Herding Inflation

"A king may move a man. A father may claim a son. But remember that, even when those who move you be kings or men of great power, your soul is in your keeping alone. When you stand before God you cannot say 'but I was told by others to do thus' or that 'virtue was not convenient at the time.' This will not suffice. Remember that."
--King Baldwin IV (Kingdom of Heaven)

Mises describes the folly of inflationism as a function of the Depression years. The propaganda machine has burned into our brains the idea that there is a 'good' rate of inflation. The Fed is now serious about 'targeting' a certain rate of inflation, say 2-3% annually.

Unless we engage our brains, such policy will be the end of us. As Mises observes, "At the end of this race is the complete destruction of all nations' monetary systems."

Mises notes that inflation is essentially a political device that bureaucrats use to respond to pressures of public opinion. This does not absolve politicians or the intellectuals that condone such policies:

"This does not excuse the officeholders who could resign rather than carry out policies disastrous for the country. Still less does it excuse authors who tried to provide a would-be scientific justification for the crudest of all popular fallacies - inflationism.