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The Secret of Oz (Very Interesting)
By JLP | October 12, 2011
I’m only about 10% through this but it is very interesting. Watch it if you have time. Let’s discuss.
Topics: Economics | 9 Comments »
October 13th, 2011 at 7:59 am
Summary: end the Fed.
But what do you replace it with?
October 13th, 2011 at 8:05 am
Yeah, I don’t the answer to that. What bugged me about the video is the concept of the government (Congress) printing the money that they need. Not sure I like that idea. When have we ever known Congress to be responsible? The guy in the video mentions more than once that this printing of money led to inflation. How could it not?
October 13th, 2011 at 8:22 am
BG,
You don’t replace it with anything. We bank for a hundred plus years without the Fed and we can do it again.
JLP,
I have those same concerns as well. I think ending the Federal Reserve with have to go hand-in-hand with a return of Congress to constitutional functions only. In other words, don’t let them appropriate funds for every possible pet project under the sun.
Regardless, the idea of debt-based money is certainly not the answer. The fact that it is literally impossible to pay back all our debt is one of the most deeply disturbing concepts I’ve ever come across.
October 13th, 2011 at 9:29 am
Veritroth) I am no historian, but according to the video — “The Fed” is actually the 3rd central bank incantation in US history.
But I agree with the premise: the government should (solely) be in control of the monetary supply — at least in a democracy. Not an unelected and unaccountable private ‘central bank’, with the hugely misleading name “Federal Reserve”.
What really surprised me (from the video) was the notion that going back to a Gold standard would actually give the banksters ultimate power/control. This seems in direct contradiction to others who want to ‘end the fed’ (Ron Paul for example).
October 13th, 2011 at 9:38 am
BG,
Yes, you are correct. What I should have said is that there have been interspersed periods of time where we didn’t have any central banks and things worked out just fine. Apologies.
In regards to your surprise about a gold standard, I completely agree. I found it very surprising as well. But after listening to his reasoning it kinda made sense. Consider my opinion changed, or at least more skeptical of a gold standard.
October 13th, 2011 at 10:51 am
Funny, about the gold standard. I was watching a show last night theorizing about how all the gold that the US supposedly has at Fort Knox has disappeared and no one knows where it is. Apparently, there hasn’t been a public audit in like 40 years or something and no one has actually seen the gold.
October 14th, 2011 at 11:42 am
you allow the treasury to produce the currency. The fed creates money with a keystroke and works to create inflationary effect Treasury notes directly from the Gov’t would be much better idea. Check out Ellen Brown’s book “The Web of Debt.”
October 15th, 2011 at 9:17 am
The video speaks of the clash between the senators and Julius over control of the money supply — that previously (in the Republic) bronze coins were used and that in the Empire they were demonetized in favor of gold. This is completely incorrect. In fact, bronze, silver, and gold coins were used in both the Republic and the Empire.
January 1st, 2012 at 6:28 am
This movie has a few truths but its conclusion is that we need the GovT (Gang ov Thieves) to print the money.
What we need is to:
1. Remove Fractional Reserve Banking
2. Rid the world of Central Banks whose only role is to support the Fractional Reserve Banking System.
3. Return to a GOLD standard.
Bill Still suggests printing money and trusting the GovT. THis shows child like naivity! The reason for GOLD is because then we arrive at an intermediated barter system, goods trade for GOLD money and GOLD money trades for goods. This gives NO opportunity for inflation. This is why GovTs hate the GOLD standard! With paper money, GovT dissociates money from the goods it represents! The other great advantage of GOLD is that it is an international currency.
The GovT cannot be trusted with money. Since the US was set adrift from GOLD in 1971, inflation has skyrocketed, and purchasing power has collapsed.
Why would anyone advocate passing control of the currency to the Gang ov Thieves.
Bill Still doesn’t mention the only explanation of the great and all other depressions, the Austrian Theory of the Business Cycle, where the Boom is the cause of the bust. He mentions Friedman who with Anna Schwartz explained that the Federal Reserve didn’t print enough. Friedman forgot that the Fed by printing had started the boom and more money, just as today does NOT fix the problem.
What is needed is:
1. Free Banking (Insolvent banks free to go broke). The market holds to account, no one to protect the banks..
2. No central Bank!
3. Allow the free market to choose its currency, GOLD and /or silver.
4. Free up all markets INCLUDING the labour market. NO minimum wage!!
5. Reduce GovT to at most 5% of GDP impost on the economy.
In summary, NO GovT feather bedding of ANY industry, especially banking.
Look at Peter Schiffs comments or the works available gratis at Mises.org.
Bill Still is a GovT appologist.
Optimism is born of blissful ignorance. Pessimism is the product of bitter experience!!