Bernard Hickey discusses the week’s news with Cathrine Dyer on climate & Robert Patman on geopolitics, plus special guest CTU Economist Craig Renney on the deepest per capita recession in modern time
In respect of the Hezbollah exploding pager story, this sort of thing is made easier (for whomever corrupted the devices) by comprehensive sanctions on Hezbollah and its proxies. For Hezbollah to buy things on the international market they have to disguise their identity and I inevitably use intermediaries that are not worried about themselves getting sanctioned. With most buyers (who aren’t subject to sanctions) supply chains are better understood and even required to be transparent for purpose of compliance with human slavery or climate change laws, so whilst it’s frightening what could happen it’s far less likely outside of war zones and sanctioned places.
In relation to the economic disaster that is NZ, the continued fixation on “who pays” is just the wrong conversation. The government should just run a deficit like every other country and ease back on spending when inflation is out of target and government spending is clearly the culprit. The purpose of tax is to discourage bad things and direct investment and give value to the currency (motivate work). Local currency Debt is nothing more than the sum of money created for the economy and not taxed away. It’s not a bad thing, it’s just a thing. Singapore “debt” to gdp is large (I read 169%) but no one worries because it’s inverse is private sector saving. Government “debt” is much safer than
Private sector debt because countries tend not to die, compared to humans and corporations, which is why it can grow indefinitely, without even considering the fact that they can print whatever is needed.
The current austerity is about nothing more than cynical exploitation of power and debt/poverty enslavement, with a generous release coming ahead of the next election.
Nice hoon this week.
In respect of the Hezbollah exploding pager story, this sort of thing is made easier (for whomever corrupted the devices) by comprehensive sanctions on Hezbollah and its proxies. For Hezbollah to buy things on the international market they have to disguise their identity and I inevitably use intermediaries that are not worried about themselves getting sanctioned. With most buyers (who aren’t subject to sanctions) supply chains are better understood and even required to be transparent for purpose of compliance with human slavery or climate change laws, so whilst it’s frightening what could happen it’s far less likely outside of war zones and sanctioned places.
In relation to the economic disaster that is NZ, the continued fixation on “who pays” is just the wrong conversation. The government should just run a deficit like every other country and ease back on spending when inflation is out of target and government spending is clearly the culprit. The purpose of tax is to discourage bad things and direct investment and give value to the currency (motivate work). Local currency Debt is nothing more than the sum of money created for the economy and not taxed away. It’s not a bad thing, it’s just a thing. Singapore “debt” to gdp is large (I read 169%) but no one worries because it’s inverse is private sector saving. Government “debt” is much safer than
Private sector debt because countries tend not to die, compared to humans and corporations, which is why it can grow indefinitely, without even considering the fact that they can print whatever is needed.
The current austerity is about nothing more than cynical exploitation of power and debt/poverty enslavement, with a generous release coming ahead of the next election.