Thursday, January 20, 2011

Has Bill Kristol Turned Into a Peacenik?

There's a curious comment out by neo-conservative Bill Kristol. It sounds like he has read Ron Paul on gold:
...it's worth further asking--as more and more people are beginning to ask--whether a modernized international gold standard, which anchors currencies to a standard outside government manipulation, wouldn't better serve the interests of free and limited government both at home and abroad. After all, it's the dollar's status as a reserve currency that has allowed the U.S. government to amass huge debts, debts which the legislatively imposed debt ceiling has been unsuccessful in limiting. Fiat currency seems to be related to bloated and unlimited government, and to speculative bubbles, and to international instability. Do we just to have to live with this, or simply hope for better Fed chairmen?...

get ready for an interesting and important debate over the next months and years on international monetary policy--which, I predict, we'll increasingly see as something that needs to be reformed in the direction of a modernized international gold standard, as part of the broader project of re-limiting government, re-establishing sound money and a sound international financial system, and restoring stable and strong economic growth.
There are two problems with Kristol's comment, though. First, he is calling for a "modernized" gold standard, not simply a gold standard. Ron Paul always simply calls for a gold standard. As David Rubinstein, Carlyle Group co-founder and top military-industrial complex profiteer, told me in another context, "the devil is in the details." So it would be very interesting to know just what exactly is in the mind of this former Dan Quayle adviser when he calls for a "modernized" gold standard. Until we learn the details of this latest move from the neo-con grand thinker, I think we need to be highly suspicious of Kristol's "modernized" gold standard, because of my point 2.

Point 2: As leader of the neo-con marching team, there are few wars that Kristol does not endorse. Indeed, in his comment for a "modernized" gold standard he can't resist telling us that he is a "hawk" on China.

And then notes that:
...it's the dollar's status as a reserve currency that has allowed the U.S. government to amass huge debts, debts which the legislatively imposed debt ceiling has been unsuccessful in limiting. Fiat currency seems to be related to bloated and unlimited government, and to speculative bubbles, and to international instability.
Quite true. In fact, it is the money printing that supports the grand adventures of America's military across the globe. Since Kristol is the top cheerleader for these wars, how does Kristol expect to finance them if he is now truly in favor of a gold standard? Does he think he can blatantly tax the people? Huh, I'd like to see Dan Quayle explain that one.

In truth, empire and money printing have become inexorably linked in the modern world. You can't pull off empire building and military adventures with a gold standard, people would too easily recognize that they are getting stuck with the tab. So the question becomes, has Kristol become a peacenik? Has he secretly had a pussy cat tattooed on his butt, and next we are about to hear him renounce all U.S. military actions overseas, or does "modernized international" gold standard, really mean, when it comes down to the details, the "not really" gold standard?

1 comment:

  1. so there were no empires before 1971?
    interesting.

    ReplyDelete