Charlie Munger is Warren Buffett’s right-hand man. The 98-year old vice chairman of Berkshire-Hathaway makes news when he speaks because of his blunt style, and this past week he was very clear about the serious problem America is faced with now, with inflation numbers that are at a 40-year high.
In Munger’s eyes, it’s the No. 1 issue facing this country right now.
“Inflation is a very serious subject; you could argue it’s the way democracies die. It’s a huge danger,” he said, citing hyperinflation as a cause of the collapse of the Roman Empire. “So it’s the biggest long-range danger we have, probably, apart from nuclear war.”
Munger explained that he believes hyperinflation was the cause of the collapse of the Roman Empire, and he claims it was the reason other great democracies have fallen well.
Munger’s comments came during the annual meeting for Daily Journal Corp.’s newspaper chain based in Los Angeles. Once he warmed up, the panel got him going on one of his favorite targets; bitcoin and cryptocurrency in general.
Munger called bitcoin a “worthless asset built entirely on speculation” and said that the primary usefulness for bitcoin is for “extortion, kidnappings and tax evasion.”
He would prefer to live in a world where it didn’t exist. “I wish it had been banned immediately. I admire the Chinese for banning it. I think they were right, and we were wrong to allow it.”
Munger’s contempt for crypto has been well documented. Here’s what he said about it last year. “I hate the bitcoin success. I think the whole damn development is disgusting and contrary to the interests of civilization,”
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