Recently one of my favorite topics to post about has been the free money system envisioned by Silvio Gesell. The money isn't 'free' like monopoly money, but free as in it it's free to work without the constraint of interest.
There is another way to stimulate a local economy though and that's with a local currency. While local currency has mixed success, in theory a local currency acts as a boost to local businesses. Local currency must be spent in the neighborhood and thus it must remain in the neighborhood. When money stays in a system it can stop some of the problems created by an imbalanced import/export rate.
But perhaps there is another reason for local currency to become more popular, local currency is a hedge against tyranny.
All tyrannical leaders/governments seek to exercise control over the masses economically. Currency is the primary means of exchange in an economy and thus control over the currency lends itself very well to control over the economy and control over the people.
The NSA understands very well that financial data is a great indicator of a person's activities... which is why they monitor financial activity first and foremost in their search for domestic and international terrorists. They need not spy on a person with binoculars when they have a microscope attached to your credit card transactions!
Furthermore, if a political body in a country should wish to exercise economic control on its people, a few key changes in interest rates, money supply, and tax rates are quite effective tools[1].
While a nationalised currency is generally a good thing it also lends itself to tyranny very well.
And so for the health of a country, and the privacy and freedom of it's citizens, parallel currencies to the dollar need to be developed. These currencies will not only protect our freedom but promote our local economy. This will lead to a better more democratic and more prosperous America.
- e.g. drop interest to 0 and kill the upper classes... e.g. raise interest and taxes and kill the middle class [↩]
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Tags: currency, economy, interest, monopoly, Silvio Gesell, tyranny