A Couple Quick Questions, Ed. 2
Posted on August 7, 2010 at 8.22 pm
Q. Considering we are TRILLIONS in debt, the government is printing money like there’s no tomorrow, and oil prices have risen significantly, why are we not experiencing 1970s style inflation? — Mike, from the internet.
A. Because the money has been created, but it’s not yet circulating.
The monetary base grown significantly in the past two years, as you realize: “$870.9 billion to $1735.3 billion in just five months, with much more to come” — and that was more than a year ago. However, we don’t seem to be suffering from obvious excess inflation…at least not yet. But is it coming? I’d lean toward “yes.”
Here’s why: As Dan McCarthy explained from an argument by Mish Shedlock on the @TAC blog a while ago:
[Deflationists may be right in the short term, but] the Fed is doing everything in its power to print its way out of deflation — which would actually be beneficial as a correction to the inflated real estate, stock, and other prices we’ve seen over the last 20-odd years — and into inflation. Shedlock argues that as long as the banks aren’t lending, we won’t see inflation, and Polleit notes that they have indeed massively increased their excess reserves (from $1.9 billion to $798.2 billion so far). Trouble is, eventually the banks will start loaning out that money again, which is when inflation explodes.
In other words, it’s like the Fed has created mass amounts of money and then hidden it in a hole. While it’s in the hole (or rather, while it’s not being lent or spent), the money clearly isn’t circulating, so it really isn’t having any effect on the value of the rest of the money in the economy. But once it’s in use, watch out.
Q. Should Christians volunteer for military service? — CJ Scrofani, from Warrenton, VA.
A. That depends. Right now? No. Other times? Maybe.
The American military in its present capacity simply is not being used in just or moral manner — not to mention how far it has strayed from its constitutional purpose. Because of this, I’d argue that a Christian cannot in good conscience join the military at this time. I would also go so far as to argue that if a draft were to be reinstated now, conscientious objector status would be the minimum a Christian should do to avoid combat, and complete resistance a far better option.
On the other hand, if our military completely changed to a moral, constitutional, and strictly defensive force…well, at that point a Christian might join. Whether the individual Christian should do so would be between him and his Lord, but — assuming those conditions were truly met — joining would not be out of the question. I don’t think Christianity necessarily calls us to pacifism (though perhaps it may require that of some), and it is surely right to defend the innocent when actually attacked.
For further reading on this subject, I’d recommend you to Laurence Vance’s “Letter to a Christian Young Man Regarding Joining the Military,” a short article with which you may already be familiar. I’m not always in 100% agreement with Vance, but in this case I am, and he makes my complete argument much better than I could.
