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The magic money does exist – but can we trust politicians to use it? — Paddy Dear

Summary:
In 2017 when a nurse pointed out that her wages had not increased for several years, then-prime minister Theresa May quipped: “There is no magic money tree.” Well, maybe Mrs May was wrong. I believe there is a magic money tree and it is coming to western economies very soon. I am talking about MMT. And strangely, MMT doesn’t stand for “magic money tree”; it’s Modern Monetary Theory.... The question, "Can we trust politicians," is really a question about the viability of democracy. The answer of the liberal faction is, yes. The response of the conservative faction is a resounding, no. Safeguards are required to protect from the excesses of democracy, e.g., descent into "rabble rule." So after the economic/financial issues are settled, the political questions emerge. This boils down to

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In 2017 when a nurse pointed out that her wages had not increased for several years, then-prime minister Theresa May quipped: “There is no magic money tree.” Well, maybe Mrs May was wrong. I believe there is a magic money tree and it is coming to western economies very soon. I am talking about MMT. And strangely, MMT doesn’t stand for “magic money tree”; it’s Modern Monetary Theory....
The question, "Can we trust politicians," is really a question about the viability of democracy. The answer of the liberal faction is, yes. The response of the conservative faction is a resounding, no. Safeguards are required to protect from the excesses of democracy, e.g., descent into "rabble rule."

So after the economic/financial issues are settled, the political questions emerge. This boils down to different worldviews with different value systems and ideologies.

The Telegraph is a Tory paper.
So MMT is flawed, not by economics but by human nature. They say central bankers should take away the punch bowl just as the party gets going. While we may trust central bankers to do so, I haven’t been to a party yet where the party goers themselves elected to remove the punch bowl.
Democracy needs grownup supervision, you see.

The Telegraph (Registration required)
The magic money does exist - but can we trust politicians to use it?
Paddy Dear | co-founder of Tetragon, a closed-end investment company where he serves on the board of directors and investment committee
Mike Norman
Mike Norman is an economist and veteran trader whose career has spanned over 30 years on Wall Street. He is a former member and trader on the CME, NYMEX, COMEX and NYFE and he managed money for one of the largest hedge funds and ran a prop trading desk for Credit Suisse.

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