Banks, central banks, reserve banks – and Bitcoin.
They all exist because human beings – individuals like you and me – cannot be trusted.
(And because we are greedy, envious and have no self control or patience.)
Money is not so much the root of all evil, as evil is the root of all money.
(There is a very good economics lecture / paper by the same name that discusses the technical side of the mean, greedy, jealous side of human nature very nicely for those of you who are interested: Evil Is The Root of All Money )
The point is that the banking system is not “evil” so much as it is a reflection of the “evils” of society itself.
Similarly, fractional reserve banking is a symptom of society’s greed and envy.
Citizen-voters are less victims of the central banking system than they are net beneficiaries of it, in the form of national-debt funded social security payments, unsecured mortgages and assorted unearned “citizen entitlements” – not to mention the perks of living in a growing (if monstrously inflated) economy.
This is worth bearing in mind when debating people who believe crypto currencies and blockchains will “save the people from the fiat monetary system”.
That’s like saying decentralised economies will save people from themselves.
Not likely.
You can’t save people who don’t want to be saved.
Most religions know this.
It’s time the “community church of crypto” came to the same realisation: You can’t free people from free money when people want free money.
Most people are happy to saddle future generations with debt if it means they get to enjoy free stuff today. Most people don’t mind being a slave to a system than gives them free schooling, free money and other free perks. Most people don’t mind because by the time the system fails, it will be someone else’s problem to clean up the mess.
And this is the fatal flaw in the decentralised dream: Most people are happy to sell their long-term freedom for short-term security.
This is why even in the “free world”, less than 4% of the American population voted for a smaller, less powerful government. Red or Blue, the people voted for more government, more centralisation, more debt (all that divides the two camps is how the newly printed “free money” and (deferred or redistributed) taxes should be spent). They voted for the fiat economy.
Good luck trying to free that lot from their fiat chains.
Their grandchildren can worry about the debt repayments.
http://www.USADebtClock.com/us-debt-clock-widget.php
“He who likes the world least knows it best.” – Benjamin Franklin
The ‘mammon kings’ of this age build their fortresses upon the weaknesses of men, upon the willing weakness of Mankind.
Those who are slaves to their earthly affections: lands, titles, loyalties, riches, pleasure, retirement…comfort.
All of these ordinary men become stones to be placed one upon the other only to build the same castle that will destroy both them and their children.
But, you ‘love’ your children so much that you encourage them along the same mediocre, painful path.
Why?
Are the seeing people humble enough of mind and strong enough in sacrifice to bind together in strategic wisdom and neighborly kindness to overcome?
Or are we too busy buying our shiny little things while we pay their burdensome interest only so that they can do it to our children’s children all over again?
Short answer? Yes. Yes we are.
The ‘we’ in your ‘Yes we are,’ hopefully this is a wise (yet painful) recognition of the dire state of this Age, but also an awareness that rejects defeat and approaches with courage and balanced hope. Yes?
“All things excellent are as difficult as they are rare.” – Baruch Spinoza
I am of the Kind who understands that we are ‘outnumbered’ in this struggle…we are ‘rare.’
In the end, only those willing to sacrifice, truly sacrifice – for many fools throughout history have ‘taken a bullet’ – are the ones who must join together and administer an effective ‘Plan.’
But most people prefer to pretend courage through their words.
How many have shared phone numbers?
How many have listened to those voices after a deep connection borne of a ‘post?’
How many have taken time off of work (money loss, get it?) to meet this other person face-to-face and seek trust in this cause…Hmmmm?
They lost before they even started because they wouldn’t ‘interrupt’ the monotony of their day to seek a
True Friend.
Yes, it is this practical…and that rare.