How Inflation Destroyed the Roman Empire

Posted on by

There were many reasons the Roman Empire fell but, inflation and government spending were huge parts.  Government stimulus programs and public works became common then as they are today.  People today underestimate the complexity of the Roman Empire but, their bureaucracy was almost as large as ours today.  Aqueducts were often created to give people employment just like “The Community Reinvestment Act” seeks to do today.  I find this interesting on many different levels.  For one, Rome’s policies were very similar to ours today.  They even had similar names like jobs bill and community reinvestment act.    There is a book written in the 1940s called the “New Deal in Old Rome” that compares Roman governance in the later Empire to New Deal programs.  The parallels are almost bizarre.

Then, just like today, government bureaucracy and spending were only part of the problem, the much bigger problem was inflation.  Inflation was rampant and brought the Empire to its knees.  The rates of inflation increased over time at a similar rate to that at which the United States is currently.

 

What is really staggering is that the Roman Empire’s fiscal transgressions are nothing compared to the modern United States’.  Rome had to dilute its coins by recalling them every few years and watering them down with other metals, while the U.S. can simply print bills of credit to infinity with no checks in place at all.  Nero would be envious indeed of the American State’s monetary power.  Rome also centralized everything into its capital city and attempted to regulate its provinces from afar but, again this is nothing compared to the centralization that Washington DC has been able to accomplish.  For all the corruption that infected the Roman government, it is tame compared to the corruption of the American Political Class. Here is a brief presentation on Roman Inflation.

This one is a bit longer.

 

 

23,185 thoughts on “How Inflation Destroyed the Roman Empire”

  12. pgslot นำเสนอประสบการณ์ที่สนุกสนานของสล็อตออนไลน์และเกมการเดิมพัน เล่นสล็อตที่คุณชื่นชอบและสำรวจฟีเจอร์ที่ไม่เหมือนใครพร้อมรางวัลที่ยอดเยี่ยม สนุกกับการเล่นเกมตลอดเวลาเพื่อความสนุกที่บ้าน รับการจ่ายรางวัลที่ยอดเยี่ยม
    และเพิ่มโอกาสชนะของคุณให้สูงสุด

    Feel free to surf to my homepage :: pg สล็อต

    Reply ↓

  29. Thanks , I have just been looking for info about this topic for a long time and yours is the best I’ve came upon till now.
    But, what concerning the bottom line? Are you sure concerning
    the source?

    Reply ↓

  37. Hey very cool site!! Man .. Excellent .. Amazing .. I’ll bookmark your website
    and take the feeds also? I am happy to search out so many useful information here within the post,
    we’d like develop more techniques in this regard, thanks
    for sharing. . . . . .

    Reply ↓

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *