Atlas Shrugged: The Mocking

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Stupidly Evil or Evilly Stupid?

Megan McArdle explains the economy to us.
The other reason you shouldn't expect much in the way of radical new plans [after the election] is that we are now officially out of money. The recession is still grinding down tax revenues, and the bills for long-promised entitlements are coming due. There's no cash in the till for big tax cuts or new spending. And while there might be some shift in emphasis as to how we ultimately resolve our budget crunch, Obama does not have negotiating room to raise it all with a massive tax on Warren Buffett, and Romney is hardly going to get much support for turning Social Security into a free coupon for half-priced beverages at Denny's. The zone of possible agreement is actually pretty small, and either man is going to find himself stuck with a solution that neither he, nor you, will very much like.


You see, there is a till and when it is empty America has run out of money. It's not like we can just "print" more.

McArdle has to be lying; she cannot possibly be ignorant of monetary sovereignty.

Can she?


11 comments:

Downpuppy said...

A total failure to understand money is the essence of Glibertarianism.

Susan of Texas said...

This msut be the third time she's made this claim. You woud think someone would correct her.

Landru said...

Wait, didn't you correct her?

Oh...I see what you did there.

Lurking Canadian said...

If'n I am not mistaken, the president can free up a whole pile of filthy lucre in the New Year, including massive, crippling defense cuts and punishing, Job Creator molesting tax hikes by doing...nothing.

I don't expect much out of Megs these days, but surely by now she knows all about doing not one damned thing in a working day.

ifthethunderdontgetya™³²®© said...

The other reason you shouldn't expect much in the way of radical new plans [after the election] is that we are now officially out of money.

If only we could go back to the good old days...

You know, Paul, Reagan proved that deficits don't matter. We won the mid-term elections, this is our due.
~

Kathy said...

Well, we know she's ignorant, stupid and a liar. But in her defense, she's probably just repeating what she heard or read "somewhere". Now and then I read an article or hear a conservative whinge on aboutthe terrible, Deadly Deficit Danger. They seem to really believe it.

If they really do, then they should stop and think "where did all the money go?", but that might lead the the obvious conclusion: a fraction of a fraction of the American people is sitting on a hella lot of cash. Just. Sitting.

Ben Johannson said...

Perhaps someone can forward this to Princess Galt:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11J_914RZ-o

Anonymous said...

This msut be the third time she's made this claim. You woud think someone would correct her.

She knows perfectly well. She's just hoping her readers don't.

- spencer

VCarlson said...

Counting on it, even.

Surly Duff said...

"McArdle has to be lying; she cannot possibly be ignorant of ______________________"

This is always a rhetorical question, right?

Anonymous said...

hyperinflation and confidence fairies will make her thermomix investment less valuable if it happens, therefore we can't print money