Thread by @youmans_tim

A little over four years ago I stumbled onto #MMT. It was (and still is) a lot to process, but fairly early on in my reading I was convinced of this-

When it comes to government spending, we are NOT asking the right questions.

1/

I read stuff that made my brain hurt. And after not understanding a single word of it, I read it again. I fell asleep to videos explaining the differences in cost push and demand pull inflation. I learned what boring things like IOR, NAIRU, NAIBER stand for and mean.

2/

I learned about the #JobGuarantee (which would be very beneficial now if it existed before this crisis).

I replaced my favorite hobby- listening to music on my commute- with listening to MMT related podcasts like @CheeseMacro, @MMTpodcast, @pocketchangeMMT, @moneyontheleft

3/

I started an account here with the sole purpose being to follow threads and debates about MMT, and to consume/share the materials provided by MMT economists.

Nearly every single free second I've had over the last four years has been spent consuming MMT related material.

4/

And after four years of cramming in as much #MMT material as my little brain could handle, I still consider this to be the most important takeaway-

When it comes to government spending, we are NOT asking the right questions.

(Seems like I could have saved some time here 😁)

5/

So you don't have to become an expert in macroeconomics to know that "How are we going to pay for it?" is NEVER the right question to ask for countries like the US, the UK, Australia (to name a few) who issue their own free-floating sovereign currencies.

6/

CAN we do it? Do we WANT to do it? Will "paying for it" make inflation go up? If it is likely to be inflationary, can we find offsets to free up the needed resources and "pay for it" without causing inflation? ✅

How are we going to *find the money* to pay for it? ❌

7/

So when we finally bounce back from this crisis, and we will, do NOT let them use the spending done today justify spending CUTS tomorrow.

#LearnMMT -as little or as much as you'd like- but enough to believe that MMT has it right. And then MAKE them ask the right questions.

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