It appears some native Austrians are thinking at the margins: by literally eating dollar bills.
Officially, that is how some of them are trying to fight inflation and dollar devaluation — by [quixotically?] attacking the supply-side of the problem. [Interestingly enough, a recent court case tackled part of the "supply" quagmire; see: Good as Gold].
And note, other mainstream reports of the continued debasement have recently been published: 7 Countries Considering Abandoning the US Dollar and How Low Can the Dollar Go?
Via Robin Tovson. See also:
The Worst Recession in 25 Years?
Operation Bernhard and Counterfeiters
Who benefits from inflation?
“If I were Bernanke I would abolish the Fed and resign”
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Gisele Bundchen is abandoning the USD.
This makes think of the Family Guy episode where Peter eats nickels but ends up going blind.
I would hate to think where all that edible money has been…
What if each person in the United States simply shredded a $10 bill each month? What kind of a bite would that take out of inflation?
If we figure 200 million earners, that’s $2 billion per month that would be destroyed. Enough to make a dent? What if that was increased to $20…or $100?
Extending that premise a bit…how would that $10 a month shredded to fight inflation compare to $10 a month deposited in a savings account or mutual fund? Would there be a higher rate of return from shredding the money?
Somebody better at it than me should do the math. It would be an interesting exercise.
Hayek and Mises repeat that monetary machinations are self-reversing in the real economy, regardless of what monetary authorities think they can do. So be prepared for the rubber band of monetary policy to snap back and reverse the dollar’s decline.
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