Module 4 Essay: Money
Blaze K. Munoz
Department of Entrepreneurship, Oklahoma State University
EEE – 2083 Entrepreneurship & Society
Professor Trost
March 6, 2023
Abstract
Throughout this paper, the main thing we will be focusing on is money. The root of money, why having stable money is important, and what makes the price right. In “Francisco’s Money Speech” by Ayn Rand, the author talks about money being the root of all evil and doing into detail what the root of money is. In addition, chapter 2 in the book “The Money Confusion” the authors illustrate what stable money means and the importance of it. Lastly, P.L. Bylund in the book “The Seen, the Unseen, and the Unrealized”, the author talks about money and the prices we see on goods.
Money is the Root of All Evil
What’s the Root of Money?
We have all heard before that money is the root of all evil. If that is the case, then what is the root of money? In the article “Francisco’s Money Speech”, by Ayn Rand, the author goes in dept to what the root of money is, and if money is truly the root of all evil.
In the very first paragraph of the article, Ayn Rand explains that “money is made possible only by the men who produce”, is she saying that men produce money, making them the root of all evil? (Rand, 2020). First what is money good for? It helps you buy products that you consider to have value. But who created these products? Mankind did. The “man’s mind is the root of all the goods produced and of all the wealth that has ever existed on earth” (Rand, 2020).
Money is essentially just a side item of everything created. Meaning if there was nothing to purchase or nothing to trade, then money would have no power. It is powerless except for the voluntary choice to trade effort for money in return. Here with the money, you worked for then you may obtain the goods you wish to have. Money acts as a middleman. To get the goods I want, I must exchange my efforts for money; once money is obtained, then I can purchase whatever I may desire. In my eyes, money is not the root of all evil, but rather the evil man with money.
“Money is only a tool. It will take you wherever you wish, but it will not replace you as the driver” (Rand, 2020).
I agree 100%. Money is a tool when used the correct way. It can take you places you could never imagine, but if the individual is wicked and evil, the money will only keep the evil going.
Stable Money
Money vs War
It is scary to think that World War II was the reason the Great Depression came to an end.
“The simple truth is that people, yet again, are the economy, and war exterminated them” (Tamny, 2022, p.31).
Which makes sense. Once there is a war, the economy essentially restarts. There are new companies, new products, new competition, and different set values. This helps the government and the biggest corporations, the 1%, because there was very little competition. As one once said “Any market restriction automatically created its own black market”. I have never heard this phrase before, but it stuck with me because it is 100% true. If there is a demand for a good, people will find a way to move the product. This goes all the way back to the prohibition and Boston Tea Party. The problem this may cause is having a good that has more or equal to the value of the current currency. As it explains in the article that in the past in Germany, cigarettes were the main form or currency. Trading cigarettes for certain goods was their way of economics and by doing so gave money an unstable value. To get the most out of money, it needs to be quiet or in other words, low entropy. Having stable money does not mean you will gain; however, it does mean that you won’t lose value due to selling, buying, or trading. Use Bitcoin for an example, the value it held in 2017 is far different than the value it holds currently. Unlike real money, Bitcoin is not quiet, and its value consistently changes due to the value we the economy put on it. If everyone stopped using and investing in Bitcoin, the value would decrease; however, money will never not be in existence. The value stays the same whether people love it or hate it. Having stable money is what keeps the economy moving, if there was not a currency that was stable and unable to change value, the economy would be unable to function. There would be nothing of value to sell, buy or trade with.
The Price is Right
Right Pricing
In the book “The Seen, the Unseen, and the Unrealized, by P.L. Bylund, the author goes in depth on how the prices we see in stores came about.
“The answer is that there is no such thing as a “right” price. We could also say, which is equally accurate, that all prices are right. The reason for this is that goods and services offered for sale in the market do not have a single price, but many” (Bylund, 2016, p. 22).
I can relate to this due to the prices of sneakers. The “retail” price is what is sold in stores, usually for a reasonable price. The “resell” price is the price after market, usually a lot higher than the retail price. Both prices are right due to the economy they are in, but more often than not, goods have more than one price tag.
For instance, if Adam offers Adele a can of coke in exchange for an apple, and the trade occurs, Adam values an apple over coke and vis versa with Adele (Bylund, 2016).
The pricing of the apple and coke are different; however, each recipient is willing to give value up to a certain point to get the other “more” valued item. So, the pricing we see are all right and wrong. It depends on the value of each individual if the price is right for them or wrong for them.
Reference Page
Rand, A. (2020, April 13). "Francisco's money speech" by Ayn Rand. Capitalism Magazine. Retrieved February 24, 2023, from https://www.capitalismmagazine.com/2002/08/franciscos-money-speech/Links to an external site.
Bylund, P. L. (2016). Chapter 2: The Price Is Right. In Seen, the unseen, and the unrealized: How regulations affect our everyday lives (pp. 15–26). essay, Lexington Books.
Tamny, J. (2022). Chapter 2: The Meaning of Stable Money. In The money confusion: How illiteracy about currencies and inflation sets the stage for the Crypto Revolution (pp. 29–41). essay, All Seasons Press.
This was a very well written essay and I enjoyed reading your thoughts on Bylund's writings as well as Francisco's Money Speech. It is formatted in a way that is easy to preface for the reader to see what topics you are writing about. I like your view on money not being the root of all evil, but rather it is the man with the money that is evil. When you put it into perspective as money just being a tool for use rather than being the user itself, it really makes your point clear. I like your choice of quote in that paragraph, it supported your view in a very clear way that was easy to understand.
I wrote a majority of my paper on stable money and the effect that war had on the economy so I really enjoyed reading that section of your paper. We made a lot of the same points which was interesting to see the similarities in our views on the subject.
This was very well said is a great summarization of what Bylund was talking about when it comes to stable money in the economy. The cigarettes in Germany and Bitcoin in today's market are great examples of showing that currency itself can change based on its value to society and also why it is important for currency to be stable within the market to hold its value.
I like how you incorporated your real life experience into the writing to show how you can relate to the subject. It seems like you buy, sell, or resell sneakers which I used to do with streetwear and is a great example of transactions made within the market and why it is important for money to have the same value when an item is purchased as well as when it is sold. Adding the "apple and coke" example which was used in the lecture video is also a good way to help the reader understand that value of an item is relative to the wants of each person in the market. Overall this was a very well thought out and worded essay, the format and use of quotes were helpful in interpreting the essay. Well done.