In the aftermath of the financial crisis, central banks implemented Zero Interest Rate Policy (ZIRP) to prevent economic collapse. However, instead of fostering genuine growth, ZIRP has bred a "zombie economy," where 42% of companies in the Russell 2000 Index are operating at a loss, kept alive by easy access to cheap capital.
But the damage goes deeper than inefficient companies surviving. ZIRP laid the foundation for growing state power and interventionism, with governments stepping in to control markets, sectors, and industries more tightly. Under ZIRP, markets are no longer free, and the state takes on a paternalistic role, bailing out failures and redistributing wealth in ways that erode personal responsibility and innovation.
The consequences are far-reaching and destructive. As state power grows, society moves dangerously closer to socialism, where the government plays an ever-larger role in the economy, distorting the natural mechanisms of competition and market discipline. This leads to a stagnant economy, where true prosperity is replaced by dependency on government intervention.
Bitcoiners know that sound money, not debt, fuels a healthy economy. ZIRP has pushed us toward a socialist-like system, where intervention, not market forces, rules. It's time to push back before the foundations of a free economy are permanently eroded.
