Comments on: A General Analytical Framework for the Analysis of Currencies and Other Commodities

By: WARREN MOSLER

WARREN MOSLER — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 14:51:04 +0000

that’s not what it’s about

By: Tom Hickey

Tom Hickey — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 21:59:42 +0000

@Wrecktafire, See Randy Wray, MMP BLOG #7: WHAT BACKS UP CURRENCY, AND WHY WOULD ANYONE ACCEPT IT? and MMP BLOG #8: TAXES DRIVE MONEY Randy discusses and dismisses legal tener laws in #7.

By: Wrecktafire

Wrecktafire — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 19:42:19 +0000

@Wrecktafire,

Oops–meant to say, “…to not see **discussion**…”

By: Wrecktafire

Wrecktafire — Mon, 25 Jul 2011 19:38:47 +0000

I am surprised to not see (perhaps due to my carelessness?) the notation on U.S. currency, “This note legal tender for all debts public and private.” This seems to be a significant mechanism for the State creating demand for its notes. My understanding of this clause is that if I offer dollars and the person I owe won’t take them, I don’t have to pay.

By: Sigi

Sigi — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 05:15:16 +0000

@MamMoTh, well it can be used to avoid certain taxes (income tax for example), but it also has very legitimate uses, such as serving as a cheap and anonymous transaction system. If the government raises the right kind of taxes, it becomes hard to evade them by using shadow currencies or other shenanigans. For example, if the majority of tax "revenue" is from a GST/VAT and estate taxes, with none or hardly any income taxation, what good is BitCoin for tax evasion?

By: WARREN MOSLER

WARREN MOSLER — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 14:02:01 +0000

agree.

By: MamMoTh

MamMoTh — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 14:23:29 +0000

Warren, have you given any thought to Bitcoins? It seems to be an attempt to create a tax-avoidance driven currency out of the blue.

This is the best summary I’ve found:

http://c2995102.cdn.cloudfiles.rackspacecloud.com/TheRebootingOfMoney.pdf

By: WARREN MOSLER

WARREN MOSLER — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 03:10:36 +0000

banks can’t create or destroy reserve balances

By: MamMoTh

MamMoTh — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 15:08:05 +0000

Tom, you are right, as long as the discount or overdraft rate is strictly positive they won’t be able to create reserves out of thin air. This is in agreement with saying that the monopolist must set the price > 0.

By: Kristjan

Kristjan — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 20:37:14 +0000

I guess he is saying the government doesn’t understand that it has this power