About 20 years ago I went into the Bank of England in the City to change some damaged notes. I needed good notes for traveling abroad where damaged notes are often refused for exchange in many countries.
After a very rigorous security check in the large entrance area, I entered the banking section. I went up to one of the tellers and asked to change my notes. She at first refused to do so. To my surprise she said it was money laundering! I persisted, pointing out the promise on the notes, and that I needed new notes for exchanging abroad. I think I asked if I could have pounds of silver instead, but I've never found an answer to that question.
The woman was quite obnoxious. She reluctantly changed my few damaged notes for better ones. "Den of thieves", "money mafia", "HM con artists" are the kind of terms that come to mind when I think of the BoE. Their system only works as long as people remain ignorant of their confidence game. They pass off paper promises and debased metal coins as having value, and people believe the scam. However, hyperinflation erodes people's confidence in such "money" as they stampede out of fiat into anything tangible or usable. That's when people need to stack notes and put the central bankers who issued it on top and set fire to it. However, these days only a fraction of "money" is in the form of notes and coins. Most is digital - even more worthless when electric power is down! One advantage of digital money for bankers is that when hyperinflation comes it's not so easily seen in stacks of notes, but only more zeros on a screen.
We need to consider what are "money", "value", "medium of exchange"? Is it preferable to be more self-sufficient in the only goods of value we really need - fresh water supply, food, clothes, shelter? Then "money" would be a peripheral concept for trading goods, with the main purpose being to smooth out bartering.
Accumulation of "capital" is perhaps an evil that has given rise to bankers and their scams? Surely, in "paradise" the only value is in fully living each day, understanding that nature provides all we need? Humans have seriously disrupted nature with "capital" (both private and state), and future planning. Maybe it'll all come around to destroy human civilisation as we know it? The BOOM of nuclear explosions and the BUST of financial systems when electric power goes down are well within sight!
Then we may consider where values, worth and benefit lie...
You are viewing a single comment's thread from: