Summary: How do we minimize the ever-increasing debt? I have Richard Vague on the podcast to talk about the pursuit of financial stability—which has become extremely difficult in our times. His mission as a public official is looking at debt and putting together strategies to remediate this. Highlights: -Richard preaches a messages of financial stability, which he represents in his books -Perhaps a debt jubilee is what we need -His mission as a public official is looking at debt and putting together strategies to deal with this -Public and private sector debt are growing faster than GDP -Anytime debt in a sector grows too rapidly, it means over-capacity is being created -A debt boom creates illusory good times—jobs are being created, tax revenues at the government level are increasing, etc. Things appear to be really good -It is only in the aftermath that we see desire to do something about it, and oftentimes capitalism gets blamed -Vague puts out practical ideas for remediating debt that has been accumulated -What incentives can the government put out to avoid these debt situations? -The level of new homes being built right now are is below what it was in 2007 -Growth in debt has also come from lending standards/private equity lending -They estimate that there are 90 million empty residences in China -It used to be believed that credit creation went hand in hand with the increase of the money supply, but this is not necessarily the case -Our country is not in an enviable position in terms of debt -There is a mess coming down the road that will be hard to manage Useful Links: Financial Survival Network Richard Vague