In a recent column by Paul Krugman in the New York Times, we can see some of the frightening outlines of the future (especially of future—(maybe not long term) fiscal policy). Here is the entire article:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/14/opinion/14krugman.html?scp=1&sq=america%20not%20greece&st=Search

Basically, Krugman is pointing out how different we are from Greece. What, however, is the fundamental difference? Is it that our spreadsheets over the long term are rosy and theirs are terrible. He points to this, but it is not the fundamental difference. Their promises and debts are a larger part of Gross Domestic Product now. In the long run, however, both we and the Greeks are in way over our head. What is the difference then? Do we have tighter and better entitlement guards that will keep us from overspending or correct our bad political decisions? No! They might have funnier and more comprehensive socialism (in Greece if you are a trombone player you get early retirement at 50 because the job is overtaxing for your lungs). We have just as many (and probably more costly promises made to government workers and people in the public schools)—admittedly, theirs are funnier. Both countries, however, have promised more than they will ever be able to pay. What then, Mr. Krugman, is the fundamental difference? He finally owns up to it in the middle of the article. What is the “trap” that Greece is in and that we are free from? Here is the paragraph (I have added the hightlights):

Greece, on the other hand, is caught in a trap. During the good years, when capital was flooding in, Greek costs and prices got far out of line with the rest of Europe. If Greece still had its own currency, it could restore competitiveness through devaluation. But since it doesn’t, and since leaving the euro is still considered unthinkable, Greece faces years of grinding deflation and low or zero economic growth. So the only way to reduce deficits is through savage budget cuts, and investors are skeptical about whether those cuts will actually happen.

How can we avoid Greece’s woes? Fiscal responsibility? Cutting back on our unreasonable promises? Seeking virtue? No! We will eventually just need to devalue the currency—i.e., we will let inflation fix the problem. If you simply inflate your currency giant debts become tiny. So, where is the problem? That is where a classical Christian education comes in handy. The problems there are two and classical Christian education can help us to see them:

1. Classical Christian education teaches us about history. Historically, wicked men from the time of the Caesar’s to the Weimar Republic (Germany before Hitler) have tried this method of ridding themselves of debt. They have debased the currency (the Caesars used to sneak less valuable metal into their coins). In the Weimar, they sought to hyper-inflate debts away. History teaches this: using inflation to fix debt problems never works. Show me one example when a country could reel it back in. I know of none. (This, of course, does not point out the most terrible thing. Inflation (big time inflation) punishes everyone who has money in the bank or invested. Saving makes no sense when your money is worth less every day. In the Weimar, prices might be recalculated many times while you were shopping. The currency became so cripplingly worthless that people used wheel barrows full to pay—they weighed money because there was no time to count it—to buy groceries.)
2. Classical Christian education teaches us how wicked currency devaluers are because it makes us read Dante. He places the falsifiers of coin at the bottom of the pit of Hell in Canto 30 out of 34. The Devil is in 34. He places them there because their actions harm everyone in their entire country—or at least every person living biblically. They are much lower than mass murderers, much lower than homosexuals, much lower than prostitutes and pimps, much lowers than crocked politician and hypocritical clergymen. They wreck countries.

We can be thankful that Dante and our Christian forefathers are not fooled by modern sophistry which tells an unsuspecting public to bank on currency devaluation as economic salvation. Pray that more people read things in this order—the Bible, Dante, the Constitution, and Mr. Krugman’s editorial. Let’s hope they vote today.