With the political chaos being spread by the current administration in Washington, it is difficult to discern what principles are driving policy decisions — if any. This makes the case for the adoption of the Economic Democracy Act even more urgent:
• A Controlled Free Market. President Trump has complained that Amazon showing tariff related pricing changes is “a hostile and political act.” Given that America is (presumably) great because it has traditionally had a free market (up to a point, if capitalism is a truly free market), this is perplexing. Traditionally, a free market is an economic system where prices and quantities of goods and services are determined by the interaction of supply and demand, with minimal or no government intervention, a system where individuals and businesses have the freedom to make economic decisions without significant external control. We would add to that a free market must include equal protection under law and full access on the part of everyone to the opportunity and means to participate in the market. A free market however it is defined absolutely requires that businesses and customers have full information so they can make truly informed and free decisions. President Trump, however, seems to want to hide information and confuse economic policies to the point no one really knows what is going on — and all in the name of restoring a free market! Frankly, if President Trump really wants to make America great again, he should sign an executive order adopting the Economic Democracy Act, not in trying to micromanage everything.
• Plummeting Production. Despite the rising stock market and the administration’s claims everything is on track to make America great again, reports are that manufacturing activity has hit a five-month low. This is allegedly due to uncertainty over what is going to happen with the tariff situation. Businesses can’t plan when they don’t have a reasonable basis for planning, and President Trump’s habit of seeming to rule by whim rather than govern with reason is wreaking economic and financial havoc. This could all be brought to a halt by adopting the Economic Democracy Act, and people would at least be able to guess what might happen, rather than hope Trump’s whims don’t cause too much harm.
• Foodflation. It’s not your imagination. Despite claims that egg prices are down, grocery stores are stocking smaller size packages at a higher cost. For many people, this means significant changes in food buying habits and, in some cases, even changing diets, and not necessarily for the better. A lot of this is due to the mistaken belief that the President of the United States can command the economy to do better by fiat. Perhaps surprising many, not even God can do that, for that would interfere with free will. The only way things are going to get better except by pure chance is for people to organize, carry out acts of social justice, and adopt the Economic Democracy Act.
• Burgeoning Bitcoin Bonanza. We should not say that trying to impose a command free market economy by whim is a bad thing, but it certainly fuels anything relying on the “Greater Fool Theory” to function. Nowhere is this more evident than with the cryptocurrency phenomenon; “Bitcoin” is soaring toward $100,000 . . . which is pretty good for something with nothing behind it and that you cannot consume directly — and which relies for its value only on what someone else is willing to give you for it. Maybe instead of MAGA, what we should be pushing for is CASH: Creating All Sound Households (so our acronym creation is substandard) by implementing the monetary reforms of the Economic Democracy Act.
 |
| Not on a bet. |
• Bitcoin Bafflement. We just found out Eric Sammons, an editor of a reputable Catholic magazine (more or less) has written a book touting Bitcoin as the most moral money EVER! The book, to be released June 17, 2025, is (as we might expect) titled: Moral Money: The Case for Bitcoin. For various reasons we doubt VERY much that Mr. Sammons will ask us to review his book, and for obvious reasons we have absolutely no intention of reading it even if it were printed on gold place with rubies, diamonds, and saphires (no, we’d sell the gold and jewels for what we could get for them and buy a Greek island or something to hide on), but we will say that Bitcoin flatly contradicts what Pope John Paul II called for in § 48 of Centesimus Annus: “Economic activity, especially the activity of a market economy, cannot be conducted in an institutional, juridical or political vacuum. On the contrary, it presupposes sure guarantees of individual freedom and private property, as well as a stable currency and efficient public services.” If Sammons really wants to promote “moral money”, he should advocate the monetary and credit reforms of the Economic Democracy Act.
• No Joy in Bitcoinville. Bitcoin “miners” (to dignify what they’re doing with an honorable, if unjustified title) see “a gloomy quarter” ahead even though President Trump seems to be convinced cryptocurrency represents real wealth. Ummm . . . no, see above. As analyzed by Yahoo! Finance, “Increased competition and tariffs weighed on the companies, which saw a compression in profit margins and growing uncertainty around expanding operations. The retreat in the broader stock market from the highs reached just after Trump’s election victory also prompted more miners to revert to debt financing instead of depending on raising cash from share sales.” Of course, this would all be moot if Congress would adopt the Economic Democracy Act.
• Burying Banknotes. In his General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money (1936), Keynes claimed wealth could be increased by filling jars with banknotes and having people dig them up — anticipating the whole cryptocurrency phenomenon. All this nonsense could be avoided if Congress would adopt the Economic Democracy Act.
• Fight Fiercely Harvard. President Trump is annoyed at Harvard due to its alleged violation of the administration’s efforts to wipe out antisemitism and has stopped the flow of federal funds to the institution. Now he is threatening to revoke Harvard’s tax-exempt status. “The IRS could yank Harvard’s tax-exempt status, though not without cause. It would be required to show the school is violating longstanding rules governing when entities can receive a tax exemption. That would likely be a lengthy process, and Harvard would be free to challenge the decision in court — a case some experts have said the school would likely win.” We are no fan of government money for education as it allows bureaucrats instead of parents to determine how children are to be educated and raises costs to the stratosphere . . . and also makes schools dependent on the State. Whether state-controlled education is more damaging than a state-controlled press is not something we’re addressing here, but both could be secure from outside interference if Congress were to adopt the Economic Democracy Act, and let people educate their children as they want without government interference.
• 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 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 (now with an imprimatur), 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., 52 or more copies) at the wholesale price, send an email to info@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.
#30#
