As long as they rule your money, they rule you.

[LanceFreeman]

You are. and then go back and look at the periods of history when precious metals values fluctuated, and see how the economy suffered.

Wahbooz: I have read up on Thomas Gresham's Law. He makes a lot of sense; however, he refers to two types of legal tender in circulation at the same time, one over-valued artificially, and the other under-valued because its base metal value exceeds its face value. This is not what we have here. Our fiat currency falls under Gresham's definition of 'bad money', since its face value greatly exceeds its real value (worthless paper).

I am reading you to say that we should stay the course with fiat money, because it is as good, or better, than metal-based currency. Your reason: because precious metals fluctuate in value and are never stable. Well, they do indeed fluctuate, but fiat currency is worse because it makes it too easy for governments to borrow money and accumulate debts, and sooner or later, because of high currency circulation, moves into a hyper-inflationary phase. Hyper-inflation robs us of our wealth.

Our money is losing its value even as we communicate on these forums because of fiat money. Just go to your corner grocery store and see how much more you must pay for items today; items that cost you 30% less a few months ago. Two months from now, those items will cost you even more. Inflation is rising at a tremendous rate, but you cannot tell that according to government figures. Government lies to us on a daily basis, especially about money, so we do not panic. But fiat currency is moving into its hyper-inflationary phase, which means it is approaching its finale. We shall probably wind up with a whole new currency, which will rob us of more of our meager savings as we exchange the old for the new. We have allowed all of this to happen because of our lack of knowledge of our financial system, and the flim-flam artists who run it.

 

[Woolleybugger]

You stopped reading? Who do you think owns the Federal Reserve, and the 12 Federal Reserve banks? You need to get your head out of the sand, old bean. Mind you, 99% of the American people are right there alongside you. You need to read 'Creature Fron Jekyll Island' by G. Edward Griffin, and 'Enroute to Global Occuopation' by Gary Kah. I am not surprised you stopped reading. Your problem is you do not read enough.

The FED is a creature of the state. The idea that we should pay interest to them to get money from them that is the creation of the state is one that serves a purpose but is unnecessary. It merely provides a way to set interest rates. Europe is only in trouble because they formed a monetary union but not a political union. This union forced each nation to behave like they were part of a political union such as Georgia is part of the USA. Once you have one single currency you have only one master, the issuer of that currency. Greece can no longer devalue its currency so it must now balance its ledgers just like a US state must balance or take on debt. But if Greece did not have the Euro, they would be able to manage their own economy. That is what fiat money does for you and that is why we have it all over the world.

 

[Woolleybugger]

If you are interested in this subject and want to know where economic ideas are going, read this blog. It is a blog written by supporters of MMT, Modern Monetary Theory. I admit that my views on money have been largely formed by the ideas of this movement. Take a peek, you will be intrigued.
http://neweconomicperspectives.org/

 

[Wulk]

What is money anyway? It's, at its basic, a means of barter, either for goods, or work done. It used to be gold, silver, copper, then it was bits of paper (promissory notes), now it's figures on a computer screen. I read recently, that the Fed is proposing to do away with the greenback completely.

 

[Woolleybugger]

What is money anyway? It's, at its basic, a means of barter, either for goods, or work done. It used to be gold, silver, copper, then it was bits of paper (promissory notes), now it's figures on a computer screen. I read recently, that the Fed is proposing to do away with the greenback completely.

Money is simply anything that serves as a medium of exchange. Money could be a cow I trade you for a year's worth of chickens. Or it could be a note I give you promising to pay you an amount in the future. Or it could be coins or gold or beads, anything that represents a debt owed which can then be redeemed. Money is debt. It represents a way of quantifying that debt in a manner that is acceptable. Taxes justify a national currency. Without taxes, you would have no need for a national currency, you could use something else, say a bitcoin. Taxes though force you to trade debts in one currency, the anointed currency, which you can then pay taxes with to get services from the government. It's all really easy to understand once you dig a bit deeper into the subject.