Re:Wall Street Banks Warn Downturn Is Coming
by dragonwriter on Thursday August 24, 2017 @05:49PM
(#15094351)
> In practice, ever-increasing debt absolutely requires ever-increasing growth in order to service it.
No, it only needs increasing growth of the rate of debt growth is accelerating; if it is merely constant debt growth (over the long term), constant (not “ever-increasing”) economic growth allows debt service costs to grow constantly and still have the otput not devoted todeny service grow constantly at the same rate.
> We've so far been lucky, in that the period during which we've used this policy has coincided with the enormous productivity gains that came with the computer revolution.
It's been practice (“policy” is a bit too strong) since Eisenhower. And economic growth was stronger earlier in that period than later. Too the extent that it's been sustainable, it's not due to some unusual economic magic of the “computer revolution”.
> But rearranging our economy so that it's dependent on continual windfalls from external sources merely to stay afloat seems reckless at best.
Even to the extent the computer revolution might be relevant, that's not an external source when discussion the economy. That is a thing that was produced within the economy, and government (deficit-financed) spending played an important role in it.
No, it only needs increasing growth of the rate of debt growth is accelerating; if it is merely constant debt growth (over the long term), constant (not “ever-increasing”) economic growth allows debt service costs to grow constantly and still have the otput not devoted todeny service grow constantly at the same rate.
> We've so far been lucky, in that the period during which we've used this policy has coincided with the enormous productivity gains that came with the computer revolution.
It's been practice (“policy” is a bit too strong) since Eisenhower. And economic growth was stronger earlier in that period than later. Too the extent that it's been sustainable, it's not due to some unusual economic magic of the “computer revolution”.
> But rearranging our economy so that it's dependent on continual windfalls from external sources merely to stay afloat seems reckless at best.
Even to the extent the computer revolution might be relevant, that's not an external source when discussion the economy. That is a thing that was produced within the economy, and government (deficit-financed) spending played an important role in it.