Hey, hi Peter. Can you hear me? Can you hear me now? Is it better? Hey, yeah. I can hear you now. Are you seeing something? I can't hear you now. Can you hear me? Yeah, yeah. I can. I can hear you now. But I guess now you're on mute. So no one else is going to join? No Peter, I think you are on mute. It shows you are on mute. Can you hear me? Can you hear me now? Yeah, I can hear you now. Can you hear me? I cannot hear you. I can hear you something. Okay. Peter, can you hear any of us? Hey, can you hear me? Can you say something? Yeah, I can hear you. Oh, I can hear you now too. I don't know what that was. Okay. Are we waiting for anyone else? Do you know if Ram is coming or have you, have you heard of from? Rama might join later so we can start. He said. Okay. Welcome everyone to the Hyperledger Cacti Maintainers meeting. Please abide by the antitrust policy. That we have that I'm showing on the screen. And also by the Hyperledger Code of Conducts, which you can find linked to you on the agenda document. And then the first item for me. Is that I propose that we move the meeting an hour and a half later, because I've started to get conflicts with the 8 p.m. time, my time. So if you open this link that is in the agenda document that I also just put on the chat. You can see what that would look like in different time zones. And then I'll update the calendar invite for next week. And then we can discuss if it works for everyone or not. Second one, CI performance. Jack Preet is not here, but I know that he's made some headway with running only specific packages that are, that have either source code change or a dependency of them had source code change so that we can only, we can run only the tests for the typescript packages that are actually necessary. In a way that is guaranteed to not cause issues where we miss a bug just because some tests that was affected did not get executed. Another thing is that Rai gave us some numbers on how much the CI is costing on the paid plan where they put us for the increased performance and it was insane. It was like $150 per pull request on average, which is completely unacceptable high cost. So I just told him to put us back on the free plan and then be fast tracked that pull request that made this happen because otherwise the foundation of it have gotten charged thousands of dollars more potentially by the time we get the change through the usual review process. And then the other thing that I was looking into but not done with it yet unfortunately is the mono repo publishing for the go packages. I created a sort of a playground for that. And my personal GitHub account, I forgot what the name of it was, give me one second.  Yeah, so this is what it looks like. I have some tags here, which are just releasing, you know, the ABC packages with certain tags. And I haven't gotten to a point yet where it actually works that they will get released at the same time. But it would I was going through the forums and what people are doing to make this happen. And then they claim that it's possible, you have to just do the go mode tidy after setting the version to a specific commit. And you could, in theory, this whole theory, you could put that commit hash into the dependency declaration before you actually merge that exact commit to the main branch. And the thing we need for this is just to guarantee that the commit that you cut the release with locally on your machine is the same commit hash that will end up on the main branch. So in theory, if we can do that, then it will just work, quote unquote. If the hash is match, and this is what I found on the internet, but I want to actually have a working proof of concept with this test repo before I suggest that we actually do that in the official repository for cacti. Because if there's any sort of side effect with it that I just didn't clean from the forum post that I was reading, then I want to figure that out here instead of just making a big mess out of the release process for cacti. And yeah, I'll put a link to chat about this as well. And what else? Oh yeah, so this is all I had. These are my updates. So about this, you're saying that if you make the dependency as a commit hash in the go module, but that commit will be the one commit before the release commit, right? Because we'll have to make that change in the release commit. Oh, no way that may not work. Because you would need. Yeah, but the moment you modify the dependency declaration with the commit hash, you will have to amend your commit. But then you will have to.  So, for example, if you amend, if you did a commit amend that way, then the commit hash would change again because the commit hash includes the time stamp of when you're committing. And so the way to do that then is to amend also the commit time, which would mean in the end. I'm commit. Yeah, so you have to manually do something like this. Instead of letting it default to whatever is the current time stamp. I think that way you can make this magic happen when you have a commit that has its own hash in its own diff referencing itself. And if you push that to your branch, then it actually is supposed to work in the sense that go should just be able to look at it and say, Oh, this is the commit hash I want. Is that on the remote? It is so cool. Then I'm downloading it. This is all very like one more thing. The commit needs to be on the main for this to work. So you need to amend the commit on the main. They said it does not have to be on the main. It could be on the release branch. Allegedly. Okay, they wrote on the forum. Okay, the release branch would have to be on the official repo. But that is already how we do it. If you look at the branches, we have branches for the releases. And these branches do get pushed before the pull request itself of the release. Because this is actually what we cut the release from. Okay. So there's a lot of ifs here. I know that basically there's so many conditions and exotic it features and whatever else. You know, there's an 80% chance that this just won't work. But I want, I do want to try because. If you could make it work. Yeah. And then if it doesn't, at least we can document why it doesn't work and then we just go with some more complicated process where the release is not a single pull request, but it's just a bunch of pull requests where you basically you need a pull request for each go module. Right. That's like the plan B. Yeah. Yeah. So I'm trying to avoid that because I think that's just bad because then we cannot point at a single commit saying that is the XYZ release. And it just becomes a little confusing.  So hopefully this thing that they claim works will actually work. If not, then there's what it is. Okay. Yeah, that's all I had. Anyone else with any other discussion topics? Nothing from my side. Okay. Then thanks everyone for joining and I'll talk to you next time. Okay. Yeah. Thanks. Bye bye. Bye. Bye.


This is Korea, where American soldiers patrol a mountainous frontier 24 hours a day. A few short years ago, this rugged Asian peninsula was the scene of some of the hardest and most bitter fighting of modern times, when United Nations troops defended the free world against the North Korean communist aggression. The guns have long been silent, and the measure of sacrifice made by American soldiers in these barren mountains now belongs to history. But the forces which brought about the conflict in Korea continue to exist even though the tiny republic is rebuilding itself with American help under an uneasy truce. To the north of the American lines, quilt-coated communist troops of the North Korean army pose a constant threat to South Korea. Each lonely patrol along the truce line represents another investment in the maintenance of peace and the continuance of freedom below the 38th parallel. The presence of American soldiers helps guarantee the security of the entire free world as well. The army presents the big picture, an official report produced for the armed forces and the American people. Korea today is a symbol of the United Nations determined resistance to the threat of communist military aggression. Every day, United Nations delegates deal with new problems posed by red attempts at territorial expansion. Yet not one inch of ground has been gained by commies in any area where their expansion has been opposed by an American soldier. Fighting in Laos during the summer of 1959 resulted from communist guerrilla activity. This kind of indirect aggression has been favored by some communist leaders since their lack of success in Korea and elsewhere. To understand the forces at work today and their tragic effect upon humanity, we must look to the recent past. To that fateful June Sunday in 1950, when Korea caught fire, the armies swept down out of the north, determined to unify Korea under a communist banner by force of arms. The Republic of Korea could not defend itself against the sudden fury of the Red Assault. Death and devastation spread over a helpless people. In the old United Nations headquarters at Lake Success, United States delegate Warren Austin made clear the full dimension of the communist attack. Whose troops are attacking deep in somebody else's territory, the North Koreans? Whose territory is overrun by an invading army, the Republic of Korea? Who is assisting the Republic of Korea to defend itself, the United Nations, with the support of 53 of the 59 members? Who has the influence and the power to call off the invading North Korean army, the Soviet Union? Who is responsible for the bombing and bloodshed that inevitably ensued from the fact of aggression? The North Koreans and those who support them? Who then can stop the bombing and the bloodshed? The North Koreans and those who support their aggression? What member of the Security Council is supporting the North Korean regime in the Security Council? The Soviet Union. Who then is supporting the United Nations Charter and really working for peace? The 53 members of the United Nations who are supporting the Republic of Korea? Is the Soviet Union one of the 53? No. The arms of enemy soldiers outnumbered desperately fighting American units sent in to stop the aggression. Swept into the rushing cauldron of war where the innocent sufferers, the weary, the hungry and the homeless, pawns in the harsh and brutal game being played for their country, no longer the land of the morning calm, Korea had become a place of 24-hour terror. The South Korean economy was shattered. Nothing and no one was left untouched by the harsh bitter reality of war. Hope returned after the triumphant landings at Incheon poured the needed men and supplies into Korea. But even success exacted its price, often from the innocent. For three tragic years the fighting continued as armies swept the same battered ground. In the end, the communists were driven out of South Korea. Cities and towns bore mute testimony to the effect of the fighting upon Korean trade and commerce. The faces of starving children betrayed the real nature of the communist utopia. With the end of the fighting, the American army offered aging patriot, Shingman Rhee, its full cooperation in rehabilitating Korea. There were many disillusioned by the conflict and uncertain of the future. Poverty and disease, the camp followers of war were everywhere. Thousands of homeless citizens struggled to survive in the wake of terrible destruction and tried to reassemble their shattered lives. The Republic was a shambles. Property damage as a result of the communist invasion was so extensive, accurate estimations were impossible. Nearly a million South Koreans had been killed or wounded in the struggle. Thousands of children were left to wander the rubble strewn streets unfed, unprotected. But where many had been saved by the fighting skill of the American soldier, more were spared through the bigness of his heart. In makeshift orphanages, built by soldiers and supported through their contributions, thousands of tragic victims were clothed and cared for. Slowly the images of savagery and violence created by the war were wiped away with generosity and love. The children faced a difficult future, but one at least free of the prospect of communist rule. Though they could not have understood, they could indeed give thanks for the clothes, the food and the kindness which American soldiers gave so freely. Since 1950, Korea has taught us many lessons, not the least of which was that our modern peacetime army could engage an unknown enemy in harsh and unfamiliar terrain and win. But the American soldier proved himself in many other ways as well. Without his skillful participation, the rehabilitation and reconstruction of South Korea would have been impossible. In the wake of the combat forces, soldier specialists undertook the monumental task of rebuilding the devastated country. Roads and bridges were repaired. As quickly as possible, transportation and communications arteries behind the lines were re-established. It was no longer enough for the United Nations simply to repel the invader. Housing, public buildings, businesses and transportation facilities had to be patched together or constructed from scratch. The Korean railroad system had to be rebuilt and extended. Army know-how, army supervision and army equipment played a vital role in this rehabilitation, working closely with the Korean people. Just as important was the creation of a new Republic of Korea Army. The small force which was available for Korea's defense prior to the outbreak of the fighting is a part of history. Thousands of inexperienced young men have been trained by battle-seasoned American and Korean soldiers and turned into a smooth, well-drilled modern army, equipped with American weapons. Korean training methods and facilities, including a national military academy, are patterned after American models. Today, the ROK Army is one of the world's finest, standing shoulder to shoulder with our own as a deterrent to future communist aggression. The total destruction in Korea was enormous and took time and cost money to rebuild. All too often, the people were helpless to help themselves. If a school was bombed out, classes were simply held outdoors until some shelter could be found. The future belonged to the young, but there were times when it appeared a grim one indeed. Communist military aggression had been stopped, but subversion was always a threat. Only a people's school in the ways of free and democratic living could ensure the future integrity of the Republic. The American Army was and is an important teacher. In the spirit of an old-fashioned Yankee barn raising, an entire division made possible a handsome new school at Kapyeong. Every phase of the construction from the ground up was accomplished with a skilled assistance and teamwork of United States Army personnel. Materials were scavenged from the countryside and tools, equipment and know-how furnished by the United States Army. Contributions in time and money from hundreds of soldiers made the project possible. Yankee ingenuity and generosity built the best kind of monument in Kapyeong, a public school. At the building's completion, a parade was held and in the short ceremony which followed, the Americans turned over the school to a grateful town. Nature was not always cooperative in the rehabilitation of Korea. More than once, the United States Army has assisted in fighting natural disasters which otherwise would have taken a heavy toll in life and property. Today, flood control programs form a part of the vast development plans in the tiny Republic. Such prevention is considered essential to Korean growth and stability. Childhood in post-war Korea is not all work and no play. As gradual improvements in Korean life begin to show themselves, children respond as children will anywhere, anytime. The universal toys and games of childhood are a reflection of the peace and security that has returned to their lives. Kicking a rag-knot is an old pastime with Korean children. An art passed down through the generations. Some become quite skilled while others struggle for hours to master the coordination necessary to keep the knot in the air. A plentiful supply of rags is all these children need for endless hours of contentment. It isn't really a game for soldiers as the mirth of these youngsters makes abundantly clear. For the not-so-lucky children, each year at Christmas time, soldiers in Korea introduce a figure familiar to every American child. This army Santa Claus may be a little thin, but his Christmas spirit is as big as America. A noted Korean scholar said in the darkest days of the war, the light that has long burned in the hearts of my people is nearly dimmed to extinction. But it is alive and only awaits the resurrection that freedom will bring. Once Korea was the cultural and religious center of the Orient, the roots of its ancient civilization ran deep into man's most profound resources. Its arts and sciences were admired, envied and copied even by China and Japan. Although the peace in Korea is not a peace in the true sense today, but rather a watchful, uneasy ceasefire, it has stretched into the years and enabled the people to return a normalcy to the land. Business, stimulated by the large numbers of American dollars spent there, has been restored to a healthy activity. In Seoul alone, many millions have been spent upon building reconstruction and basic city services. The new look of the Korean Republic is one of bustling activity and confidence. A primary agent in the reconstruction and rehabilitation of Korea has been AFAC, Armed Forces Assistance to Korea. A broad program of aid extending to many levels of the Korean economy, AFAC has been instrumental in helping to change the face of war-scarred Korea. Office buildings and commercial centers, public buildings and warehouses, colleges and libraries have been constructed with American help. Many millions of dollars have been spent in Korea since the war's end to give the Koreans a foothold on the future. New construction continues today in order to keep pace with the Republic's expanding needs. Korea has always been dependent upon the sea. Shipbuilding is essential to a fishing industry which has helped support the basic economy of the country for centuries. Today, the fishermen of Korea free to move without incident in coastal waters once more fill the market stalls with food from the sea. Agriculture too has helped put the tiny country back on its feet. Truck farmers journey to the town and city marketplaces where their products are eagerly bought by shopping housewives. But the ancient customs are observed. The ancient ways followed even in relative prosperity. In the midst of a new Korea, something ageless survives. Small industry and handcrafts have long furnished a livelihood for many Koreans. Such enterprises flourish in the outlying villages and small cities. All that is needed for this type of craftsman is a good source of clay and his skill. Most businesses are family affairs where the technology of the artisan is passed on from one generation to the next. In such a country nothing can be wasted. In this glass factory, tons of broken glass furnish the basic raw material. The South Korean Republic has had to work particularly hard to develop its own industrial potential in recent years. With generous American help, small industries have been expanded and new ones launched. This expansion better equips Korea to make a larger contribution to her own future. Have become important to the new industrial development and rehabilitation of the country. During the war, many learned useful trades while their men were fighting. Today, they provide a large source of the skill labor needed by the light manufacturing industries in Korea. In this factory, women employees turn out hundreds of pairs of shoes daily, one of the commodities needed in Korea today. In many similar plants, items essential to the everyday lives of a free people are now manufactured in sufficient quantity to put on sale at low prices. After the elaborate hand work is finished on these rubber shoes, they will be vulcanized in an oven made possible through American aid. The rapidly expanding textile industry, too, makes use of women's skills. The cotton cloth turned out by this mill will find its way into shops and market stalls throughout the Republic. With every bolt produced, the wages and profits that result serve to strengthen a growing economy and help a steadily rising standard of living. Heavy industry, too, has benefited from American assistance. Whereas communist troops strip much of the machinery and industrial equipment from North Korea, the American Army has helped the South Koreans to take on an increasing production task with each passing year. The tin cans manufactured in this plant in turn feed other essential industries. Where opposing armies struggle for control only a few short years ago, and artillery churned the wet earth rice is grown and harvested to feed a hungry people. Although the Korean climate is harsh compared with much of Asia, the rice which grows here is of the best quality and highly regarded throughout the Orient. Nowhere so much as in the quiet rice paddies of today is the feeling of peace and serenity more apparent. A moment's pause here and one understands Korea's ancient name, Chozen, the land of the morning con. In the mountains to the north stands the reason for the serenity. Stretching across the narrow peninsula for 151 miles along a well-forged defense line are the last outposts of freedom. The forward positions of the United States Army. Here on a remote hilltop overlooking the demilitarized zone which separates United Nations forces from the communist armies and North Korea from the free Republic of Korea, soldiers of the first reconnaissance squadron, 9th Cavalry, stand guard. Constant surveillance of any communist activity across the valley is necessary and the soldiers report anything they see. They also keep notes for a detailed record of the time they are on watch. Panmunjom today, the ceasefire is administered jointly by United Nations and communist officers. Five high-ranking men from each side compose the 10-man military armistice commission. Theoretically, it is their job to iron out any difficulties arising from violations of the ceasefire agreement. In actual truth, no single difference of opinion has ever been settled through negotiation. The communists have routinely persisted in using the commission as a forum for their propaganda while consistently violating many of the clauses in the truce agreement. The group discussion at the meeting shown here was initiated by the communists on their claim that one of their sentries ended deceptive and captured a South Korean spy. In order to determine the facts of the situation if at all possible, a joint observer team, also composed of officers from both sides, journeys to the scene of the alleged violation. There, they are expected to gain as much firsthand information as possible before reporting to the commission. They study the area and interrogate any of the men connected with the incident. In this case, a well-coached communist sentry furnishes more than enough information, but their experience has shown that little can really be accomplished here. To all realists along the truce line, it is clear that our best hope for peace lies in our image of strength. And Korea today, with her growing prosperity, is a vital part of that image. Her factories flourish. Her food harvests are abundant. Her people working closely with American soldiers and the soldiers of all the United Nations have accomplished a miracle in a few short years. Her defenses, supported by American troops, are strong and ready. The American soldier guards Korea. Superbly equipped and hardened by long training, he watches and waits. He guards Korea. But he guards the city limits of every American community as well. The big picture is an official report for the armed forces and the American people. Produced by the Army Pictorial Center. Presented by the Department of the Army in cooperation with this station.


Condemnations of consumerism are nearly ubiquitous in modern media and popular culture. Anyone who has seen a Charlie Brown Christmas produced in 1965 knows the drill. Every time we see Charlie Brown choose an authentic Christmas by buying a small, natural Christmas tree instead of a showy pink mass-produced aluminum one, we're reminded it's important to not sell out to corporate marketers. Little has changed since then. In ways to resist the siren call of consumerism reads a recent headline from a lifestyle magazine. Four things to do instead of shopping in Black Friday's frenzy of consumerism reads another headline from HuffPo. More ponderously, Pope Francis has repeatedly condemned consumerism by name in recent months while English politician Ken Livingstone insists consumerism causes climate change and thus will, quote, destroy the world of our children, unquote. Hello, this is Ryan McMacon, and you're listening to Radio Rothbard. Often defenders of markets and capitalism take these criticisms as direct attacks on markets themselves. This reflex of conflation of consumerism and capitalism often leads to impassioned defenses of consumerism from market defenders, as if defending consumerism is necessarily also a defense of capitalism. I would suggest, however, that this is a mistake. Consumerism and capitalism are not the same thing, nor are the two necessarily connected. The anti-capitalist left, of course, does want to make this connection, and it does want to generate public opposition to consumerism that will then serve as generalized opposition to markets overall. By allowing leftists to establish an unquestioned connection between markets and consumerism, though, we only help them perpetuate a myth. So what exactly is consumerism? All too often, the debate over consumerism is woefully lacking in precision. So before we can go on, we first must define what exactly consumerism is. For this, we might consult Wikipedia, which is generally useful for the popular definition of things. Wikipedia defines consumerism as a social and economic order that encourages the acquisition of goods and services in ever-increasing amounts. Also provides two definitions that are helpful for our purposes here. Number one, the theory that an increase in consumption of goods is economically desirable. And two, a preoccupation with and an inclination toward the buying of consumer goods. In all of these definitions, we find a certain element of insatiability. Consumerism is the belief that it's a good thing to continually increase one's consumption of goods. These definitions are all fair enough, but why should capitalism be blamed for this? After all, capitalism has historically been associated with misers, and with economic theorists who have placed a sizable emphasis on work, savings, and thriftiness. Ebenezer Scrooge, of course, is perhaps the most famous capitalist villain in English literature. Yet Scrooge is notable for his famous condemnation of Christmas precisely because Christmas encouraged consumerism. Similarly, pro-capitalist adherents of the so-called Protestant work ethic, as described by Max Weber, repeatedly condemned excessive consumption, while exalting saving and hard work. Scholars have noted the role of thrift as both a moral and capitalist imperative in American culture during the 18th and 19th century. So if capitalists were once associated with using money prudently, why are they now blamed for today's alleged obsession with endless consumption? The theory the left uses here is basically this. If capitalism is to survive, it requires ever greater levels of consumption. If people stop spending every last penny on conspicuous consumption, capitalism will collapse in on itself. This is summed up in a surprisingly ungrammatical explanation of consumerism in the Journal of Politics and Law by Amad Jansiz. In his 2014 article titled The Ideology of Consumption, The Challenges Facing a Consumerous Society, Jansiz writes, To achieve profit, more production, sale, investment, and again production, are considered as essential. To put it differently, in each cycle the goal is to sell more goods and gain more profits. It was initially believed that higher classes are the main buyers of the capitalist goods, but then they found that mass production requires mass consumers as well. As high class families were not large enough in volume, the need for mass consumers became apparent. In primary productions, meeting biological needs of the consumers was considered as important. But as the biological needs of the consumers are limited in number, non-biological needs should be created in the consuming societies. Magical needs would also be limited, but the producers would not lose their mass production characteristic as one of their goals. For this purpose, false needs were created in the capitalist countries so that mass goods would be consumed fast. In other societies, this pattern prevailed and they either were gradually weakened or gave in to capitalism. Capitalism currently holds the patterns of production and consumption dominant in the world. This is a pretty clunky way of doing it, but it's a recent and pretty nice summary of what the left really believes about capitalism and why it requires consumerism. Basically, it's summed up as we need to keep consuming more and more in everything we can, or the capitalist system will immediately implode. But unfortunately for promoters of this theory, this description of capitalism is quite wrong. Certainly, it would appear to give an accurate view of some industries, makers of luxury cars and high-end shoes benefit when they can convince actors in the marketplace to consume things far above and beyond what Janssen calls biological needs. Similarly, the perceived need for $300 name brand dress shoes could plausibly be called false needs to use Janssen's terminology. But companies that sell pricey apparel and big SUVs are not the only players in the marketplace. Also in the marketplace are companies that sell services like retirement savings accounts or investment instruments designed to provide long-term savings and investment for the purposes of deferring consumption. Surely, firms offering retirement funds and savings accounts are not less capitalist than firms that sell designer jeans. Ebenezer Scrooge would no doubt smile on the retirement fund firms while condemning the sellers of luxury cars. So why are we to believe that markets and capitalism are to be embodied only by the firms that ask consumers to blow all their money on the immediate consumption of consumer goods? The answer lies in the fact that popular notions of economic growth, both on the left and on the right, insist that a healthy economic system relies almost exclusively on consumption. We are reminded of this every time we are told that consumer demand must be increased in order to increase economic growth or to keep the boom going. We are reminded of this when, during an economic bust, economists tell people they must spend or the economy will collapse. Sometimes, this view becomes so extreme that we're told spending is our patriotic duty. This is no mere hyperbole. Financial and economics writers actually say this.  What he meant was simply buy more stuff or the terrorists win. The same general idea cropped up again in 2009 when economics experts insisted that the way to save the economy from the Great Recession was for people to spend more. We were warned that the so-called paradox of thrift would condemn us all to a perpetual depression if people didn't get out there and blow all their savings on a few more high end electronics. But economies don't function that way at all. As Lou Rockwell summed up in 2010 as we were being harangued by mainstream economists to spend more, quote, the trouble is that spending is not the cause of economic growth. Investment, which begins in saving, is the root of economic growth. It doesn't matter that consumption makes up a certain percentage of economic activity. That's only the surface you are looking at. Spending and consumption without saving and investment is a prescription for devouring the prospects of prosperity down the line. In this case, the best thing that the rich can do for a future of economic growth is not to spend but to save toward investment, unquote. This should be self-evident if we consider how people and economies get rich in the first place. If workers are to be able to spend on consumer goods, they must first produce enough goods and services of high enough value so as to have a surplus. And how can workers produce more valuable goods in less time? This is made possible by capital in the form of machines, computers, tractors, and factories. Before all those things were available, most human beings spent many hours scratching a subsistence-level living out of the ground. It was only after centuries of capital accumulation took place, accumulation made possible by saving and investment, that industrialization took place and workers were able to become productive enough to both produce and consume all the goods and services we now associate with a market-oriented society. Without saving, the ability to maintain, improve, invent, develop, and build machines and factories goes away. And when that goes away, we're all back to scratching around on subsistence farms and living in one-room hovels. Some will point out, but without consumption, no one will buy what these companies and factories make, and everything will come crashing down. Well, yes, it's true that economies require both consumption and saving to function normally. But one is not more important than the other. Fortunately, markets have a built-in mechanism for balancing out saving and investment. It's called interest rates. Interest rates are signals the market sends to consumers which tell them whether it's a good idea to save or to consume. When savings are sparse, interest rates go up, and consumers save more money to take advantage of the high interest rates. When savings are plentiful, interest rates go down, signaling to consumers that it's a good time to take advantage of low interest rates, borrow more, and consume more cars, houses, and other goods. This system breaks down, however, when governments and central banks intervene to stimulate the economy through more government spending and through central banks forcing down interest rates. This stimulus is done for the purposes of getting the consumers to spend more, but it's not something markets or capitalists can do. It requires government intervention and is thus not part of the market economy. There is no denying, however, that this leads to more spending for a while, but this sort of government intervention also produces unsustainable debt levels, low-saving levels, and excessive spending. In other words, it's government policies that cause what we now call consumerism. Strangely enough, though, it's capitalism and markets that get the blame. Thank you for listening to Radio Rothbard. Have a wonderful day. For more content like this, visit Mises.org.


What's going on infinite family welcome back to another video if you guys are new to the channel Make sure you guys hit that subscribe button turn on your post notification about leave a positive comment down below And you guys will get a post notification shot at the end today's video So guys I have to make this intro pretty quick because I literally ran out the house as you guys can tell I am not in our regular house I am somewhere completely different in another couple's house if you guys know what couple's house We're at please comment down below first one in comment.   What's going on if in the family Welcome back to another video if you guys are new to the channel make sure you guys hit that subscribe button turn on post notification Bell leave a positive comment down below and you guys will get a what babe you guys will get a shout out in the next Video that is right. So guys as you guys can tell we are somewhere different. We are not in our usual spot We are at another couple's house right now And I'm gonna need you guys to comment down below because what if what should what should they get if they Guess the couple like whoever guesses it right first. What should they get and the next post notification shout out I'm thinking something deeper than I'm thinking next post notification shout out and I'm thinking a shout out on Instagram too Okay, so if you guys don't follow us on Instagram make sure you guys follow down below But yeah, baby you want to tell them what we're doing today? So today We're just hanging out with this other YouTube couple But we're also just about to go to breakfast and have a nice day and it's beautiful outside So yeah, we might take some pictures later too because I need I need to step up my Instagram game. Yeah I've been slacking naturally. I think I've been kind of consistent once a week Yeah, well anyway guys, let's go into breakfast and we'll see you guys there So if you guys guessed right we are with Trisha and Cam yet again We I don't even remember the last time we came over to your guys house. I feel like it's been a while Yeah, no, so yeah, congrats on your guys's new spot that place is fire Well-deserved well deserved but guys we just made it to the breakfast spot right now You want to tell them what you're getting babe? I'm not sure yet have to look in the menu, but I'm pretty sure I'm just gonna get like potatoes all your basics though Yeah, you already know I'm going with my basics up to your boy might just get them chalky chip pancakes But a side of bacon maybe an apple juice.   It wasn't even greasy Yeah, yeah, that's what that's what she said So we made it back, and I'm ready to take some pictures. I just want to take a nap, and you over here You're making me work. Yeah, but I'm not gonna take long so it doesn't matter It's gonna be like if you're quick pictures. I promise you heard that word quick, right? You heard the word quick. It's never quick. It's always like 45 minutes of just snap snap snap I promise it's gonna be like two seconds. I swear my legs get tired No, they don't yes, I do because you be having me. Oh my goodness guys my calves I I hit every angle for him I take such great pictures that he always complains when he has to take pictures for me You literally take maybe three pictures, and I'm good I found the one I want I literally have to take like 300 and then she still might not like it.  It was like 40 to 50 minutes. I kid you not No, it wasn't and my legs are my ankle it was not that I'm pretty sure I tripped on a rock guys I got the best picture. Okay, I'm gonna show it to you guys. Let's see. I posted on ID You had to get a quick. Oh wait. No, they gotta wait They got to follow us on Instagram if they want to see this picture all right fine show them You show me them. Let me see. I love it.  No, I'm not. Are you saying that as a compliment that does not look like you? Yes, it does. I'm not saying that as a compliment like that's bad Like you don't look like that in person like and babe, I didn't even edit anything on my face I'm literally the exact same.  I'm not a catfish.   Yes, it does. No, it doesn't guys Do you space soon? So you're not I Don't know what I'm noticing and you I'm just saying like if she's doing that Bro, what I'm noticing is that her pictures on Instagram look like nothing to how she is in actual life in real life That's her girl. I mean, I don't know bro. I just I'm not exposing her. I'm just calling it how it is. She's a catfish. I'm not a catfish. She's not okay, babe All right. All right. She's not a catfish guys. We have to accept the fact that Janice isn't a catfish I'm gonna post this picture. You guys are gonna see I look exactly the same. Do you see me? Do you see me?   There's no reason to throw that in There is a reason to throw that in because you really just embarrass me like you're asking other people if I'm a catfish and stuff like that And they're our friends. All right. Well, can I be honest with you? Can I be honest with you? I'm just joking, babe I'm just joking. I swear. It's a prank. It's a prank. I swear. It was a joke I know you were really catching feelings So I didn't want this to run off for too long, but I swear I made an intro this morning Remember when I was like decent to come out this morning and I came out before all you guys came out That was because I didn't really want to enjoy the weather even though it's really nice I just wanted to make my intro real quick so I could tell them that what I was gonna be doing Interesting came they were in on this all the whole time I Told them that I was gonna be doing this now I really do feel like you'll be thinking like that Face to my pictures babe, you don't got she doesn't face to none in her picture She doesn't do any of that crazy editing stuff or she's like pinching her waist and she may like how to do that No, just I wish I just like how Trisha said in the back like a little like blemish cover here and there never hurt Nobody that's the most she does but I just feel like it'd be freaking hilarious because I don't know why I don't know Where the other day I was thinking about the MTV show from a while ago the catfish and I was just like What if I do a catfish prank underneath and I'm like, yo, you're really a catfish.  You really caught feelings and I felt bad So I had to call it.  Literally catching feelings. I'm like, no, I gotta call it. I'm like, she's really getting upset right here Janice was like looking down. She was like She was like checking herself out like am I catfish? I'm not a catfish, babe. You're not a catfish All right infinite fans, so we are back at the house now as I said before we're about to change and then just enjoy this weather This is freaking beautiful right now. Jersey does not see this a lot I hope I didn't hurt your feelings too bad. I called it to I called it soon I feel like I called it too soon, but I just didn't want to hurt your family like that I was hoping you would get more mad No, like like I said, I told them in the beginning my goal is to not get you sad. It's to get you mad I told him that I just feel like I'm annoyed. That's what I want I wanted to like really really annoy you, but I feel like you were like really catching feelings again So I was like, I don't want to really I don't want to drive This all mine Look at that Nope, no that's for me and only me Anyways, if you guys enjoyed today's video make sure you guys give this video a big thumbs up comment down below Two months and all day every day you anything else? No, all right, and just like that. We'll see you guys in the next video


Who's going to win the World Series first? Mets or Yankees? The Yankees. I would say Yankees on that one. Who wins the World Series first? Mets or Yankees? The Yankees are just a brand-new contender, you know? Yankees! Mets! You're boring, man. You're boring, Mets. You're boring? I'm going for rice. Yankees. I'm just going to say Mets. Mets. Yankees. Who wins the World Series first? Mets or Yankees. Mets, baby.


I stand. Well, thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you all very much. I'm, well, I'm delighted, oops, I'm off my marks. Tell me I'm supposed to stand here, so I'll have to, I'll have to keep doing a circle here. But I just, please sit down. I, I just want to talk for a few minutes to you and then maybe we can have a little dialogue and I know the whole thing has to be very short. But I walked in on your lunch today because I've been very frustrated in Washington. I've been wanting to talk to people of my own generation so that we could talk about some of the misinformation that has come out with regard to one program in particular Social Security. And I, if I was guilty of all the things with regard to Social Security that I've read about myself and heard said about myself I wouldn't like me either. And I just want to tell you what the problem is and why it's being talked about and what we're trying to do about it. The Social Security program, when it started, there were 16 people working for every retiree and paying the Social Security tax to support them. Today, there are only, well, a little under two and a half people working for each retiree. And this has presented financial problems. And in recent years, the Congress has tried to resolve those problems of fiscal stability by simply raising the tax and raising the percentage of income against which that tax is assessed. In 1977, they passed the biggest single tax increase in our nation's history. And it is in installments. We've already had a couple. We had one in January. There'll be a couple more in the few years ahead. And they promised us that that made the program financially safe well into the year 2000, 2015 exactly, they said. Well, we have to do something about the program or it won't get past July of 1983. Now, I'm not saying that to frighten anyone because believe me, the people today dependent on Social Security are going to continue getting their checks and we're not going to let that rug be pulled out from under anyone dependent on that program. Of course, I must say the timing is right for me to be here since those of you were getting Social Security got that cost of living pay raise on July 1st also. I remember when they said we wouldn't, but we did. Now, what we it became such a political football, many people trying to make some political edge out of this, that what I finally settled for and got the concurrence of the Speaker of the House, to Tip O'Neill and the leader of the Senate, Howard Baker, and that is we between us, the three of us appointed a commission which will come in in December with recommendations for a program as to how we meet the fiscal problems for the ongoing integrity of Social Security. And again, I say with regard to that, that the instructions that were given to them and that I will still hold to is that any program and I think there are ways that this can be put on a sound basis. But whatever they do must agree with what I said just a moment ago to you that any plan for change in Social Security must not take away from those people dependent on that program today. That must be guaranteed and we will we will stay with that. And now I've talked longer than I intend to do because I know that maybe some of you have said to yourselves, boy, if I could only ask him something or tell him something I would say. And if you have a question, fire away. I've got a few minutes left. And yes, I'm glad you asked that. This gentleman asked me, why did I change my haircut? I didn't. I saw that article. I saw that article in the and that said that and then they had two pictures they had of me. Well, the one was taken on a windy day outdoors and the other one was taken with my hair combed. And incidentally, I just washed my hair the night before last. So it's a little fluffy right now. But no, the only thing that happened to me was I there was a time this winter when I think without my realizing and he was letting it get a little longer than I like and I took him to task and said, crop it with the way it was. And no, it's the same haircut. I'm too old to change my haircut now. Honest. Okay. All right. Someone else? Oh, there's a lady over there. Whit Whit Whitley gets there with a microphone so everyone can hear the question. I'm glad you asked that. I've been very self conscious. I've pressed releases in the East Room, or whatever the room's called. There are a lot of press people. And they all raised their hand. And it's it's interesting to know which ones you pick and how you pick them.  Or do they just write them on the cuff and you take a chance? You won't hear the question there. Well, let me tell you, this is one that, and I confess to them that it bothers me very much. The there are hundreds who are accredited as White House correspondents who were there. There are two automatic. The first two questions come alternating which is first and second on each press conference between the representative of the United Press and the representative of the Associated Press. So those two ask the first questions from then on, it's up to me. And I know that there are going to be dozens and dozens more hands raised than I can possibly recognize. So really, I just simply kind of try to spread it around. I started in the middle and I start in here and there's it's there in three sections and I try to take some from each section and I leave with more hands up than were recognized. We did try at the beginning and it was a press suggestion. The very early on the press suggested why not draw lots that they draw that we draw numbers and they all have numbers and then just simply say all right, this this number when we did it once and the press said they didn't like it. So I don't know any other way. The other night after the last press conference, I did say to our people why don't we suggest that those who have gone through several press conferences and never never been recognized out of all those hands, put their names down and then a few of those each press conference, we automatically call on by name, as well as just hitting it like I'm hitting it here. Just wherever the hand goes up, but it it bothers me. It's the hardest thing in the world when the Dean of the press corps stands up and says thank you, which indicates the press conference is over to know that I'm walking away from dozens and dozens of hands that I haven't been able to recognize. Yes, ma'am. Let's see. Take that one as long as the microphone's there. Mr. President, I would like to know from you if you are really sure that Hinkley is insane. I'll tell you the only comment I can make to that is that the court of justice had his way with a jury and a judge and they found that verdict. And so we we stay with it and and I I just don't feel that I can comment on that. But here's a I've been I've been kind of leaning to the left here, haven't I? I've been Mr. President. I'm in a musical comedy and with veteran performers and they're all over 60 years old. And after each performance, I get many people come to me and say you certainly favor Nancy Reagan, your wife. Do you think so? Yes, I can see why they say that. Yes, I can. Right. And I shall tell her. I look forward to telling her. This is her birthday today. Is there someone over? Yeah. Mr. President, as a member of your task force, presidential task force, I would like to let you know that in the symposium on social security, we are informed. I want you displeased to verify there are 117 million people putting in the security system and only 65 million are drawing out of it. So they say there's no fear of ever draining or bankruptcy of the social security system. And one more, Mr. President. This is my opportunity to see you in person. I have always talked to you only by telephone and I'm very happy for that. One thing more is about the nutrition program that is exactly fearing that so many cutbacks had been placed on it. And therefore, Mr. President, be compassionate, not to touch our very important benefits for the senior citizens. Thank you, Mr. President. Thank you. And no, we won't. Is there? They tell me I can take one more question. The lady right there, say gentlemen, you sitting back here and letting the ladies This is the last question I can take. Mr. President, I just only want to tell you that I meet you in Rancho Moraje, Rancho Moraje, over the Sunday land. And I don't know if you remember me, but I remember you when you was a cabinet. And also now I'm very glad to meet you as a president. So well, my congratulations. Well, thank you very much. Well, that wasn't a question. So I'll take a is there a what? Well, I know I won't have time to do much of that. But since you asked about the haircut. Well, is there what? Oh, here's a gentleman right here with a question. This will have to be the last question. Well, well, here's a gentleman right over here with a question that will and that'll have to be Mr. President, you and I met in pictures. We walked I walked in pictures. And when you were governor of California, every year you sent my late wife and I congratulations. And I still got the one that you remember. It's nice to see you. God bless you. Well, thank you very much. It's nice to see you. My name is Jack Smith. Thank you, Mr. President. Thank you very much. Let me just let me just say a word here if I can. I've said this on occasion before, told a little incident. You know, everyone today emphasizes youth so much. And there have been so many efforts. I know that young people we were the same way. You kind of challenge the things that you've learned from the people that went before and you more age and the customs and everything. I get concerned sometimes that there's a tendency to throw away some of the values just because they're old, without recognizing that they have true worth or they wouldn't be around. But one day back in those riotous days, the universities were in flames and so forth while I was governor. And if I went to a campus, I'd start a riot. But some student leaders from the University of California campus is demanded to see me as governor. And I was delighted because I say I couldn't talk to them otherwise. Well, they came to see me and they kind of some of them were barefoot and the custom of that day and in those riotous times. And they all sat around and one of them was the spokesman and he said governor it's impossible for you to understand our generation. Well, I tried to pass it off. I said we know more about being young than we do about being old. And he said no, I'm serious. He said you can't understand your own sons and daughters. And I he went on then he said you didn't grow up in an age of instant electronics, of jet travel, of space travel and journeys to the moon. You didn't have and he went on with all the things cybernetics and all the things that we didn't have and so forth. And he talked just long enough. Usually you know you don't think of the answer till they're gone. But he talked just long enough that when he finished I said you're absolutely right. Our generation we didn't have those things when we were your age. We invented them. And just stop and think about it. We did in our lifetime. All those miracles they were talking about came into being. I can remember my first automobile ride up until then it had been horses and buggies. And now the other day I'm out watching those fellas come back from outer space. When we got on the platform to see them land they told me it was 20 minutes to landing. Do you know where they were 20 minutes before they landed? Just crossing over the Hawaiian Islands. And in 20 minutes they were at Edwards Air Force Base. But I'll tell you if I could just say it and then I'm going to get out of here because I know I'm running late next stop. I'm very proud to be here because I want to say this about our generation. No some there are generations that preside over transition periods like this when there are great changes in the world. And we've been one of those. And no generation in history, no people have ever fought harder, paid a higher price for freedom or done more to advance the dignity of man than our generation. And I'm not going to apologize to anyone for what we've done with our lives so far. God bless you all and thank you very much.