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All this is only undermined by the fact that the financial sector and the stock market in particular involves mostly fictitious money. There is no problem that
by rue 16y ago
All this is only undermined by the fact that the financial sector and the stock market in particular involves mostly fictitious money. There is no problem that it solves that could not also be solved by saying "here, I conjured you a million dollars out of thin air, act as if you had it". The market is, as it were, a MUSH.
There are certainly plenty of talented people working in finance. That talent is just completely wasted.
- barrkel 16y agoAll money is fictional, in that it only has value to the degree that people agree and believe it has value. This is no less true for the US dollar than it is for gold, silver, oil, cattle, etc.
- mistermann 16y agoNot entirely true....not all forms of money are the same. Some can be conjured essentially from thin air (US dollar and all fiat currencies) while all others have supplies limited by nature (gold, silver, oil, cattle, etc.) Now, this isn't to say that paper money shouldn't exist, but with its benefits come some serious risks and responsibilities.
- barrkel 16y agoFiat currency production is limited by political capital; specie money, on the other hand, is susceptible to random booms (mineral deposit discoveries) and deflation (when economies grow faster than the growth of money supply). And it's not like mineral prices are predictable enough to be an entirely safe store of value.