Peter's Blog

When Bureaucracy—Not Capitalism—Creates Meaningless Work

Regulation is already pernicious enough in its stifling effect on economic activity and entrepreneurship, but as regulations and bureaucratic control extend throughout the economy, they also cause the proliferation of “fake jobs” and promote lower job satisfaction for workers. The following article was originally published by the Mises Institute. The opinions expressed do not necessarily […]

Why Socialism Inevitably Ends in Totalitarian Tyranny

Socialists and other interventionists seek an economic system free from what they call “exploitation” and private property. But in reality, socialism inevitably leads to the forceful and violent expropriation of private property for the benefit of socialist planners. The following article was originally published by the Mises Institute. The opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect […]

Loose Money, Tight Money, and the Illusion of Control

With the Fed’s latest rate cut still in view, economic fallacies abound. Policymakers and talking heads speak of monetary policy as a lever that can be flipped back and forth without issue. But, as the Austrian school demonstrates, simply reversing monetary course cannot undo the malinvestment caused by easy money. The following article was originally […]

The Coming Crisis of the American Tax State

Two weeks into the government shutdown, many eyes are on the federal budget. Now is as good a time as any to remind the public both why the US should properly be called a “tax state” and why that’s not a good thing for the country. The following article was originally published by the Mises […]

No, Inflation is not “Crushed”

Trump has repeatedly claimed that he has beaten inflation. His high spending “Big Beautiful Bill,” along with his desperate calls for expansionary monetary policy draw ire from anyone who understands the world from an Austrian perspective. However, he still has the audacity to claim that he has solved inflation, and we no longer need to […]

The Underlying Theory Behind Really, Really, Bad Predictions

What do the biggest banks, the most prominent news outlets, and advanced AI models have in common? They were all wrong about the 2025 gold price by over $1000. While there is always a lot of uncertainty in the financial markets, being off by over $1000(over 30% of gold’s 2024 year-end price), is embarrassing. While […]

The Myth of the “Elastic” Currency: Why the Economy Never Needed It

One of the most pernicious myths about central banking is its necessity to expand and contract the money supply to facilitate the “needs of trade.” But, as the Austrian School of Economics demonstrates, a static money supply is perfectly fine for trade, and it doesn’t entail the destructive inflation that comes with central bankers. The […]

Inflation: The Hidden Embezzlement

Critics of inflationary policy are correct to describe inflation as a subtle tax, with the heaviest burden falling on the poor. While inflation is indeed a regressive tax, it’s also helpful to view and describe money printers just as we would counterfeiters or embezzlers. The following article was originally published by the Mises Institute. The […]

From Barter to Fiat: Unanswered Questions for Chartalism

Opponents of sound money rely on harebrained explanations of the origin of money. Perhaps chief among them is the Chartalist school of thought, which struggles even to adequately explain what the “first day of money” would look like in its framework. The following article was originally published by the Mises Institute. The opinions expressed do […]

Why Quantitative Methods Fall Short in Economic Analysis

Interventionists insist markets require elite, educated technocrats to study and calibrate advanced models of the economy. Much like a physicist in a lab, they see themselves as scientific and data-driven, but as the Austrian School demonstrates, economics is nothing like the natural sciences.