The above statement may be a bit triggering for many and that's because it's supposed to be. A big topic that has been top-of-mind in financial circles recently is how quickly interest payments on the US government's debt are rising as the Federal Reserve continues to hike interest rates in an attempt to tame inflation by destroying demand throughout the economy.

The phrase "debt slavery" isn't anything new. It has been around for quite some time and many people seem to grok it. However, I believe it is important to be more specific by pointing out US treasuries, debt instruments that are deemed to be some of the least risky assets on the planet, as the culprit behind the debt slavery that consumes our world today. The treasury issues new treasury instruments pretty regularly and when they do so they offer treasuries for cash and promise lenders to pay back what they raised plus interest. The interest is paid with revenues produced via taxes that are collected or by simply printing more treasuries. And since the debt burden has gotten so out of control here in the US, Americans are getting screwed both ways with egregious tax rates and runaway debasement of their currency that is mathematically destined to continue lest the US government admits it is bankrupt and defaults on its debt obligations.

The most pernicious aspect of this system, and what makes it possible to define as a form of slavery, is that no one opts in to treasury auctions. Americans aren't asked whether or not they're okay with the Treasury Department issuing more debt in their names. It just happens. And we are forced to pay the piper two ways with no recourse. Actors like Paul Krugman who like to portray themselves as economists will opine that "The debt is just money we owe ourselves! We can keep printing to pay ourselves back." However, this party line is objectively false.

The debt the Treasury keeps accruing is money future generations owe its lenders. Unborn individuals who have no ability to opt-out of the madness will be forced to contribute to paying off the unpayable debt. They are thrown right into it without ever having a say in the matter. Forced to pay taxes and deal with the reprecussions of currency debasement. If they don't pay their taxes they'll get sent to a cage and if they don't find a way to grow their income faster than the pace of inflation they will find themselves stuck on the lower rungs of the economic ladder. A slave to the whims of the tax man and his money printer. Forced to pay whatever the tax man says he needs and beholden to the whims of the money printer and its affect on the purchasing power of their savings.

The most effective way to get away from the system of debt slavery is Bitcoin. A currency that cannot be debased that exists on a peer-to-peer network with push-only payments.

Final thought...

Sports commentary is harder than it looks.