Mr.Al said: Constitutional money worked just fine. The problem we have today is that the Congress has failed in it's responsibility to coin money. Now, paper money backed by a standardized weight of precious metal serves as a stable medium of exchange and thus serves the same function as the metal (in terms of it's stability as long as it's convertibility to said metal remains unchanged).
I am concerned about a Hyperinflationary Great Depression developing in the United States. That would force the issue of people utilizing mediums of exchange that differ from the government fiat.
I view the Constitution as being a contract between the federal government and the respective people that live in each sovereign state. When the money supply was taken over by a central bank bent on destroying the buying power of the money that is a clear breach of contract.
The United States government would not be able to accumulate massive debt, in the form of debt instruments and intragovernmental debt, and eventually wholesale debt monetization without money that is backed by nothing.
Again, it is not "backed by nothing". It is backed by the full faith and credit of the United States government. The bond market seems to reflect a continuing faith in that. And you have to be utterly ignorant of history to believe that commodity based currencies cannot be manipulated. If you don't like the system you don't have to participate, Al. Pile up a bunch of gold or Peeps or whatever you think is more effective. Do eet. You'll be a titan of finance, rich beyond Croesus. Quote: Without a viable means of increasing the money in order to fund spending that is flatly impossible to cover through overt taxation government could not spend money out of control. Id est: Would we be able to offer China or Japan debt instruments for sale in the form of silver & gold? Not for very long because it would become painfully obvious very quickly that such obligations could never be covered. Honestly think about that... The difference between massive debt in the form of a sound medium of exchange versus fiat... Funny money encourages the accumulation of debt because debtors gain (in the short run) by paying debts with less valuable money. If the money gained in buying power over time this favors those who actually save. Massive accumulation of government debt is not feasible (to the unreal extent that we see today with U.S. government) with sound money.
There is not one iota of reason to believe that "I will gladly pay you gold Tuesday for a hamburger today" is any less feasible than "I will gladly pay you a fiat dollar..." Are you not aware that when the currency was backed by gold there was government debt? Just fucking stop.Quote: You do not bother to think about the fundamental differences involved with debt and mediums of exchange.
Al, you are becoming beyond obnoxious with your entire "You don't agree with me so you must not be thinking" bullshit. Really, just fuck off.Quote:
Again, we see that neocons who complain about government spending have no business doing so because they turn a blind eye to the monetary basis that enables government growth to Leviathan size.
It isn't the form of money, Al. Quote: In regards to government "changing the value of the medium of exchange when there was a gold standard" present evidence and we will debate this. Gold hovering around 1100 U.S.D. is the beginning of a market rejection of the dollar.
I already did, Al, in another thread. And there is no debate. It is historical fact.
Quote: January 31, 1934 The day after the passage of the Act, President Roosevelt fixed the weight of the Dollar at 15.715 grains of Gold "nine-tenths fine". The Dollar was thereby devalued from $20.67 to one troy ounce of Gold to $35.00 to one troy ounce of Gold - or by 69.3 percent. The Treasury, which had become the possessors of all the nation's Gold on the previous day, saw the value of their Gold holdings increase by $US 2.81 Billion. The Treasury now "owned" the Gold, and no one else inside the U.S. was allowed to own any Gold except by the express permission of the Treasury.
The new ratio of $US 35 was adopted at Bretton Woods in July 1944. The U.S. Dollar was made the world's Reserve Currency and the IMF and World Bank established in 1947. The now international ratio of 35 U.S. Dollars to one troy ounce of Gold lasted until August 15, 1971.
Quote: Instead of making baseless claims we can examine the monetary situation in order to see why we have come to differing conclusions.
Who's making baseless claims? You's making baseless claims, Al.Quote: I have told you before that individuals work in diplomacy and intelligence simultaneously. They carefully frame their discussions with foreign dignitaries in order to control their perceptions and thus manipulate their actions. It is morally wrong to turn a blind eye to this. Diplomacy should be used to prevent war and U.S. discussions with Saddam prior to the Iraq invasion of Kuwait could have done just that. U.S. intelligence agencies have been acting recklessly for decades now, and you are obviously disingenuous if you deny that fact.
That's right, Al, they carefully frame what they say. You would do well to carefully read what they say. It is only by an idiot's measure that one would infer, either tacitly or implicitly, that that statement was an OK for Saddam to invade Kuwait.Quote: Regarding healthcare shenanigans, you neoconservatives do not bother to examine the school of Austrian economics in order to come up with the cogent arguments against the relentless expansion of government.
The Austrian school can suck my cock. They have nothing whatsoever to do with expansive government. It can and will happen regardless of the form of currency. Only an utterly abysmal fool would argue that commodity based currency somehow precludes against government debt. History confirms my position, not yours.Quote: I think the reason is that you are not that much differ from people like Anna (in terms of fiscal conservatism). Both of you just argue where exactly government should grow more.
I don't want government to grow, Al. I want it to shrink.Quote: That empire I was referring to is "700 bases in over 130 countries".
http://www.globalsecurity.org/org/news/2004/041101-iraq-basing.htm
That we have bases all over the world is a good thing, Al. You and L. Ron Stupid can go live on an island in the middle of the Pacific with all of your friends. Ignoring the fact that we are all intricately entwined is harmful to our interests. Chaos is bad for business, Al. Very bad.Quote: Zap, you should note that empires often fail because they just cost too damn much.
That's a fucking laugh. It's peanuts compared to the entitlement programs. And having bases in other countries does not constitute an empire, Al. To equate them is a lie. And a stupid one at that. England had an empire. We do not.Quote: Remember that next time you criticize the government growth that you dislike (like the healthcare takeover) while applauding our economically unsustainable foreign policy.
Bullshit, Al. Just how much more do you think our foreign presence costs anyway? Are you completely unaware of the stabilizing effect of having a strong US military presence on the world? That it is good for business and that there are no other cunts willing to even participate? If you look up "useless" in the dictionary you will find a picture of the UN building. We fill a void. I wish we didn't have to but we do.
Which doesn't have one fucking thing to do with this thread, which you have once again hijacked with your bullshit.
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