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I'm just a layman but this sounds like a thesis to me: > A more comprehensive explanation would simply state that the U.S. economy is, to a unique extent, orga
by kqr 5y ago
I'm just a layman but this sounds like a thesis to me:
> A more comprehensive explanation would simply state that the U.S. economy is, to a unique extent, organized around maximizing asset values and returns on capital independently of growth
My layman's translation of that would be "U.S. financial markets are driven by speculation/gambling, not well-researched long-term investment".
I guess what makes that a weird thesis is that it's... so obvious. I would assume anyone who deals with this knows that there are many different participants in the market, many of which are only selling liquidity, i.e. speculating.
- danbruc 5y agoI don't think that the main point of the article is the behavior of the financial markets but of the companies - instead of actually growing in some real sense which in turn would raise valuation, companies are increasingly trying to just maximize valuation without corresponding fundamentals. This seems a typical example of the metric becoming the goal.
- kqr 5y agoRight, yes, upon reading further I realise the article is more of an exploration into potential causes and consequences of the central point I quoted.
- UncleMeat 5y agoIt isn't just about the participants. It is also about the policies and regulations. "Keep the stock market juiced" has become the new "keep the housing market juiced" because so many Americans have no alternative mechanism for surviving once they stop working without money invested in housing and stocks. So policymakers have an enormous problem on their hands if markets crash.