• We’re All Rich! According to the Federal Reserve consumer finance survey, the average American household had a net worth of $1.06 million in 2022. That’s right, we’re all millionaires!! . . . except for one thing. Back in the old days they spoke of being “land poor.” That meant people had a lot of land, considered by many to be the only real form of wealth, but that it didn’t generate any cash income. Similarly, a lot of what the average American household owns is “stuff,” that is, consumer goods like cars, houses, TVs, stereos, scooters, computers, mobile phones, 'n such, not income-generating wealth. That means the average American may be rich on paper but doesn’t have the income commensurate with what appears to be a sizable accumulation of wealth. What’s the way to reverse this rather bizarre trend? Adopt the Economic Democracy Act.
• Fed Out of Control. According to this news story, the Federal Reserve has adequately demonstrated that it is inadequate. Evidently, no matter what the Federal Reserve does, it never seems to have the anticipated result. With anyone else, that would suggest that maybe they’re doing something wrong or at least not right. Nope. For them, it means do more of the same until they force it to work. Of course, they could always push for the Economic Democracy Act . . . but what would be the fun of having a well-run economy that makes sense?
• A Triple Threat. According to Ned Davis Research, there are three threats to the economy. 1) High inflation, 2) high interest rates, and 3) credit risks are increasing. What’s interesting about these three threats is that they are all pretty much the same thing. Inflation is a rise in the price level, interest is construed (incorrectly) as the “price” of money, and credit risk is reflected in a high interest rate. Is there a way around it? Yes — credit risk is greatly diminished by shifting creditworthiness from the borrower to the investment which is what the Economic Democracy Act does, at least in part.
• Why the Coming Recession Won’t Be Bad. At least according to Apollo. Why? Because it will be an artificially created recession by the Federal Reserve. Uh, huh. This begs the question, because under the Currency Principle, all recessions and booms and everything else are a direct result of money manipulation, which is being carried out by the Federal Reserve and other central banks. What’s the solution? Shift to the Banking Principle and eliminate the artificial boom and bust cycle altogether by adopting the Economic Democracy Act. This won’t end all boom and bust, but it will end the artificial ones.
• Unrepayable National Debt. According to the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, there’s no way the United States can “grow” its way out from under the $33 trillion in debt it has accumulated, which means that it cannot be paid. That is, under current assumptions that links the money supply to government debt. Think about it. If having money means increasing government debt, the “richer” we become, the poorer the government becomes, and vice versa. Of course, the whole scenario changes if we assume that money can be created using private sector assets instead of public sector debt. Doing that is the heart of the Economic Democracy Act. When you back the money supply with private sector hard assets, the debt repays itself. When you back the money supply with government debt, the only way to retire it is to tax people who aren’t making any money because the government is sucking all the credit out of the economy — a vicious circle. The choice is ours.
• Surprise! Inflation is Here to Stay! According to the experts, inflation is here to stay for a while and they don’t know what to do about it. No one seems to consider the possibility that the current economic paradigm breeds this sort of thing. If they want to break out of the cycle, they need to adopt the Economic Democracy Act, but nobody seems to be considering that for some reason.
• Greater Reset “Book Trailers”. We have produced two ninety-second “Book Trailers” for distribution (by whoever wants to distribute them), essentially minute and a half commercials for The Greater Reset. There are two versions of the videos, one for “general audiences” and the other for “Catholic audiences”. Take your pick.
• The Greater Reset. CESJ’s new book by members of CESJ’s core group, The Greater Reset: Reclaiming Personal Sovereignty Under Natural Law is, of course, available from the publisher, TAN Books, an imprint of Saint Benedict Press, and has already gotten a top review on that website. It can also be obtained from Barnes and Noble, as well as Amazon, or by special order from your local “bricks and mortar” bookstore. The Greater Reset is the only book of which we’re aware on “the Great Reset” that presents an alternative instead of simply warning of the dangers inherent in a proposal that is contrary to natural law. It describes reality, rather than a Keynesian fantasy world. Please note that The Greater Reset is NOT a CESJ publication as such, and enquiries about quantity discounts and wholesale orders for resale must be sent to the publisher, Saint Benedict Press, NOT to CESJ.
• Economic Personalism Landing Page. A landing page for CESJ’s latest publication, Economic Personalism: Property, Power and Justice for Every Person, has been created and can be accessed by clicking on this link. Everyone is encouraged to visit the page and send the link out to their networks.
• Economic Personalism. When you purchase a copy of Economic Personalism: Property, Power and Justice for Every Person, be sure you post a review after you’ve read it. It is available on both Amazon and Barnes and Noble at the cover price of $10 per copy. You can also download the free copy in .pdf available from the CESJ website. If you’d like to order in bulk (i.e., ten or more copies) at the wholesale price, send an email to publications@cesj.org for details. CESJ members get a $2 rebate per copy on submission of proof of purchase. Wholesale case lots of 52 copies are available at $350, plus shipping (whole case lots ONLY). Prices are in U.S. dollars.
• Sensus Fidelium Videos, Update. CESJ’s series of videos for Sensus Fidelium are doing very well, with over 155,000 total views. The latest Sensus Fidelium video is “The Five Levers of Change.” The video is part of the series on the book, Economic Personalism. The latest completed series on “the Great Reset” can be found on the “Playlist” for the series. The previous series of sixteen videos on socialism is available by clicking on the link: “Socialism, Modernism, and the New Age,” along with some book reviews and other selected topics. For “interfaith” presentations to a Catholic audience they’ve proved to be popular, edging up to 150,000 views to date. They aren’t really “Just Third Way videos,” but they do incorporate a Just Third Way perspective. You can access the playlist for the entire series. The point of the videos is to explain how socialism and socialist assumptions got such a stranglehold on the understanding of the role of the State and thus the interpretation of Catholic social teaching, and even the way non-Catholics and even non-Christians understand the roles of Church, State, and Family, and the human persons place in society.
Those are the happenings for this week, at least those that we know about. If you have an accomplishment that you think should be listed, send us a note about it at mgreaney [at] cesj [dot] org, and well see that it gets into the next “issue.” Due to imprudent and intemperate language on the part of some commentators, we removed temptation and disabled comments.
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