The Fed is pushing America dangerously close to socialism

Last Monday, the Federal Reserve began its latest round of "quantitative easing," through which "at least" $700 billion will be pumped into the U.S. economy in the hopes of limiting the economic damage imposed by the spreading coronavirus.

And that's just the beginning. The Fed also lowered interest rates down to 0, and it has already signaled it could expand these efforts in the months to come.

Further, the White House and much of Congress is frothing at the mouth to impose a new "stimulus" package that could end up costing $1 trillion. (Yes, you read that correctly. That's "trillion" with a "t.")

America's monetary system is ridiculously complex, to say the least. Trying to understand every action by the Fed is sort of like attempting to solve a Rubik's Cube while blindfolded. And drunk. And underwater.

But don't worry about drowning to death. The idea behind quantitative easing is simpler than it appears at first glance.

In times of an economic crisis – you know, like when a killer virus from China sweeps across the world – regular folks like you and me get really worried and start saving our money in anticipation of future economic problems. Investors, corporations, and just about everyone else also become terrified, and start preparing for tough economic times, slowing or even reversing economic growth.

In an effort to get America's economic engine roaring again, the Fed, the central bank for the United States, effectively creates money out of thin air and uses that "cash" – which is really just numbers on an electronic spreadsheet – to buy assets so that more money finds its way into the hands of bankers, investors, and maybe even eventually average Joe's like you and me.

The Fed believes that if people have more money, they'll spend it, and we'll all be better off as a result.

The Fed believes that if people have more money, they'll spend it, and we'll all be better off as a result.

If this sounds way too good to be true, that's because it often is. Inventing money purely for the purpose of incentivizing bankers, investors, and consumers to spend cash when they know it's probably not a good idea to do so creates all sorts of negative repercussions and eventually causes more economic crises. (If you're looking for a good example of a Fed-inspired economic crash, look no further than the 2008 financial crisis.)

Introducing trillions of new dollars into the economy can also create inflation, devaluing dollars and encouraging consumers to spend as quickly as possible, rather than save, introducing lots of additional economic distortions.

That doesn't mean there aren't extremely rare times when reasonable people might think such policies make sense. Heck, I'm not even trying convince you that this particular crisis doesn't justify action on the part of the government. All I'm hoping you'll get from this article is that these actions, coupled with the frivolous monetary policies utilized by the Fed over the past two decades, pose substantial risks – not only to our economy, but to our freedom.

This article isn't really about quantitative easing or the absurdities present throughout the U.S. monetary system. It's about socialism. Because as difficult as it might be for some to believe, if we continue down this road of printing a seemingly endless amount of cash to solve all our problems, socialism is exactly where we're going to end up – a reality Glenn Beck expertly explains in his newest book, Arguing with Socialists, which will be available everywhere books are sold on April 7.

As Glenn notes, whatever the intentions are of the folks running the Fed, one of the primary effects of their decision to pump trillions of dollars into the economy is that it gives significantly more power to the national government.

The U.S. federal government is broke – and when I say "broke," I mean living in the dumpster behind the Chinese food restaurant broke. At last count, the federal government is already $23 trillion in the hole. It doesn't have any money to buy toilet paper for government buildings, never mind enough to spend tens of billions of dollars to bail out airlines.

So, how does Congress do it, then? The simple answer is that the federal government steals – eh, I mean taxes – trillions of dollars from hardworking Americans and then fills in the rest by issuing bonds that the Federal Reserve happily buys with the money it prints, money that is backed by nothing more than the "full faith and credit" of the very same government issuing the bonds in the first place. (Suddenly, Charles Ponzi doesn't look so bad, huh?)

The federal government then burns through the cash by expanding and adding government programs – including stimulus packages – it can't afford. This cycle repeats year after year after year, allowing the government to get progressively bigger and more powerful.

As we all know from personal experience, the government doesn't fly over every state dropping bucketloads of the cash it gets from the Fed out of helicopters. It selectively chooses who is worthy of receiving money and who isn't. Or, as conservatives have often said, it "picks winners and losers" by favoring some groups, corporations, industries, and ideas over all others.

When the federal government is small, the problems this crony system can cause are relatively limited. But as the government expands significantly, which has only been made possible thanks to the Federal Reserve, it ends up consuming whole industries and gigantic portions of the economy and society. (Note that without the Fed inventing money, single-payer health care would be completely impossible to achieve absent other significant cuts to government spending.)

As the government expands significantly... it ends up consuming whole industries and gigantic portions of the economy and society.

A country with a conservative central bank could theoretically ensure its nation's government is acting responsibly, but America's central bank has proven that it's anything but conservative. In fact, it seems hellbent on ensuring that the power of the Federal Reserve and the federal government is expanded significantly.

As Ron Paul noted recently, "Boston Federal Reserve President Eric Rosengren has suggested that Congress allow the Federal Reserve to add assets of private companies to the Fed's already large balance sheet," a move that would give the Fed direct control over the economy.

Another way the Fed moves America closer to collectivism is by socializing the cost of money and savings. When the Fed introduces trillions of new dollars into an economy to spur demand, rather than as a reaction to market forces, it devalues everyone's currency, discouraging people from saving.

And the mere ability of the Fed to manipulate the currency whenever it pleases is in and of itself a form of socialism, because it ultimately gives the Fed's Board of Governors (a government agency) huge amounts of power over the entire economy, including setting the price of just about everything indirectly.

If we continue down this dangerous path, it's only a matter of time before we have full-blown socialism in the United States, especially since it seems unavoidable that crises like the one we're facing today will continue to be used as a justification for further power-grabs. (Just imagine how many trillions of dollars a Democratic president in the White House would say are "desperately needed" to stop climate change from wiping out humanity!)

This all might sound like a tin-foil-hat conspiracy, but it's not. As Glenn explains in detail in Arguing with Socialists, many of the nation's leading progressives and democratic socialists are big supporters of a fringe economic idea called Modern Monetary Theory, which directly calls for the Fed to print whatever amount of money the national government needs to control the economy. Debt and deficits don't really matter, they claim.

This theory has been fully adopted by politicians like Bernie Sanders, who made Stephanie Kelton, one of the world's leading MMT theorists, the chief economist for the Democratic members of the U.S. Senate Budget Committee. Sanders also named Kelton a senior economic adviser to both his 2016 and 2020 presidential campaigns.

This is what twenty-first century socialism looks like. The national government isn't going to go door to door confiscating homes and businesses and throwing people into gulags – well, at least not at first. It's much easier to have a central bank like the Fed control the currency and bankroll a national government's takeover of the economy through a never-ending stream of new government initiatives, bailouts, and massive services.

Justin Haskins is editorial director of The Heartland Institute and the editor-in-chief of StoppingSocialism.com.

To learn more about this topic, and just about any other related to socialism, be a good capitalist and pre-order Glenn Beck's Arguing with Socialists today.

It feels like lately hardly a week can go by without some new AI advancement—or warning—making headlines, but unless you have been paying VERY close attention you might believe the power of AI is something relegated to technical institutions or Silicon Valley labs and only accessible by the most highly trained computer wizards. But as Glenn has demonstrated, AI can now be accessed by anyone with internet access and can take many different shapes and forms—not just that of the ominous and awkward ChatBot. In fact, you are probably using AI without even realizing it.

If AI can enter into your life without you realizing it, would you even know if your CHILDREN were interacting with it?

We want to hear from YOU. Do you allow your children to use AI? Do you know if they are? Do you use AI? Are you aware of the many shapes and forms AI can take?

Do you use AI?

Do you allow your children to use AI?

Do you know if your children are using AI?

Did you know that AI is integral to the functions of many social media content recommendation algorithms, including YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram?  

Did you know that many messaging platforms your child may be using, like Discord and Snapchat, now have built-in AI chatbots?

Are you aware that AI such as ChatGPT can be easily accessed from any internet browser?

Are you aware that AI such as ChatGPT can be easily used to CHEAT school assignments?

Are you aware that AI applications exist that are meant to replace intimate human relationships and are available on most smartphones?

Are you teaching your children about AI and its potential dangers and misuses? 

5 POWERFUL quotes from Eisenhower's farewell address that still ring true

M. McNeill / Stringer | Getty Images

In Glenn's latest TV special, he mentioned a warning from President Eisenhower's Farewell Address about the dangers of the Military Industrial Complex and its tentacles stretch into every town and every industry across the country. As it turns out, Ike's farewell address was full of the wisdom and foresight of a man who had served in both World Wars and spent his entire life in service to his country.

Here are 5 powerful quotes from Eisenhower's farewell address:

Eisenhower seemed to predict the rise of the internet and social media, which has had the effect of making the world smaller. Unfortunately, Ike's warning was not heeded as "a community of dreadful fear and hate" summarizes social media pretty well. 

Down the long lane of the history yet to be written, America knows that this world of ours, ever growing smaller, must avoid becoming a community of dreadful fear and hate, and be instead, a proud confederation of mutual trust and respect.

Eisenhower recommended that America's strength be used as a tool to forge diplomatic peace and that our strength should instill confidence in weaker nations' negotiations instead of fear.

The weakest must come to the conference table with the same confidence as do we, protected as we are by our moral, economic, and military strength.

Eisenhower predicted the rise of a "scientific-technological elite" and warned of the danger of these elites holding power and influence over government policy.

In holding scientific research and discovery in respect, as we should, we must also be alert to the equal and opposite danger that public policy could itself become the captive of a scientific-technological elite.

Eisenhower stressed the importance of diplomacy for a nation as strong as America, whose military strength not only enables more diplomatic solutions but also brings the temptation of fast, "easy" resolutions. 

Together, we must learn how to compose differences, not with arms, but with intellect and decent purpose.

Earlier in the speech, Eisenhower acknowledged the modern need for a ready and prepared military. However, he warns that this new military-industrial complex has the potential to exert its influence upon other sectors of the government, an influence that, by nature, seeks war. 

In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex.

SHOCKING: 11 states where Hunter Biden is accused of DISGUSTING crimes

Kris Connor / Contributor | Getty Images

Glenn has been calling on our leaders to do what they SHOULD have done a long time ago: hold Hunter Biden accountable for his BLATANT crimes.

Of which crimes is Hunter Biden being accused? From hiring prostitutes to smoking cocaine... LOTS of cocaine... here is a state-by-state list of ALL crimes committed by Hunter Biden. To read about each crime in detail, Glenn's "The Reckoning" guide lists ALL of Hunter Biden's crimes committed domestically and abroad alongside the alleged crimes of all the Biden family members, including Joe.

Glenn needs YOUR help to hold the "Biden crime family" accountable. Click HERE to download "The Reckoning" dossier of ALL of the crimes committed by the Biden family, send the dossier to your representative, and DEMAND they hold the Biden family accountable for their crimes.

In the meantime, here is a sneak peek of ALL of Hunter Biden's known sex and drug crimes committed within the U.S.

1. Arizona

Drug Crimes: One count.

2. California

Drug Crimes: 6 counts.

Sex Crimes: 20 counts.

3. Connecticut

Drug Crimes: 4 counts.

Sex Crimes: 11 counts.

4. Delaware

Drug Crimes: 9 counts.

Sex Crimes: 3 counts.

5. Florida

​​Drug Crimes: 1 count.

Sex Crimes: 1 count.

6. Massachusetts

Drug Crimes: 4 counts.

Sex Crimes: 4 counts.

7. Nevada

Drug Crimes: 1 count.

Sex Crimes: 2 counts.

8. New York

Drug Crimes: 2 counts.

Sex Crimes: 12 counts.

9. Tennessee

Drug Crimes: 1 count.

10. Texas

Sex Crimes: 1 count.

11. Virginia

Drug Crimes: 1 count.

It’s no secret that Glenn has a less-than-optimistic view of emerging AI and when you look at the horrifying new technologies that utilize the power of AI it’s hard not to agree.

Here’s a look at 7 new AI technologies that will HORRIFY you:

AI Brainwave Monitoring

Earlier this year during the World Economic Forum's annual meeting, Nita Robinson, a professor of law and philosophy at Duke, presented a video that depicted a “hypothetical” situation where a person's brainwaves are monitored by their earbuds, which have the ability to record brainwaves, decode them with AI, and then send brain reports to their boss and are accessible by government agencies. When the video ends, Robinson makes the terrifying announcement that this AI technology already exists! It's just a matter of time before it's implemented.

If you want to learn more about Brainwave tracking and the WEF, you can watch this clip from the Glenn Beck Program.

AI Voice Cloning

Last month, Glenn covered a terrifying story involving a scammer who created an AI clone of a child's voice in order to scam money out of her terrified parents. While this might sound advanced, a quick Google search reveals that this technology is remarkably accessible and is easily able to replicate the voice of anyone. Imagine the havoc that could be inflicted on your life with an AI clone of your voice.

AI Mind Reader

Left shows stories read to user and right shows what the AI was able to decode from users brain activity

Image credit: University of Texas at Austin

Like something out of Star Trek, a team of researchers at the University of Texas at Austin developed a new AI that is able to decode brain activity and produce a transcript of a person's thoughts with reasonable accuracy, all without the need for implants or other invasive measures. While the researchers assure us that the technology has major limitations, including the need to train this AI extensively on each subject's brain, it’s only a matter of time before the AI is able to overcome these limitations, and it may be sooner than we would like…

Snapchat's new AI “Friend”

Image of My AI's contact on Snapchat

Snapchat

In April the popular social media messaging app Snapchat released a controversial new feature known as “My AI”—an AI chatbot powered by ChatGPT. The new feature acts much like other chatbots. It can answer questions, converse with the user, and offer recommendations. However, unlike other chatbots, it is integrated in such a way that it can be difficult to distinguish from a human user, complete with a customizable avatar and name. Many parents are worried that the friendly appearance of “My AI” will make it hard for their teens to differentiate the bot from a real human. Moreover, the only way to remove the bot is by paying for Snapchat’s premium service, giving parents little recourse for protecting their children.

AI "Big Brother"

In a recent TED talk, former Apple Designer Imran Chaudhri introduced the concept for a new wearable AI device connected to a camera and microphone, enabling the AI to hear and see everything you do. Chaudhri assures us that the device is “privacy-first and safe,” but how safe would you feel with an all-seeing AI accompanying you all day every day?

AI Meddling with Elections

AI generated image of Trump's arrest

Open AI | MARCA News

One terrifying potential use for AI could be meddling with elections. The last few years have seen a decline in faith in our elections, and the emergence of AI will only serve to muddy the waters. As previously mentioned, AI voice clones are here and have been proven to have the ability to create compelling facsimiles of political figures. Combined with AI image technology the threat of an AI-generated scandal is high.

If you want to learn more about AI interference with elections you can watch this clip from the Glenn Beck Program.

AI Dating

Another disturbing development is the creation of “Dating AIs”—AI chatbots designed as a replacement for a boyfriend or girlfriend. There is already a variety of options available with prices ranging from free all the way up to $1 a minute, like some sort of dystopian "call girl." There are already reports of people developing genuine emotional attachments to these bots and others who have married or have tried to marry their artificial lovers.