Has the cost of HiFi gotten a bit too much?

@mahgister The youtube link featuring Geoffrey Bloom is a good example of why a little bit of knowledge is dangerous. Fractional reserve banking is a given and serves society exceptionally well, but it is not criminal.

In many Western countries central banks are not part of the political system - they are deliberately independent. When politicians or their advisors of any political persuasion seek to meddle, they get a Will Smith slap.

Donald Trump attempted to in his early days of Presidency, and more recently Janet Yellen as head honcho of Treasury - her comments were swiftly deleted from the record.

Quantitative easing is was often called unconventional policy, but it is not counterfeiting nor is it criminal. It is central banks buying bonds in the open market.

Central banks charters specifically direct them to manage interest rates through a variety of methods - it is not manipulation, although I can understand why some may draw that conclusion. It is rare that a central bank anticipates - they normally follow what has already happened in the economy.

Certain individuals in the retail banking sector did manipulate LIBOR, and that was criminal and they knew it. To extrapolate that conduct to those tasked with setting interest rates is incorrect.

Moral hazard is a real issue as was demonstrated in the global financial crisis, but it has more to do not with retail guarantees (he was confusing different issues) but with the private institutional bankers knowing that they will be bailed out with a slap should things go awry, or if not, jail is only a very remote possibility.   This was a combination of government policy and what was known as the "Greenspan put" in a more general macro sense.  That may be googled.

And he begins with "you do not understand the concept of banking" - what follows is a fine example of an embarrassing non sequitur.

@ghdprentice + 1

You are right ...BUT....

Fractional reserve banking is a given and serves society exceptionally well, but it is not criminal.

When fractional reserve banking was rational and not influenced by financial powers behind banking activity ...And there is many type of fractional banking of money, for example one backed by gold, one backed by energy, one backed by nothing ....

And something could be motivated by greed and power WITHOUT being criminal but being irrational or being an illegitame attempt to comply with greed demand in financial circle... like in the case of the repeal of the Glass-Steagal act by Clinton policy...

For exemple the abolition of the separation between investment bank and commercial bank and his link to the financial crisis of 2008...

I cite wikipedia here : «Weissman agrees with Stiglitz that the "most important effect" of Glass–Steagall "repeal" was to "change the culture of commercial banking to emulate Wall Street’s high-risk speculative betting approach. »

And Goethe in his analysis of John Law concept of money in the Second Faust, was not an accusation about "criminality" but about blind irrationality of a fractional money concept back by the wind...

And it is impossible to understand central bank complex system  without reading about their history...

@mahgister When fractional reserve banking was rational and not influenced by financial powers behind banking activity ...And there is many type of fractional banking of money, for example one backed by gold, one backed by energy, one backed by nothing .... blind  irrationality of a fractional money concept back by the wind...

I speak only of the fractional reserve banking currently practiced by retail banks which are subject to independent and prudent financial regulations. Even in China.

That this not understood and is embellished is a deliberate attempt to go in circles. Small steps..

@ghdprentice 

Some thing that has followed me through life. I took logic in college and became a scientist. My skepticism has remained… ferreting the truth. Living all over the world and understanding different points of view. I have to admit, I am pretty ashamed to be an American. As some as my European and Asian friends said, “Americans, some really smart people (fortunately me included in this group) and a whole lot of stupid ones.”. Unfortunately, true.

I have similar background in how I was trained early in life and in college. I was taught critical thinking and then took logic while working on my degrees. I have also lived and worked outside the United States (still do) and understand that most American's perspective is very myopic. I believe that if more Americans traveled the world they would understand how much they've been lied to all these years. I don't think American's are less intelligent than other people in the world (lots of dumb people all over this planet), but they do tend to be more childish (emotionally) and narcissistic. 

I do stand by the my belief that dumb people vote for dumb politicians. That is intended to be party neutral.