Nice Sagan quote. I can never get enough of the truth. It’s got a certain ring to it. LoL. Here’s a favorite of mine which was my first post last week. Subbed you from an Austrian Econ search.
“The truth is incontrovertible. Malice may attack it, ignorance may deride it, but in the end, it shall be revealed.” – Winston Churchill
I agree, regardless of how much it makes you question your current paradigm, the truth will set you free but first it will piss you off (Gloria Steinem).
I’m working through Fekete, Jaitley, Menger and Smith, what about yourself? A truth from Socrates which is as revelant today than it was when he first said this ‘Ignorance is the root and stem of all evil’
I’m also a Fekete fan. I have Van Coppenolle’s, “Austrian Business Cycle Revisited” primer right here. I’m intrigued at the possibility of real bills as short term circulating currency generated by real productive enterprise. Why not a crypto-currency with real bill backing to complement a return of bi-metallic system coinage? I have an idea for a dollar reset to 10g Ag with 1g Cu for circulation resiliency (about the size of an old 50 cent piece.) Legal tender gold coins could be minted by gram weight, no $ face value, and allow Au price to float on a real delivery futures market to replace comex BS. Wanna short 200 tonnes in one day? Put up the physical m-fers!
Other sources of inspriration; Ayn Rand, Mises, Hayek, Rothbard, Alisdair Macleod, Peter Schiff, Jim Rickards, James Turk, Eric Sprott. I am sort of an eclectic autodidact. I like a mix from real world and academic sources as long as they’re not frickin’ Marxists or Keynesians.
Not so sure that’s Socrates’ best moment. Most evil people know exactly what they’re doing, they just don’t give a damn. Few are ignoramuses, at least the leaders, else their schemes don’t last long. The players of zero-sum games, fraud, force initiation, terror, tyranny are more shortsighted than ignorant. I guess they think what goes around will never come around, and looking at the sorry record of human history perhaps they’re right more often than not. I don’t really blame the psychopaths, they are what they are; incapable of conscience and remorse. It is the greater number of ordinary people of ambition who knowingly and willingly scheme or play along that are the real problem of evil and corruption in any society. Okay, end of rant.
Best regards,
Der Kratz
I’ve added ‘Austrian Business Cycle Revisited’ to my list and will get it on payday, thanks for that. I’m also very interested in the RBD and tri-metallism, its a beautiful natural system but values of Au, Ag and Cu have to be allowed to freely float otherwise it would eventually fail. I thought about an asset backed crypto currency but real bills if incorporated into a modern financial payment system using barcode/QR codes would, in my opinion, do the job. Need to do more research and give more thought on transferring of money long distances in regard to crypto and RBD.
I also am an eclectic autodidact and look for articles and subjects which interest me, challenge me and give me food for thought. Whatever this reality is, knowledge and understanding are important to me. Anything which returns power to people and away from centralised beurocracy I enjoy reading.
For me the quote speaks not only to the socio/physcopaths who start the evil but the people who enable and allow it to happen, mainly born through ignorance, greed or short term thinking. Whatever makes them do it, I would not like to have that on my conscience. I’d prefer to stand up for something which I believe in than sit down for something that I do not. Nice rant btw.
All the best
SWS
I think what most free market money purists fail to realize is that there is a tremendous efficiency advantage in having a standardized national currency in which everything can be priced. The problem is how to prevent the custodians of that system from corruption. Setting the dollar currency to 10g Ag (the 1g Cu value fairly negligible – more for circulation resiliency and discouraging coin melting) would not mean silver couldn’t “float.” Silver would still have industrial uses, and need a delivery futures market. The float comes from having a complimentary legal tender gold futures and specie system not based on face value but on weight and purity as priced in the new Ag dollar. The problem with our old bi-metallic system was that both Au and Ag were fixed, so inevitable fluctuations in supply led to an advantageous hoarding preference of one or the other. Having both historic money metals legal tender, but only “fixing” one in terms of the national currency would allow market forces to discern ratio values, and give people choice as to how to store their earned purchasing power value. Competing free market currencies, whether real bills, or even bank notes, would need to offer some competitive advantage over the national currencies to compensate for the risk that they would not be as readily accepted at Ag$ face (or current Au exchange) value by other parties. Obviously, we need an end to the current 100+ year era of prima facie monetary corruption before we can return to a rule of law society that would establish and defend any sound money system. Humans are capable of behaving within rule of law, we just seem to have trouble maintaining it over time.
I thought for a moment about whether Socrates was referring to ignorance of the people allowing the schemes of evil to prevail, but reject that because it is essentially blaming the victim. Ignorance is ignorance. What can one do about something one has no knowledge or proof of? Maybe he is extolling the duty of educators and press to inform the ignorant, but that supposes that nothing can ever be or remain secret, which is just not reality. Secrets may be difficult to keep, but they manifestly can be kept, or without proof, at least relegated to the realm of speculative conspiracy theory. So, we come back to not only those who conceive and lead, but those who play along or follow evil schemes. Their evil behavior defines them, knowingly or unknowingly, as evil. Therefore evil behavior, not ignorance or lack thereof, is the operative root and stem. Now we are left with an unsatisfying self referential definition: Evil behavior is the root and stem of all evil. This begs, what is evil behavior? The best I’ve been able to discern and reduce, evil behavior is the initiation of force. Not force itself as force must be allowed as a necessary good to repel or destroy unyielding evil force as evidenced by its’ initiation. Someone really needs to coin a single catchy word for “initiation of force.”
I’m just now wondering, where I have always been baffled, if people’s resistance to awakening to the rampant corruption of the current economic and political system is that they are perhaps subconsciously aware that they are participating in an evil system, even if out of their control, but nevertheless therefore evil? Do they subliminally recognize that if they remain ignorant they have a shot at maintaining innocence, at least in their own conscience, if not reality? Am I evil to the degree I still participate in the force initiated status quo? Maybe after all, resistance to knowledge is the root, and initiation of force is the stem, or vice versa? It’s a bit of a chicken or egg deal when you boil it down. You still get chicken and egg evil incarnate soup.
Thank you for your replies. I don’t think I would have thought this through without them.
Best regards,
Der Kratz
I fully agree with your sentiments on free floating bi/tri-metallic currency, every time you fix a currency or PM, it fails. I think our system of law is overly complicated and flawed. Our current statute system is based on the law of the sea. Common Law is the law of the land and the one true law, why would you enforce the law of the sea on land?
I certainly see your point that evil is a part of the root but without ignorance, whether that be knowing or unknowing, that seed cannot grow and infest. If all people were well informed and educated, checks and balances were kept and those in power acted on behalf of all not a few, then evil cannot grow.
The majority of people, in my opinion, suffer from cognitive dissonance and can’t come to terms that they are harvested for profit. A prisoner doesn’t complain when he can’t see the bars but when you have comforts and luxuries, why change the system? To those people the coming events in years to come will shake them to their core.
I’ve enjoyed messaging you as well, apologies for the late reply I’ve been busy with work and research. It’s good to talk over ideas with different people. Any favorite quotes of yours?
Aside from the Churchill quote above, here are some favorites:
The more numerous the laws, the more corrupt the government. – Tacitus
The more laws, the less justice. – Cicero
A man who is used to acting in one way never changes; he must come to ruin when the times, in changing, no longer are in harmony with his ways. – Niccolo Machiavelli
A government big enough to give you everything you want, is strong enough to take everything you have. – Thomas Jefferson
Where the people fear the government, you have tyranny. Where the government fears the people you have Liberty. – Thomas Jefferson
They who can give of essential Liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither Liberty nor safety. – Benjamin Franklin
The tree of Liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. – Thomas Jefferson
It is easier to fool people than to convince them that they have been fooled. – Mark Twain
Some good quotes which are very prescient. Here’s a few of my favs:
“If you want to find the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency and vibration.” – Nikola Tesla
“What we have called matter is energy, whose vibration has been so lowered as to be perceptible to the senses. There is no matter.” – Albert Einstein
If ‘War is an extension of Politics by other means’ then, Politics is an extension of Economics by other means and further, Economics is an extension of Servitude by other means. We go to war today so we create servitude in others tomorrow. Politics, Economics, Warfare, Servitude; they’re all manifestations of the same fundamental flaw in the Human Psyche, that Control is a cure for Fear.
TSP/
Carl von Clausewitz
“When you have made evil the means of survival, do not expect men to remain good. Do not expect them to stay moral and lose their lives for the purpose of becoming the fodder of the immoral. Do not expect them to produce, when production is punished and looting rewarded.” Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand
“In the beginning of a change the patriot is a scarce man, and brave, and hated and scorned. When his cause succeeds, the timid join him, for then it costs nothing to be a patriot.” – Mark Twain
There is nothing wrong with “fixing” a national currency, in which all goods and services across a nation can efficiently be priced, to a given amount of a physical commodity, preferably an historical monetary metal for all the good reasons they became money in the first place. Even though gold and silver have high value to weight & volume ratios, it is still expensive to lug them around, particularly for larger transactions. The problem always comes from acts of corruption where the custodians of the system create more currency receipts than there is bullion backing them in the national reserves at the fixed rate. It is not, therefore, a sound monetary system’s structure per se, but the policing of the custodians, thus discouraging corruption and punishing transgression. To say that monetary law is impossible to uphold is by extension to say that all rule of law is impossible to uphold, which is manifestly not true. The question then is only how to watch the custodians, and how to watch the watchers.
Good or evil are only brought to reality by behavior. Knowledge and ideas are only abstract concepts, not behaviors. If one has evil, destructive ideas, but only ever acts in good, constructive ways, should one be considered good or evil? What use is knowledge if all or most is based on falsehood? Knowledge, if true, can only ever be a tool used to help accomplish some purpose, for good or evil. False knowledge will only ever hinder an intended purpose. Ignorance then, being just a deficit of knowledge, is not the source of either good or evil, but a hindrance to accomplishing a purpose. I will allow that the ignorant, as well as the holders of false knowledge, might be more prone to behaving in mistaken or evil ways, but it is not an absolute that they must as implied by Socrates’ quote. Both the knowledgeable and the ignorant are capable of choosing to act in helpful or hurtful ways.
I don’t mean to belabor the point, but we have engaged in a discussion about philosophy with practical application. What difference does knowing what the root and stem of evil are if nothing is ever done about it? On the other hand if one comes to the wrong conclusion about what the root and stem are, whatever actions are taken are not likely to be effective. So, say one is convinced that ignorance is the root of the problem of evil, and one therefore embarks upon a massive campaign of education and freedom of information. After some time, one is likely to find that while the knowledge base of the society as a whole has improved, there will still be a percentage of people who choose to act in evil ways because they see some benefit to themselves at others’ expense by doing so, and they might even be more efficient at it for their improved knowledge. Also, it is not possible for all people to know all things, so we are always going to be dealing with relative degrees of knowledge and ignorance. Not that I am anti-knowledge, but I think society would be better served discovering and addressing the motive for evil behavior.
The more I spin this around in my head the more I am left with loose threads. From one perspective I see that public ignorance keeps the light of justice from shining on evil deeds. From another I see that even the knowledgeable commit evil acts and/or turn a blind eye to them if they believe it in their interests to do so. I’m going to ponder a bit more, and post despite incompleteness. Of course, time allowing, further discourse enjoyed and appreciated.
Best regards,
Der Kratz
Within the RBD there should be no custodians, money and bills should be able to circulate and be hoarded by the people with no-one truly knowing how much gold there is. I’d like to think if that was coupled with a reintroduction of common law it would promote organic economic cooperation.
I understand your struggling with this philosophical quote, as conversing with yourself it is not as clear cut as I first thought. There are studies and articles on t’internet which show how the corporate environment is dominated by psychopaths and sociopaths. The ruthless environment leads to more wolves joining its ranks and promoting its ilk. I think the problem is rooted in flawed monetary, legal and political systems which promote this callous behaviour. Change the underpinnings of our current system and maybe we can leave a world to our children and grandchildren which is better than what we inherited. Change does not come without bloodshed and tears.
There is neither good nor bad, but thinking makes it so – Hamlet
There are custodians of the Real Bills Doctrine, they are the issuers of the real bills. Please correct me if I am wrong. My understanding of real bills is that they are a short term form of futures currency. All manufacturers or growers of real goods have a cash flow problem. Their expenses for materials, energy, and labor are present and ongoing to conduct operations, but their revenue lies in the future when finished goods are brought to market, and they receive payment for them. Ideally a business would keep a reserve of operating capital in specie to cover expenses, but the real world is not often ideal. RB’s allow such producers to spend forward the value of their produce to anyone who will accept them as currency. This reduces an economy’s dependence on inflationary fractional reserve borrowing from banks with an associated interest price tag. Right there one can see why RBs were eliminated from the system by TPTB, but I digress.
I can see several risks inherent to RB’s compared to specie. First, fraud – an issuer might knowingly issue more RBs than he could ever produce equivalent value in real goods. Second, unforeseen circumstance, fire, flood, theft – whatever – might prevent bringing goods to market despite all good faith effort by the producer. Third, market forces, even over a relatively short 90 day duration of the RB, could significantly reduce the market value of the goods by the time they are brought to market. Insurance and futures contracts might mitigate the second and third, but the possibility of the first will always be present. Therefore, specie, being allodial with intrinsic scarcity, durability, and fungibility, must always be valued at a premium over real bills. So it follows that upon redemption RBs must offer an advantage in return for accepting them in trade at sound currency unit face value. Otherwise various goods would have to be priced differently in terms of specie, or RBs from producers A, B, C, etc., and the economy in question would loose the efficiency of having a single unit of account. No, let a speculative side market sort out the relative future value of real bills in circulation, and let face value stand for everyday transactions.
For a micro-economic example, assume a small town with a widget factory owned by Mr. Producer employing, say, 100 people out of 1000 population, and a general store owned by Mr. Merchant. Producer and Merchant have known each other for years and there is a certain amount of trust between them. Producer has run short of specie operating capital, and Merchant recognizes the value of the factory’s employees to his business, but lacks sufficient capital himself for an outright loan to Producer. Merchant agrees to accept Producer’s RBs at face value par in exchange for staples and groceries at the store. This allows Producer to pay his employees wages, at least in part, in RBs, thus easing his specie shortage. Upon redemption, Merchant must be afforded some compensation in the form of interest (a share of profits) for assuming part of Producer’s risk. All’s well as the months and years roll by, and people get used to the system. Producer’s employee’s could even spend their RBs into general town circulation with anyone else who would accept them planning on conducting business with Merchant.
Now, say there is a serious fire at the factory halting production. A panic might ensue where people are concerned their RBs will be worthless. The shrewd Mr. Speculator believing Producer has the sand to eventually overcome this obstacle and possessing specie, might offer the panicked 10% of the RB’s face value in specie. Believing something is better than nothing, large numbers of townsfolk, maybe even Merchant, take Speculator’s offer. Producer, desirous of maintaining reputation, now comes to terms with Speculator and any other remaining holders to extend redemption in return for additional interest compensation. If Producer has adequate insurance, he will eventually be made more or less whole, but without a policy, his profit margin is his insurance. He may be in for for some less than prosperous times as he works off his specie shortage, and the cut into profits from the fire, but that is part of the risk of being a business owner. His return to prosperity will come from improving widget production efficiency, and increasing their marketability and sales.
All this without Mr. Fiat Banker and his inflationary fractional reserve bank credit generated out of thin air. RBs might be somewhat inflationary compared to a specie only system, but due to their short duration, and real goods backing the effect would be mild. There is a place for Mr. Sound Banker who offers secure storage for the town’s specie, and specializes in loan risk assessment, but that’s another story.
Have I missed anything, or am I wrong in my understanding of RBD? I am very interested in how they would work with concrete examples as well as just theory. Prof. Fekete sometimes loses me. I’m still working on Socrates, but I’m pretty sure we’re off track with the knowledge or ignorance deal. The root of evil is immorality – the basis for evil decision making, the stem is initiation of force – bringing evil from thought into physical reality. Setting aside Hamlet, your Ayn Rand quote reminded me that there is an objective and logical means to discern true moral values quite apart from pointing to the sky and saying “Because He says so.”
Best regards,
Der Kratz
RBs are self extinguishing credit, never exceeding 91 days and they are timed to the seasons. If I take a simple example of a producer of goods that are in demand by the public and a purveyor of said goods. Both parties would endorse the bill with payment expected in 91 days of 10 Troy oz of gold. Shorter term bills can be used, such as 30 days as was the case in India.
If the producer has wages to pay or needs a new piece of machinery in the interim, the producer can take the bill to a discount or clearing house and sell the bill. They will sell it at a discount and will then receive X gold oz coins. The discount would be determined by types of products and risk. The clearing house could then keep the bill or sell it at a profit to a customer. The bill is endorsed and then passed on.
I agree that fraud could undermine this system but this is an old money system, now imagine these bills are registered on a trading system and can be scanned with a barcode or QR code. There would have to be certain safeguards built into the system to ensure fraudsters cannot game the system and I assume that if you are endorsing fraudulent bills you could do it once and then you get barred from the trading system, maybe a deposit will be required but I’m unsure on this. In regard to a fire, the company should have insurance and traders who interacted with them may need to see insurance docs before they endorse a bill.
Completely agree that we are well off track with Socrates quote but discussing it with you has meant that the quote isn’t as prescient as I first thought. Immorality and a lack of empathy for the fellow man is the root of all evil, I’m very glad we discussed this. With what I explained in regard to RBD, does it make more sense? Happy to discuss this further.
Who is providing the liquidity to the clearing house to purchase the RBs from the producers at the discount rate? Isn’t the clearing house essentially a venture capital firm with a claim on future goods value, rather than a producing company’s ownership or profit? How is the discount rate determined if not by a market? I can understand an auction market developing with speculative investors bidding for endorsed bills from the clearing house, but isn’t that a little cart before the horse in terms of fair discount rate? How can the speculator sell his RBs if desirous to do so before expiration and redemption – a side market to other speculators? If I understand you correctly, Producer and Merchant both endorse the RB before it is sold to the clearing house for specie at discount. That means the goods’ price to Producer must be fixed at a discount to current market value as the Merchant is assuming the risk of the goods’ market price decline before he can sell them on. RBs are not self extinguishing, they must be redeemed, else how is the purchase price plus discount recouped? If RBs are just a future goods asset, not meant to circulate, and redemption is in specie at face value after the sale of the goods backing them, aren’t they really just sort of an inverse short term bond where the discount is the interest? How is RBD more efficient or advantageous to an economy than a producer securing a sound money loan/bond issue at interest?
Even with insurance, claims investigations and settlement can occur after the 91 day expiration/redemption due date. What if a claim is justifiably denied, without fraud by either party, or lengthy litigation is involved? Do the bills themselves require insurance, thus adding premium cost against the value of the goods, or does the clearing house accept that risk as part of the discount? If so, the clearing house is not just source of capital, but insurer, unless they have remedy to seize producer assets in the event of RB default. This clearing house entity is growing more and more powerful starting with arbitrary fixing of discounts. Is that wise, or should risk, valuation discovery, and capital sourcing be more broadly based with the clearing house merely functioning as an RB market superintendent on a fee basis?
I understand RBD has been used successfully in the past. I think maybe I have confused some producer scrip concepts into RBD with the idea of circulating real bills used as redemption face value currency to complement specie. It seems to me there could be some advantage to having currency supply inflation of limited duration and backed by real goods production rather than the whim and control of currency by fractional reserve bankers, or constrained by inherently very limited new mine bullion/specie production. If real goods production must be curtailed because lower demand drops a good’s price below acceptable profit margin, then so must the supply of new RB/scrip decrease (deflation.) This would increase the value of specie for production investment when supply is consumed, and demand returns. If demand doesn’t return, then that good’s production must cease in any event. The cycle would be good specific rather than across the board as with national currency supply inflation, be more quickly identified thus limiting malinvestment, and also shortening the cycle of correction back to productive growth.
Re: Socrates, I think we might be dealing with a translation problem. Was the original Greek term translated as “ignorance” an idiom that his peers would have clearly recognized as meaning immorality? Surely a mind such as Socrates’ knew the difference between ignorance of 2+2=4 vs ignorance of “stealing + murder = bad.”
Best regards,
Der Kratz
Have a read of this from Sandeep Jaitley in regard to how a RBD system would develop https://syesworldview.wordpress.com/2014/02/24/coordination-of-the-natural-social-interaction/ it helps explains the difference between bonds, bills, chits as well as the role of merchant banks and clearing houses. It does assume that gold is allowed to circulate (and hoarded if required) and mints would have to be opened to the public in order for this to happen.
Please bare in mind there wouldn’t just be one clearing house, it would a competitive and free market as well as the total bill could be split into several bills. This could allow the producer to only discount part of the total bill thus reducing loss from discounting. Bills represent a future value in gold, in the correct environment which allows producers/warehouses/purveyors to deal with short term cash flow issues or allow them to invest in alternative sources of income. Bills extinguish upon date of payment and there is nothing stopping a producer from keeping the bills until they are due. Bills out of date/over the terms should not be accepted for discounting or payment, this in essence, is fraud as payment should’ve been made and the bill extinguished.
As I’ve only read the quote in English it could of been lost in translation, ignorance of other mens suffering, pain, hunger et al. Could ignorance translate as immorality or pyscopathic tendencies towards others? It fits the bill but it’s subtle in its description. Does ignorance open the door or lead to immoral behaviour? Put a good man in a corrupt system and the system wins.
lurpack1, I recently found a “from the archives” article on 24hr gold’s website by Prof Antal Fekete which reminded my of our conversation back in February (!, time flies) on the the subject of the Real Bills Doctrine. Being familiar with the New Austrian School, perhaps you already know Prof. Fekete’s site, but I’ll link the site just the same. There are more articles in the “popular economics,” and ” scholarly economics” sections but particularly pertinent for real world examples of how RBD works I’m finding the linked Monetary Economics 101 lecture series fascinating, and thought you might as well. I am more and more convinced that RBD offers tremendous potential to compliment a reintroduction of sound money by circulating precious metal specie – unfortunately, of course, only after our fiat currency system runs completely aground as the fiat controlling financial powers that be have a lock on the politicians and systems.
Der Kratz,good to hear from you.I hope you are keeping well!I am a firm believer that RBD/GBD/SBD is the way forward. I see it as a system that enhances trade and connections, not one which seeks to restrict in a parasitic manner.
I do not agree with you that it will take the end of the system to bring about change. The end of the current paradigm will not end over night, it will be a long drawn out affair. Do you think that those who have subverted our current system will not be willing to kick the can for as long as possible?
I think that systems will be brought in along side our current one,such as crypto (infant currency not money), how they fair I do not know but I’ve drawn my line in the sand.
Really enjoyed Van Coppenolles TABCR, it was eye opening and introduced me to new concepts I had not got from Fekete research.Very much a recommended read. Have you read Carl Menger and the Evolution of Payments Systems: From Barter to Electronic Money? The 2nd essay which ‘Geld’ is derived from?
Yes, doing well, thank you, just busy – which I consider a good thing, and I wish all the best for you and yours. I have not, but do intend to study Menger, and will add your recommendation to my book wish list. Until I found the New Austrian School, my “mentors” had been the more accessible Rothbard, Hayek, and von Mises. For now I am contentedly busy with Fekete’s modern extrapolations of Menger’s and Smith’s work.
Regarding real financial, monetary and economic change, I am afraid I must play the role of pessimistic realist. I surmise that you have been investigating the rabbit warrens long enough to realize the rabbits get nastier and more vicious the further down into the shadows one travels. I look to history as my guide for how massive monetary and economic fraud(s) on the national or international scale tend to unwind. Systemic collapse is never pretty, voluntary, or equitably carried out. When the laws of real economics eventually reassert themselves, the deepest rabbits escape unscathed with their string pulling machinations concealed by as many cave-ins as necessary to bury the trail while suitable patsies are found to take the fall publicly. The common people, uneducated in real economics (intentionally so by govt run education,) often over-patriotic in terms of national currency, and disinclined to spend the time to understand finance, even as to the true nature of money itself, thus fall prey to the chicanery of the bankers and their henchmen, the politicians and media propagandists. Observe the dominance of the manufacturers of fiat currency in overt political campaign finance, and covert kickbacks taking many forms, with the implied advantage of influence in the halls of government. Note the crony corporatist bribes to both affect and effect policy, regulation, legislation, and to win the largess of debt backed government spending contracts regardless of political party banner and or insipid liberal or conservative labels of the ones in nominal power. Observe “reforms” ever reformulated into at best ineffective window dressing, and more often into new means for ever greater advantages accrued to the pullers of strings. No, “they” do not let go of power voluntarily, but conversely, there simply are no means to substantial reform within a thoroughly corrupt political system – it is bought and paid for whoever wins. Even the occasional great leader who slips through, bent on serious reform and anti-corruption efforts, will end up the way of John F Kennedy. Lesser mortals who don’t play ball, or just know too much, have unexpected heart attacks, auto/plane accidents, or suicides. The corruption runs deep and wide, so much so that most do not even recognize it as corruption, just the way things get done, and the only thing that ever brings it to heel is total collapse born of the un-sustainability inherent to all fraud.
I do sincerely wish it were otherwise. I do wish the people would wake up to that which is being done to their lives and their wealth, and find the means to organize and support real reform at the ballot box. Surely you’ve noticed the difficulty in conveying certain basic monetary truths to even close friends and family. I have come to understand this strange resistance to truth to be their own defense mechanism that protects their real or perceived investiture in the status quo. Even casual discussion of these matters with the asleep often seems to evoke some primal fears of loss and of change down deep in the lizard brain. I recall my own denial during awakening, and then amazement at my prior blindness once seriously and thoroughly researched truth could no longer be denied. Another consideration is that the currency fraud has gone on so long, that there truly is no way to dismantle it without the serious economic pain of collapse, and there is also the concerning historic reality that an economic collapse has often brought about a reactionary political tyranny. I do realize that paradigm shifts do not require a population majority, only an influential core of about 10% to start the momentum of substantial change, but even then, the cracks of collapse must already be well advanced for any such movement to gain purchase against the great edifice that is “the system.”
Glad to hear you are keeping well and busy. I recommend Principles of Economics as a must read and in regard to the book I mentioned I took a photocopy of it as it was quite an expensive book. I’ll see if I can scan it and email it over to you next week. Are you contemplating going to London for the 2 day seminar?
I appreciate you being the pessimistic realist, I myself was quite pessimistic but have turned that pessimism into optimism while still being a realist. I have gone deep into the rabbit warren, systemic collapse is never pretty for normal folk, war, death, pestilence and destruction is what is waiting for most. My hope comes from the fact that we are so interconnected and people have a choice. Consent or not. A choice between fear and love. Change will be driven by individuals who do not fear putting their head above the parapet. Accepting that they may ‘commit suicide’, die in accident or contract aggressive cancer but embracing love, love for the common man and our world is what will drive us forward, fear does nothing for moving forward. When I woke up it rocked me to my very core, everything I was taught and told was a lie, it really upset me because it does not have to be this way. TPTB have built their dominance on pillars, remove a pillar can destabilise what they have built. Monetary, legal, political, educational and media are pillars that can be rocked, removed and replaced. How far on we are into the collapse, I’m unsure but the economic system is collapsing just in slow motion.
Completely agree that when conversing or disseminating with friends, family and colleagues leads to a mixture of reactions. Some people are deaf and will try to counter my arguments with illogical propaganda, some when speaking you can see in their eyes the cogs turn but then switch off, some accept. I agree that a fair few people I converse with invoke a limbic response of freeze, flight or fight but what I speak about does challenge their world view and the reality they have created for themselves. People aren’t stupid but the majority are caught in this collectivist facebook mentality, completely self absorbed and narcissistic. The majority of people will wake up when they can’t get cash from the bank, but by this time it maybe too late for a lot of them. I was accused of being a communist by a family member, this made me laugh. When speaking to people I try to use humour to make my point. The task seems insurmountable, no point in depressing people but providing them with little tit bits of information to counter the propaganda helps to stoke the fire within.
SyesWideShut 
Nice Sagan quote. I can never get enough of the truth. It’s got a certain ring to it. LoL. Here’s a favorite of mine which was my first post last week. Subbed you from an Austrian Econ search.
“The truth is incontrovertible. Malice may attack it, ignorance may deride it, but in the end, it shall be revealed.” – Winston Churchill
I agree, regardless of how much it makes you question your current paradigm, the truth will set you free but first it will piss you off (Gloria Steinem).
I’m working through Fekete, Jaitley, Menger and Smith, what about yourself? A truth from Socrates which is as revelant today than it was when he first said this ‘Ignorance is the root and stem of all evil’
I’m also a Fekete fan. I have Van Coppenolle’s, “Austrian Business Cycle Revisited” primer right here. I’m intrigued at the possibility of real bills as short term circulating currency generated by real productive enterprise. Why not a crypto-currency with real bill backing to complement a return of bi-metallic system coinage? I have an idea for a dollar reset to 10g Ag with 1g Cu for circulation resiliency (about the size of an old 50 cent piece.) Legal tender gold coins could be minted by gram weight, no $ face value, and allow Au price to float on a real delivery futures market to replace comex BS. Wanna short 200 tonnes in one day? Put up the physical m-fers!
Other sources of inspriration; Ayn Rand, Mises, Hayek, Rothbard, Alisdair Macleod, Peter Schiff, Jim Rickards, James Turk, Eric Sprott. I am sort of an eclectic autodidact. I like a mix from real world and academic sources as long as they’re not frickin’ Marxists or Keynesians.
Not so sure that’s Socrates’ best moment. Most evil people know exactly what they’re doing, they just don’t give a damn. Few are ignoramuses, at least the leaders, else their schemes don’t last long. The players of zero-sum games, fraud, force initiation, terror, tyranny are more shortsighted than ignorant. I guess they think what goes around will never come around, and looking at the sorry record of human history perhaps they’re right more often than not. I don’t really blame the psychopaths, they are what they are; incapable of conscience and remorse. It is the greater number of ordinary people of ambition who knowingly and willingly scheme or play along that are the real problem of evil and corruption in any society. Okay, end of rant.
Best regards,
Der Kratz
I’ve added ‘Austrian Business Cycle Revisited’ to my list and will get it on payday, thanks for that. I’m also very interested in the RBD and tri-metallism, its a beautiful natural system but values of Au, Ag and Cu have to be allowed to freely float otherwise it would eventually fail. I thought about an asset backed crypto currency but real bills if incorporated into a modern financial payment system using barcode/QR codes would, in my opinion, do the job. Need to do more research and give more thought on transferring of money long distances in regard to crypto and RBD.
I also am an eclectic autodidact and look for articles and subjects which interest me, challenge me and give me food for thought. Whatever this reality is, knowledge and understanding are important to me. Anything which returns power to people and away from centralised beurocracy I enjoy reading.
For me the quote speaks not only to the socio/physcopaths who start the evil but the people who enable and allow it to happen, mainly born through ignorance, greed or short term thinking. Whatever makes them do it, I would not like to have that on my conscience. I’d prefer to stand up for something which I believe in than sit down for something that I do not. Nice rant btw.
All the best
SWS
I think what most free market money purists fail to realize is that there is a tremendous efficiency advantage in having a standardized national currency in which everything can be priced. The problem is how to prevent the custodians of that system from corruption. Setting the dollar currency to 10g Ag (the 1g Cu value fairly negligible – more for circulation resiliency and discouraging coin melting) would not mean silver couldn’t “float.” Silver would still have industrial uses, and need a delivery futures market. The float comes from having a complimentary legal tender gold futures and specie system not based on face value but on weight and purity as priced in the new Ag dollar. The problem with our old bi-metallic system was that both Au and Ag were fixed, so inevitable fluctuations in supply led to an advantageous hoarding preference of one or the other. Having both historic money metals legal tender, but only “fixing” one in terms of the national currency would allow market forces to discern ratio values, and give people choice as to how to store their earned purchasing power value. Competing free market currencies, whether real bills, or even bank notes, would need to offer some competitive advantage over the national currencies to compensate for the risk that they would not be as readily accepted at Ag$ face (or current Au exchange) value by other parties. Obviously, we need an end to the current 100+ year era of prima facie monetary corruption before we can return to a rule of law society that would establish and defend any sound money system. Humans are capable of behaving within rule of law, we just seem to have trouble maintaining it over time.
I thought for a moment about whether Socrates was referring to ignorance of the people allowing the schemes of evil to prevail, but reject that because it is essentially blaming the victim. Ignorance is ignorance. What can one do about something one has no knowledge or proof of? Maybe he is extolling the duty of educators and press to inform the ignorant, but that supposes that nothing can ever be or remain secret, which is just not reality. Secrets may be difficult to keep, but they manifestly can be kept, or without proof, at least relegated to the realm of speculative conspiracy theory. So, we come back to not only those who conceive and lead, but those who play along or follow evil schemes. Their evil behavior defines them, knowingly or unknowingly, as evil. Therefore evil behavior, not ignorance or lack thereof, is the operative root and stem. Now we are left with an unsatisfying self referential definition: Evil behavior is the root and stem of all evil. This begs, what is evil behavior? The best I’ve been able to discern and reduce, evil behavior is the initiation of force. Not force itself as force must be allowed as a necessary good to repel or destroy unyielding evil force as evidenced by its’ initiation. Someone really needs to coin a single catchy word for “initiation of force.”
I’m just now wondering, where I have always been baffled, if people’s resistance to awakening to the rampant corruption of the current economic and political system is that they are perhaps subconsciously aware that they are participating in an evil system, even if out of their control, but nevertheless therefore evil? Do they subliminally recognize that if they remain ignorant they have a shot at maintaining innocence, at least in their own conscience, if not reality? Am I evil to the degree I still participate in the force initiated status quo? Maybe after all, resistance to knowledge is the root, and initiation of force is the stem, or vice versa? It’s a bit of a chicken or egg deal when you boil it down. You still get chicken and egg evil incarnate soup.
Thank you for your replies. I don’t think I would have thought this through without them.
Best regards,
Der Kratz
I fully agree with your sentiments on free floating bi/tri-metallic currency, every time you fix a currency or PM, it fails. I think our system of law is overly complicated and flawed. Our current statute system is based on the law of the sea. Common Law is the law of the land and the one true law, why would you enforce the law of the sea on land?
I certainly see your point that evil is a part of the root but without ignorance, whether that be knowing or unknowing, that seed cannot grow and infest. If all people were well informed and educated, checks and balances were kept and those in power acted on behalf of all not a few, then evil cannot grow.
The majority of people, in my opinion, suffer from cognitive dissonance and can’t come to terms that they are harvested for profit. A prisoner doesn’t complain when he can’t see the bars but when you have comforts and luxuries, why change the system? To those people the coming events in years to come will shake them to their core.
I’ve enjoyed messaging you as well, apologies for the late reply I’ve been busy with work and research. It’s good to talk over ideas with different people. Any favorite quotes of yours?
Aside from the Churchill quote above, here are some favorites:
The more numerous the laws, the more corrupt the government. – Tacitus
The more laws, the less justice. – Cicero
A man who is used to acting in one way never changes; he must come to ruin when the times, in changing, no longer are in harmony with his ways. – Niccolo Machiavelli
A government big enough to give you everything you want, is strong enough to take everything you have. – Thomas Jefferson
Where the people fear the government, you have tyranny. Where the government fears the people you have Liberty. – Thomas Jefferson
They who can give of essential Liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither Liberty nor safety. – Benjamin Franklin
The tree of Liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. – Thomas Jefferson
It is easier to fool people than to convince them that they have been fooled. – Mark Twain
Some good quotes which are very prescient. Here’s a few of my favs:
“If you want to find the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency and vibration.” – Nikola Tesla
“What we have called matter is energy, whose vibration has been so lowered as to be perceptible to the senses. There is no matter.” – Albert Einstein
If ‘War is an extension of Politics by other means’ then, Politics is an extension of Economics by other means and further, Economics is an extension of Servitude by other means. We go to war today so we create servitude in others tomorrow. Politics, Economics, Warfare, Servitude; they’re all manifestations of the same fundamental flaw in the Human Psyche, that Control is a cure for Fear.
TSP/
Carl von Clausewitz
“When you have made evil the means of survival, do not expect men to remain good. Do not expect them to stay moral and lose their lives for the purpose of becoming the fodder of the immoral. Do not expect them to produce, when production is punished and looting rewarded.” Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand
“In the beginning of a change the patriot is a scarce man, and brave, and hated and scorned. When his cause succeeds, the timid join him, for then it costs nothing to be a patriot.” – Mark Twain
There is nothing wrong with “fixing” a national currency, in which all goods and services across a nation can efficiently be priced, to a given amount of a physical commodity, preferably an historical monetary metal for all the good reasons they became money in the first place. Even though gold and silver have high value to weight & volume ratios, it is still expensive to lug them around, particularly for larger transactions. The problem always comes from acts of corruption where the custodians of the system create more currency receipts than there is bullion backing them in the national reserves at the fixed rate. It is not, therefore, a sound monetary system’s structure per se, but the policing of the custodians, thus discouraging corruption and punishing transgression. To say that monetary law is impossible to uphold is by extension to say that all rule of law is impossible to uphold, which is manifestly not true. The question then is only how to watch the custodians, and how to watch the watchers.
Good or evil are only brought to reality by behavior. Knowledge and ideas are only abstract concepts, not behaviors. If one has evil, destructive ideas, but only ever acts in good, constructive ways, should one be considered good or evil? What use is knowledge if all or most is based on falsehood? Knowledge, if true, can only ever be a tool used to help accomplish some purpose, for good or evil. False knowledge will only ever hinder an intended purpose. Ignorance then, being just a deficit of knowledge, is not the source of either good or evil, but a hindrance to accomplishing a purpose. I will allow that the ignorant, as well as the holders of false knowledge, might be more prone to behaving in mistaken or evil ways, but it is not an absolute that they must as implied by Socrates’ quote. Both the knowledgeable and the ignorant are capable of choosing to act in helpful or hurtful ways.
I don’t mean to belabor the point, but we have engaged in a discussion about philosophy with practical application. What difference does knowing what the root and stem of evil are if nothing is ever done about it? On the other hand if one comes to the wrong conclusion about what the root and stem are, whatever actions are taken are not likely to be effective. So, say one is convinced that ignorance is the root of the problem of evil, and one therefore embarks upon a massive campaign of education and freedom of information. After some time, one is likely to find that while the knowledge base of the society as a whole has improved, there will still be a percentage of people who choose to act in evil ways because they see some benefit to themselves at others’ expense by doing so, and they might even be more efficient at it for their improved knowledge. Also, it is not possible for all people to know all things, so we are always going to be dealing with relative degrees of knowledge and ignorance. Not that I am anti-knowledge, but I think society would be better served discovering and addressing the motive for evil behavior.
The more I spin this around in my head the more I am left with loose threads. From one perspective I see that public ignorance keeps the light of justice from shining on evil deeds. From another I see that even the knowledgeable commit evil acts and/or turn a blind eye to them if they believe it in their interests to do so. I’m going to ponder a bit more, and post despite incompleteness. Of course, time allowing, further discourse enjoyed and appreciated.
Best regards,
Der Kratz
Within the RBD there should be no custodians, money and bills should be able to circulate and be hoarded by the people with no-one truly knowing how much gold there is. I’d like to think if that was coupled with a reintroduction of common law it would promote organic economic cooperation.
I understand your struggling with this philosophical quote, as conversing with yourself it is not as clear cut as I first thought. There are studies and articles on t’internet which show how the corporate environment is dominated by psychopaths and sociopaths. The ruthless environment leads to more wolves joining its ranks and promoting its ilk. I think the problem is rooted in flawed monetary, legal and political systems which promote this callous behaviour. Change the underpinnings of our current system and maybe we can leave a world to our children and grandchildren which is better than what we inherited. Change does not come without bloodshed and tears.
There is neither good nor bad, but thinking makes it so – Hamlet
There are custodians of the Real Bills Doctrine, they are the issuers of the real bills. Please correct me if I am wrong. My understanding of real bills is that they are a short term form of futures currency. All manufacturers or growers of real goods have a cash flow problem. Their expenses for materials, energy, and labor are present and ongoing to conduct operations, but their revenue lies in the future when finished goods are brought to market, and they receive payment for them. Ideally a business would keep a reserve of operating capital in specie to cover expenses, but the real world is not often ideal. RB’s allow such producers to spend forward the value of their produce to anyone who will accept them as currency. This reduces an economy’s dependence on inflationary fractional reserve borrowing from banks with an associated interest price tag. Right there one can see why RBs were eliminated from the system by TPTB, but I digress.
I can see several risks inherent to RB’s compared to specie. First, fraud – an issuer might knowingly issue more RBs than he could ever produce equivalent value in real goods. Second, unforeseen circumstance, fire, flood, theft – whatever – might prevent bringing goods to market despite all good faith effort by the producer. Third, market forces, even over a relatively short 90 day duration of the RB, could significantly reduce the market value of the goods by the time they are brought to market. Insurance and futures contracts might mitigate the second and third, but the possibility of the first will always be present. Therefore, specie, being allodial with intrinsic scarcity, durability, and fungibility, must always be valued at a premium over real bills. So it follows that upon redemption RBs must offer an advantage in return for accepting them in trade at sound currency unit face value. Otherwise various goods would have to be priced differently in terms of specie, or RBs from producers A, B, C, etc., and the economy in question would loose the efficiency of having a single unit of account. No, let a speculative side market sort out the relative future value of real bills in circulation, and let face value stand for everyday transactions.
For a micro-economic example, assume a small town with a widget factory owned by Mr. Producer employing, say, 100 people out of 1000 population, and a general store owned by Mr. Merchant. Producer and Merchant have known each other for years and there is a certain amount of trust between them. Producer has run short of specie operating capital, and Merchant recognizes the value of the factory’s employees to his business, but lacks sufficient capital himself for an outright loan to Producer. Merchant agrees to accept Producer’s RBs at face value par in exchange for staples and groceries at the store. This allows Producer to pay his employees wages, at least in part, in RBs, thus easing his specie shortage. Upon redemption, Merchant must be afforded some compensation in the form of interest (a share of profits) for assuming part of Producer’s risk. All’s well as the months and years roll by, and people get used to the system. Producer’s employee’s could even spend their RBs into general town circulation with anyone else who would accept them planning on conducting business with Merchant.
Now, say there is a serious fire at the factory halting production. A panic might ensue where people are concerned their RBs will be worthless. The shrewd Mr. Speculator believing Producer has the sand to eventually overcome this obstacle and possessing specie, might offer the panicked 10% of the RB’s face value in specie. Believing something is better than nothing, large numbers of townsfolk, maybe even Merchant, take Speculator’s offer. Producer, desirous of maintaining reputation, now comes to terms with Speculator and any other remaining holders to extend redemption in return for additional interest compensation. If Producer has adequate insurance, he will eventually be made more or less whole, but without a policy, his profit margin is his insurance. He may be in for for some less than prosperous times as he works off his specie shortage, and the cut into profits from the fire, but that is part of the risk of being a business owner. His return to prosperity will come from improving widget production efficiency, and increasing their marketability and sales.
All this without Mr. Fiat Banker and his inflationary fractional reserve bank credit generated out of thin air. RBs might be somewhat inflationary compared to a specie only system, but due to their short duration, and real goods backing the effect would be mild. There is a place for Mr. Sound Banker who offers secure storage for the town’s specie, and specializes in loan risk assessment, but that’s another story.
Have I missed anything, or am I wrong in my understanding of RBD? I am very interested in how they would work with concrete examples as well as just theory. Prof. Fekete sometimes loses me. I’m still working on Socrates, but I’m pretty sure we’re off track with the knowledge or ignorance deal. The root of evil is immorality – the basis for evil decision making, the stem is initiation of force – bringing evil from thought into physical reality. Setting aside Hamlet, your Ayn Rand quote reminded me that there is an objective and logical means to discern true moral values quite apart from pointing to the sky and saying “Because He says so.”
Best regards,
Der Kratz
RBs are self extinguishing credit, never exceeding 91 days and they are timed to the seasons. If I take a simple example of a producer of goods that are in demand by the public and a purveyor of said goods. Both parties would endorse the bill with payment expected in 91 days of 10 Troy oz of gold. Shorter term bills can be used, such as 30 days as was the case in India.
If the producer has wages to pay or needs a new piece of machinery in the interim, the producer can take the bill to a discount or clearing house and sell the bill. They will sell it at a discount and will then receive X gold oz coins. The discount would be determined by types of products and risk. The clearing house could then keep the bill or sell it at a profit to a customer. The bill is endorsed and then passed on.
I agree that fraud could undermine this system but this is an old money system, now imagine these bills are registered on a trading system and can be scanned with a barcode or QR code. There would have to be certain safeguards built into the system to ensure fraudsters cannot game the system and I assume that if you are endorsing fraudulent bills you could do it once and then you get barred from the trading system, maybe a deposit will be required but I’m unsure on this. In regard to a fire, the company should have insurance and traders who interacted with them may need to see insurance docs before they endorse a bill.
Completely agree that we are well off track with Socrates quote but discussing it with you has meant that the quote isn’t as prescient as I first thought. Immorality and a lack of empathy for the fellow man is the root of all evil, I’m very glad we discussed this. With what I explained in regard to RBD, does it make more sense? Happy to discuss this further.
Who is providing the liquidity to the clearing house to purchase the RBs from the producers at the discount rate? Isn’t the clearing house essentially a venture capital firm with a claim on future goods value, rather than a producing company’s ownership or profit? How is the discount rate determined if not by a market? I can understand an auction market developing with speculative investors bidding for endorsed bills from the clearing house, but isn’t that a little cart before the horse in terms of fair discount rate? How can the speculator sell his RBs if desirous to do so before expiration and redemption – a side market to other speculators? If I understand you correctly, Producer and Merchant both endorse the RB before it is sold to the clearing house for specie at discount. That means the goods’ price to Producer must be fixed at a discount to current market value as the Merchant is assuming the risk of the goods’ market price decline before he can sell them on. RBs are not self extinguishing, they must be redeemed, else how is the purchase price plus discount recouped? If RBs are just a future goods asset, not meant to circulate, and redemption is in specie at face value after the sale of the goods backing them, aren’t they really just sort of an inverse short term bond where the discount is the interest? How is RBD more efficient or advantageous to an economy than a producer securing a sound money loan/bond issue at interest?
Even with insurance, claims investigations and settlement can occur after the 91 day expiration/redemption due date. What if a claim is justifiably denied, without fraud by either party, or lengthy litigation is involved? Do the bills themselves require insurance, thus adding premium cost against the value of the goods, or does the clearing house accept that risk as part of the discount? If so, the clearing house is not just source of capital, but insurer, unless they have remedy to seize producer assets in the event of RB default. This clearing house entity is growing more and more powerful starting with arbitrary fixing of discounts. Is that wise, or should risk, valuation discovery, and capital sourcing be more broadly based with the clearing house merely functioning as an RB market superintendent on a fee basis?
I understand RBD has been used successfully in the past. I think maybe I have confused some producer scrip concepts into RBD with the idea of circulating real bills used as redemption face value currency to complement specie. It seems to me there could be some advantage to having currency supply inflation of limited duration and backed by real goods production rather than the whim and control of currency by fractional reserve bankers, or constrained by inherently very limited new mine bullion/specie production. If real goods production must be curtailed because lower demand drops a good’s price below acceptable profit margin, then so must the supply of new RB/scrip decrease (deflation.) This would increase the value of specie for production investment when supply is consumed, and demand returns. If demand doesn’t return, then that good’s production must cease in any event. The cycle would be good specific rather than across the board as with national currency supply inflation, be more quickly identified thus limiting malinvestment, and also shortening the cycle of correction back to productive growth.
Re: Socrates, I think we might be dealing with a translation problem. Was the original Greek term translated as “ignorance” an idiom that his peers would have clearly recognized as meaning immorality? Surely a mind such as Socrates’ knew the difference between ignorance of 2+2=4 vs ignorance of “stealing + murder = bad.”
Best regards,
Der Kratz
Have a read of this from Sandeep Jaitley in regard to how a RBD system would develop https://syesworldview.wordpress.com/2014/02/24/coordination-of-the-natural-social-interaction/ it helps explains the difference between bonds, bills, chits as well as the role of merchant banks and clearing houses. It does assume that gold is allowed to circulate (and hoarded if required) and mints would have to be opened to the public in order for this to happen.
Please bare in mind there wouldn’t just be one clearing house, it would a competitive and free market as well as the total bill could be split into several bills. This could allow the producer to only discount part of the total bill thus reducing loss from discounting. Bills represent a future value in gold, in the correct environment which allows producers/warehouses/purveyors to deal with short term cash flow issues or allow them to invest in alternative sources of income. Bills extinguish upon date of payment and there is nothing stopping a producer from keeping the bills until they are due. Bills out of date/over the terms should not be accepted for discounting or payment, this in essence, is fraud as payment should’ve been made and the bill extinguished.
As I’ve only read the quote in English it could of been lost in translation, ignorance of other mens suffering, pain, hunger et al. Could ignorance translate as immorality or pyscopathic tendencies towards others? It fits the bill but it’s subtle in its description. Does ignorance open the door or lead to immoral behaviour? Put a good man in a corrupt system and the system wins.
lurpack1, I recently found a “from the archives” article on 24hr gold’s website by Prof Antal Fekete which reminded my of our conversation back in February (!, time flies) on the the subject of the Real Bills Doctrine. Being familiar with the New Austrian School, perhaps you already know Prof. Fekete’s site, but I’ll link the site just the same. There are more articles in the “popular economics,” and ” scholarly economics” sections but particularly pertinent for real world examples of how RBD works I’m finding the linked Monetary Economics 101 lecture series fascinating, and thought you might as well. I am more and more convinced that RBD offers tremendous potential to compliment a reintroduction of sound money by circulating precious metal specie – unfortunately, of course, only after our fiat currency system runs completely aground as the fiat controlling financial powers that be have a lock on the politicians and systems.
http://professorfekete.com/moneycredit.asp
BTW, have your received and enjoyed Van Copppenolle’s “The Austrian Business Cycle Revisited”?
Best regards,
Der Kratz
Der Kratz,good to hear from you.I hope you are keeping well!I am a firm believer that RBD/GBD/SBD is the way forward. I see it as a system that enhances trade and connections, not one which seeks to restrict in a parasitic manner.
I do not agree with you that it will take the end of the system to bring about change. The end of the current paradigm will not end over night, it will be a long drawn out affair. Do you think that those who have subverted our current system will not be willing to kick the can for as long as possible?
I think that systems will be brought in along side our current one,such as crypto (infant currency not money), how they fair I do not know but I’ve drawn my line in the sand.
Really enjoyed Van Coppenolles TABCR, it was eye opening and introduced me to new concepts I had not got from Fekete research.Very much a recommended read. Have you read Carl Menger and the Evolution of Payments Systems: From Barter to Electronic Money? The 2nd essay which ‘Geld’ is derived from?
Yes, doing well, thank you, just busy – which I consider a good thing, and I wish all the best for you and yours. I have not, but do intend to study Menger, and will add your recommendation to my book wish list. Until I found the New Austrian School, my “mentors” had been the more accessible Rothbard, Hayek, and von Mises. For now I am contentedly busy with Fekete’s modern extrapolations of Menger’s and Smith’s work.
Regarding real financial, monetary and economic change, I am afraid I must play the role of pessimistic realist. I surmise that you have been investigating the rabbit warrens long enough to realize the rabbits get nastier and more vicious the further down into the shadows one travels. I look to history as my guide for how massive monetary and economic fraud(s) on the national or international scale tend to unwind. Systemic collapse is never pretty, voluntary, or equitably carried out. When the laws of real economics eventually reassert themselves, the deepest rabbits escape unscathed with their string pulling machinations concealed by as many cave-ins as necessary to bury the trail while suitable patsies are found to take the fall publicly. The common people, uneducated in real economics (intentionally so by govt run education,) often over-patriotic in terms of national currency, and disinclined to spend the time to understand finance, even as to the true nature of money itself, thus fall prey to the chicanery of the bankers and their henchmen, the politicians and media propagandists. Observe the dominance of the manufacturers of fiat currency in overt political campaign finance, and covert kickbacks taking many forms, with the implied advantage of influence in the halls of government. Note the crony corporatist bribes to both affect and effect policy, regulation, legislation, and to win the largess of debt backed government spending contracts regardless of political party banner and or insipid liberal or conservative labels of the ones in nominal power. Observe “reforms” ever reformulated into at best ineffective window dressing, and more often into new means for ever greater advantages accrued to the pullers of strings. No, “they” do not let go of power voluntarily, but conversely, there simply are no means to substantial reform within a thoroughly corrupt political system – it is bought and paid for whoever wins. Even the occasional great leader who slips through, bent on serious reform and anti-corruption efforts, will end up the way of John F Kennedy. Lesser mortals who don’t play ball, or just know too much, have unexpected heart attacks, auto/plane accidents, or suicides. The corruption runs deep and wide, so much so that most do not even recognize it as corruption, just the way things get done, and the only thing that ever brings it to heel is total collapse born of the un-sustainability inherent to all fraud.
I do sincerely wish it were otherwise. I do wish the people would wake up to that which is being done to their lives and their wealth, and find the means to organize and support real reform at the ballot box. Surely you’ve noticed the difficulty in conveying certain basic monetary truths to even close friends and family. I have come to understand this strange resistance to truth to be their own defense mechanism that protects their real or perceived investiture in the status quo. Even casual discussion of these matters with the asleep often seems to evoke some primal fears of loss and of change down deep in the lizard brain. I recall my own denial during awakening, and then amazement at my prior blindness once seriously and thoroughly researched truth could no longer be denied. Another consideration is that the currency fraud has gone on so long, that there truly is no way to dismantle it without the serious economic pain of collapse, and there is also the concerning historic reality that an economic collapse has often brought about a reactionary political tyranny. I do realize that paradigm shifts do not require a population majority, only an influential core of about 10% to start the momentum of substantial change, but even then, the cracks of collapse must already be well advanced for any such movement to gain purchase against the great edifice that is “the system.”
Best regards,
Der Kratz
Glad to hear you are keeping well and busy. I recommend Principles of Economics as a must read and in regard to the book I mentioned I took a photocopy of it as it was quite an expensive book. I’ll see if I can scan it and email it over to you next week. Are you contemplating going to London for the 2 day seminar?
I appreciate you being the pessimistic realist, I myself was quite pessimistic but have turned that pessimism into optimism while still being a realist. I have gone deep into the rabbit warren, systemic collapse is never pretty for normal folk, war, death, pestilence and destruction is what is waiting for most. My hope comes from the fact that we are so interconnected and people have a choice. Consent or not. A choice between fear and love. Change will be driven by individuals who do not fear putting their head above the parapet. Accepting that they may ‘commit suicide’, die in accident or contract aggressive cancer but embracing love, love for the common man and our world is what will drive us forward, fear does nothing for moving forward. When I woke up it rocked me to my very core, everything I was taught and told was a lie, it really upset me because it does not have to be this way. TPTB have built their dominance on pillars, remove a pillar can destabilise what they have built. Monetary, legal, political, educational and media are pillars that can be rocked, removed and replaced. How far on we are into the collapse, I’m unsure but the economic system is collapsing just in slow motion.
Completely agree that when conversing or disseminating with friends, family and colleagues leads to a mixture of reactions. Some people are deaf and will try to counter my arguments with illogical propaganda, some when speaking you can see in their eyes the cogs turn but then switch off, some accept. I agree that a fair few people I converse with invoke a limbic response of freeze, flight or fight but what I speak about does challenge their world view and the reality they have created for themselves. People aren’t stupid but the majority are caught in this collectivist facebook mentality, completely self absorbed and narcissistic. The majority of people will wake up when they can’t get cash from the bank, but by this time it maybe too late for a lot of them. I was accused of being a communist by a family member, this made me laugh. When speaking to people I try to use humour to make my point. The task seems insurmountable, no point in depressing people but providing them with little tit bits of information to counter the propaganda helps to stoke the fire within.