Permissionism: The Economic System Nobody Named Until NowWe don't have American capitalism anymore... We have something much different...
Want The Capital Wave Report for the deal of a lifetime… Want to navigate this financial system that no one else can define? Fellow Traveler, We've been searching for a word to describe the current economic state in which we live. It’s not capitalism… It’s not socialism. It’s definitely a system built on extraction… with hints of feudalism and corporatism… I know… what we have feels feudalistic… but there’s a key difference. Feudalism was about land and birth. You were born a serf or lord. Power came from inherited land ownership. The structure was fixed by bloodline. What we now have is about access and authorization. You can theoretically move between levels of society, but only if you’re given a hall pass from the structures above. Today, power comes from controlling authorization systems, not physical territory, and those who grant it extract rent forever. So… I have a new, simple term… a new “ism…” if you will… I call it Permissionism… It's the 21st-century economic system where everything requires permission from those who control the monetary and regulatory gates, all built on the back of “Terms of Conditions” and digital contracts that nobody reads... You don't succeed by producing, innovating, or competing. You succeed by getting permission from the gatekeepers who control access to money, markets, and legitimacy. And it’s completely unsustainable… How Permissionism WorksIn every previous economic system before 2008, power was derived from ownership. Land in feudalism. Capital in capitalism. The state in socialism. In Permissionism, power comes from the ability to grant or deny permission. The Federal Reserve grants banks the authority to create credit. Banks provide businesses with the opportunity to grow through credit. Platforms give companies permission to reach customers. Regulators give industries permission to exist. Every layer extracts rent for granting permission. Every crisis consolidates “permission-based” power in fewer hands. Every bailout makes more people dependent on permission from above. Today, you need permission to:
You can't opt out because opting out requires permission too... Try using cash… Today, it seems businesses need permission to accept it. Try using crypto. Today, exchanges need permission to operate. Try bartering. Did you now that bartering is taxable? That requires permission to calculate. The Permission HierarchyThere are different levels in this permission caste… Level 1 - The Prime Permission Granters
Level 2 - The Secondary Gates
Level 3 - The Enforcement Layer
Level 4 - Everyone Else
The Economics of PermissionismTraditional economics assumes free entry and exit from markets. Permissionism assumes the opposite: every entry and exit requires permission. Want to start a bank? Need permission from regulators who haven't granted a new bank charter in years. Want to compete with Amazon? You need permission to access customers they control… and they can cut you out of the system for even the most minor issue (sometimes, even if you’ve done nothing wrong…) Want to create a new payment system? You need permission from the same banks you're trying to disrupt. Want to build housing? You need permission from local boards that benefit from scarcity and cling to their power, protecting their fiefdoms... The permission-granters don't want competition. They want rent-seeking. So they make permission expensive, complex, and rare. How 2008 Created PermissionismThe 2008 crisis was the birth of Permissionism. The bailouts didn't just save banks - they established the principle that certain entities are permitted to fail, while others are not. Since then:
The Fed became the supreme permission-granter. Not through law, but through liquidity. They decide who gets cheap money (banks), who gets rescued (systemically important), and who gets destroyed (everyone else). The core permission in Permissionism is the permission to print money. The Fed grants this to banks through fractional reserve banking. Banks grant it to corporations through credit creation. But workers? Savers? Small businesses? No permission for you. This creates two economies:
If you're a leader in the Permission Economy, money is free, mistakes are forgiven, and wealth accumulates automatically. If you're in the Submission Economy, money is expensive, mistakes are terminal, and wealth is extracted systematically. The Myth of Digital DisruptionTechnology was supposed to democratize everything. Instead, it perfected Permissionism. Every platform is a permission gate:
The internet became a series of toll booths where permission must be purchased, not earned. As more gates get erected, the cost of permission inflates. Regulatory compliance, platform fees, licensing costs, and certification requirements all grow faster than inflation. This is all a lawyer’s dream. A restaurant needs permission from health departments, liquor boards, zoning committees, fire marshals, labor departments, tax authorities, payment processors, delivery platforms, review sites, and social media algorithms. Each permission costs money. Each gate takes a cut. By the time food reaches your table, most of the price is permission rent, not ingredients or labor. Markets Can't Fix PermissionismThe reality is that we aren’t a free market. Capitalism died in 2008… we have people who yearn for it… but fail to recognize that we don’t have what we once did. The United States, according to the Economic Freedom Index, has collapsed from 5th in the World to 26th in less than two decades. That’s because gatekeepers hijacked our economy after 2008… Markets assume competition. Permissionism prevents it. When every competitor needs permission from the same gatekeepers, there's no competition. We just have “approved participants” playing by “approved rules” within “approved boundaries.” The gatekeepers have no incentive to grant permission to disruptors. Why would Amazon grant permission to competitors? Why would banks grant permission to DeFi? Why would regulators grant permission to innovation that makes their jobs harder? The market can't fix a system where market entry requires permission from those the market would displace. Permissionism isn't left or right. Both sides embrace it…
Both create more gates, more gatekeepers, and more rent extraction. The debate isn't whether to have Permissionism, just who controls the permissions. Every permission system eventually collapses under its own weight. Too many gates, too many gatekeepers, too much rent extraction. The productive economy can't support the permission economy. Young people can't build wealth as they’re priced out. Businesses can't get permission to compete due to regulatory capture. Innovators can't get permission to disrupt, as they’ll either be acquired or destroyed, and savers can't get permission to preserve value due to financial repression. Hell, here in Maryland, as I said, they’ve made it more expensive than ever to buy gold - all while driving the dealers to the verge of collapse. The system responds by printing more money, granting more permissions to the connected, and extracting more from everyone else. But you can't print your way out of Permissionism. You just create more gates around the printer. What’s After Permissionism?The opposite of Permissionism isn't anarchy. It's an economy where permission isn't required for peaceful, productive activity. Where competition doesn't require approval from competitors. Where innovation doesn't need blessing from incumbents. But we're nowhere near that. We're heading deeper into Permissionism. Every crisis creates more gates. Every technology creates more tolls. Every regulation creates more permission requirements. Until we name it, we can't fight it. But now we have a name. Permissionism. Stay Positive, Garrett Baldwin About Me and the Money Printer Me and the Money Printer is a daily publication covering the financial markets through three critical equations. We track liquidity (money in the financial system), momentum (where money is moving in the system), and insider buying (where Smart Money at companies is moving their money). Combining these elements with a deep understanding of central banking and how the global system works has allowed us to navigate financial cycles and boost our probability of success as investors and traders. This insight is based on roughly 17 years of intensive academic work at four universities, extensive collaboration with market experts, and the joy of trial and error in research. You can take a free look at our worldview and thesis right here. Disclaimer Nothing in this email should be considered personalized financial advice. While we may answer your general customer questions, we are not licensed under securities laws to guide your investment situation. Do not consider any communication between you and Florida Republic employees as financial advice. The communication in this letter is for information and educational purposes unless otherwise strictly worded as a recommendation. Model portfolios are tracked to showcase a variety of academic, fundamental, and technical tools, and insight is provided to help readers gain knowledge and experience. Readers should not trade if they cannot handle a loss and should not trade more than they can afford to lose. There are large amounts of risk in the equity markets. Consider consulting with a professional before making decisions with your money.
|
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
0 Response to "Permissionism: The Economic System Nobody Named Until Now"
Post a Comment