April 13, 2021

Economic policy: new rhetoric, old agenda

Comment on Barkley Rosser on ‘Congress Steadily Degenerating’


The correct designation of the U.S. political system is Oligarchy and not Democracy.#1

It is not exactly a sign of Barkley Rosser's political smartness that it took the visit of a niece to realize the obvious: “But she admitted one more factor that has been building up. She has become disgusted with Congress itself, that it is getting worse and worse, just steadily degenerating. Her bottom line: every time a member leaves they are replaced by somebody worse, and these new ones have been getting really bad.”

The fact is, though, that Congress is just playing its role in the system. This is easy to see by focussing on economic policy.

The 3-sector Profit Law Q≡(G−T)+(I−S)+Yd states that the greater part of macroeconomic #Profit is actually produced by public deficit-spending/money-creation.#2 Growing public debt guarantees the permanent self-alimentation of the Oligarchy. This is rather old stuff but the COV19 pandemic makes it plain to everybody.#3, #4

The Profit Law implies Public Deficit = Private Profit. COV19 is a godsend. More deficit-spending/money-creation will result in a profit explosion. With their crisis policy, all that President Biden and Congress are doing is playing their proper roles in the oligarchic order.#5

The role of the state is to produce sufficient macroeconomic profit. The Oligarchy, in turn, uses the opulent deficit-produced free lunches to nudge the state’s legislative, executive, and judiciary institutions in its favor. Academic economics plays a supporting role as a propaganda arm of the Oligarchy.#6, #7

No surprise here for those who have been paying attention and do not need a niece for coming to grips with political reality.

Egmont Kakarot-Handtke


#1 Newsweek, Marianne Williamson, The United States of Oligarchy