Haha Money Printer Go Brrrrr

The meme was created as a response to the Federal Reserve (the US’s central bank) announcing its intent to increase stock market liquidity. As a response to the COVID-19 outbreak, it sought to inject $1.5 trillion into the economy in the form of short-term loans.

The meme demonstrates some concerns about the government simply “printing money” to combat economic crises. Since its appearance, it has taken off among those critical of inflation in fiat money systems. Such criticisms generally take issue with government intervention in the economy, notably in their ability to create money “out of thin air.”

This process is also sometimes known as Quantitative easing (QE). It isn’t as simple as printing money outright (it involves steps like purchasing securities from banks), but it ultimately increases the money supply. Detractors point to consequences like hyperinflation when government printing gets out of hand, as it has multiple times in the past. In a less severe scenario, opponents also point to the fact that an increase in the money supply leads to the debasement of their own holdings.