liberal talk radio. [...] [...] I complain about liberal talk radio. This of course means I’ve been listening to liberal talk radio. [...]

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