Time is money

Your time is valuable.  So please spend the time to understand what your money is.

"The issue which has swept down through the ages, and which will have to be fought sooner or later, is the people versus the banks", Lord Acton, (1834-1902), English historian.

You may feel that it is not possible for either you or I to change the system.  And yet, massive change is on the way…

I have recommended this video a number of times over the last year:

Money As Debt

which is the 10K warm-up for the marathon:

Money Masters

The sequel to Money As Debt is at Vimeo.

As you peruse these, please bear in mind that our current monetary system evolved during the 18th century and before.  Of all the technology you use every day, it has to rank[1] as one of the oldest still in use — even predating the bicycle[2]…

[1] and I do mean, rank.

[2] et la guillotine…  ;)

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The Bank of North Dakota

Cut Wall Street Out! Own Your Own Bank

How States Can Finance Their Own Recovery

by Ellen Brown

Global Research, November 3, 2009

Web of Debt – 2009-11-01

Pouring money into the private banking system has only fixed the economy for bankers and the wealthy; it has not done much to address either the fundamental problem of unemployment or the debt trap so many Americans find themselves in.

President Obama's $787 billion stimulus plan has so far failed to halt the growth of unemployment: 2.7 million jobs have been lost since the stimulus plan began. California has lost 336,400 jobs. Arizona has lost 77,300. Michigan has lost 137,300. A total of 49 states and the District of Columbia have all reported net job losses.

In this dark firmament, however, one bright star shines. The sole state to actually gain jobs is an unlikely candidate for the distinction: North Dakota. North Dakota is also one of only two states expected to meet their budgets in 2010. (The other is Montana.) North Dakota is a sparsely populated state of less than 700,000 people, largely located in cold and isolated farming communities. Yet, since 2000, the state's GNP has grown 56 percent, personal income has grown 43 percent and wages have grown 34 percent. The state not only has no funding problems, but this year it has a budget surplus of $1.3 billion, the largest it has ever had.

Why is North Dakota doing so well, when other states are suffering the ravages of a deepening credit crisis? Its secret may be that it has its own credit machine. North Dakota is the only state in the Union to own its own bank. The Bank of North Dakota (BND) was established by the state legislature in 1919, specifically to free farmers and small businessmen from the clutches of out-of-state bankers and railroad men. The bank's stated mission is to deliver sound financial services that promote agriculture, commerce and industry in North Dakota.

The Advantages of Owning Your Own Bank
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Public Banking on the Central Bank Model
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The Commercial Banking Model: The Commonwealth Bank of Australia
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A State Bank of Florida?
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"…interest composes 30 percent to 50 percent of everything we buy."  And so here we see the economic drag of the private taxation scheme of the Money Powers.

Read the whole article (which is not very long).

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Bank gratitude

How California Could Turn its IOUs into Dollars

by Ellen Brown

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California has over $17 billion on deposit in banks that have refused to honor its IOUs, forcing legislators to accept crippling budget cuts. These austerity measures are unnecessary. If the state were to deposit its money in its own state-owned bank, it could have enough credit to solve its budget crisis with funds to spare.
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Among the banks rejecting California’s IOUs are six of particular interest: Citibank, Union Bank, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, U.S. Bank, and Westamerica Bank. These banks are interesting because they are six of the seven depository banks in which the state of California currently deposits its money. (The seventh is Bank of the West, which loyally said it would accept the IOUs indefinitely.)
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Rather than showing their gratitude by reciprocating, however, six of the seven depository banks have refused to honor California’s IOUs.  Worse, three of these six actually received federal bailout money from the taxpayers, something that was supposedly done to keep credit flowing to the states and their citizens.

Read the whole article.

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