A monetary history of the United StatesMilton Friedman
A monetary history of the United States
by Milton Friedman · first published 1963
43mentions
4recommended by
15HN commenters
2010–2025first – last mentioned
27% recommend60% neutral13% critical
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…thought is pretty logically structured. I'm not really aware of a balanced view on the topic so it's a decent idea to start just reading the different views in extreme. I'd also recommend Friedman's "A Monetary History of the United States" (with a part about the Great Depression) for a Monetarist POV. "The Great Crash, 1929" by Galbraith provides yet another (institutionalist/Post-Keynesian) POV. Rothbard was a pretty good scholar even…
on “China Trade Halts Locks Up $2.2 Trillion of Shares, Freezing Market” ↗…(issue more bonds), and it can do this forever. This is why the dollar today is worth just a few cents of what it was worth in 1914. (The 1914 dollar was worth the same as the 1800 dollar.) Check out "Monetary History of the United States" by Friedman.
on “Tax Plan Punts on a Loophole for the Wealthy” ↗Read Friedman and Schwartz' Monetary History of the United States. The Great Depression was so severe because the money supply contracted so suddenly, which led to the largest deflation in US history. Mainstream economists worry about deflation because in the 30s…
on “Economics Needs a Post-Crash Revolution” ↗I recommend you read "Monetary History of the United States" by Friedman. I have. We've had stock market crashes before and after. None resulted in a Great Depression. Something else was going on to cause the Depression. The 100% inflation from 1914-1929 indeed…
on “The hyperinflation gallery” ↗…not aware of any that managed to rule the world or collapse the economy. > no answer I just gave you one! I can only surmise you've been talking to the wrong people. May I suggest Milton Friedman's "Monetary History of the United States". It's tough sledding, but worth it if you really want to know. > Is using a physical valuable substance as money, let's say gold, free market? Of course. Are you familiar with the commodities marketplace?…
on “Plans you're not supposed to talk about” ↗"Monetary History of the United States" by Milton Friedman. It's tough sledding, but worth it. And by giving the history, one comes to understand how we got to where we are. "Capitalism" by Reisman gives a solid theoretical foundation on…
on “Ask HN: Book recommendations for understanding financial systems?” ↗The author should consider A Monetary History of the United States by Friedman. The EFFR is exactly incrementally increased in a way to not immediately perturb markets, to slowly approach its target. It is also well known that there is delay expected between prices…
on “Milton Friedman’s Interest Rate Fallacy” ↗Just think about where money comes from that funds deficit spending. There ain't no such thing as a free lunch. For an in-depth treatment, see Friedman's "Monetary History of the United States". It's not an easy book to read, but it's full of all the information you'll ever want on the topic.
on “Yemen's bifurcated monetary system” ↗…completely different financial animals." and: "Only the Federal Reserve can create money" How does the author imagine we had money before 1914? Perhaps the author and you would be interested in reading "Monetary History of the United States" by Friedman, an actual expert on this topic.
on “How to Be Successful (2019)” ↗"Monetary History of the United States" by Milton Friedman https://www.amazon.com/Monetary-History-United-States-1867-1... Unfortunately, it's a bit of a tough slog, it's not written for the popular press. But it's worth it if you're really…
on “Fed raises rates by another 75 bps to fight inflation” ↗…supply of money. > If someone has told you that inflation is caused only by government excess spending it is because they are pushing the agenda that government is 'bad'. Or read books like Friedman's "Monetary History of the United States". Feel free to take a shot at explaining why the US has had zero net inflation from 1800 to 1914 and endemic inflation after 1914? What happened in 1914?
on “Do High Interest Rates Fix High Inflation?” ↗…belief. > It was largely a failure of unrestricted free markets. The dust bowl was caused by unsustainable farming practices, which were changed as a result. The Depression was caused by the Fed (read "Monetary History of the United States" by Milton Friedman. Not a novelist.) > Yes, a novel about the dust bowl and it's consequences. Novels are fictional, and historical proof of nothing at all. Steinbeck was not a historian, and was known…
on “Where Did Our Belief in Abundance Come From?” ↗…money worked. He had a degree in economics from MIT and an MBA from Harvard and a PhD in history from KSU. We had a lot of discussions about this. But since he has passed on, you might be interested in "Monetary History of the United States" by Milton Friedman.
on “Why Are Things Expensive?” ↗Inflation started the year after the Fed was created. See "Monetary History of the United States" by Milton Friedman.
…always falls short of what free markets do. The idea that a central bank is able to control the financial markets better than free market forces is shown to be false (with actual data) by Friedman in "Monetary History of the United States". > The 'government' does not print money, the Central Bank does. I said "print money" as a euphemism for what the Fed actually does, which is the same thing, it just doesn't involve doing the old fashioned…
on “Inflation is at a 40 year high. What can history teach us?” ↗