The rise of the interest rate

To get to the bottom of any conspiracy, just follow the money. Unfortunately privacy laws prevent most people from even knowing where to look, let alone get access to any meaningful information. During the global financial collapse of 2008 the government interest rates fell to 0%, a move designed to stimulate the economy by giving away money for nothing to a few. It set up a gravy train to stop the too big to fail from failing and went to consolidate their power even further.

Personally I do have issues with interest rates, growing up in Australia during the 1980's and seeing the damage that 18% interest rates done to home buyers put me right off buying a house. Exploitation of interest rates is a common tactic of how the rich stay rich while the poor remain poor. I have also leant the hard way from high interest rate credit cards, but thankfully and eventually got out of that trap.

Now rates are on the rise again with the recent 0.25% hike from the US Federal Reserve bank. I do view this as a good sign that the US economy is finally getting back on track. Some interest is needed to help keep things honest, motivated and productive. Just a part of the capitalistic workings. As for how much though is a contentious issue. For now I am in agreement with Catherine Austin Fitts that that interest rates have been artificially low for too long.



For those that do not know about her, I found her to be a good torch bearer when trudging through the 9/11 darkness. A smart woman that touches on many realities.

Fiat currency is designed to suck the life out of people's souls. Raising interest rates allows the bankers to squeeze the lemon of monetary slavery. The Federal Reserve is a huge anchor on the American people. This country will never get out of debt as long as we have money created with interest.

If the home of the once brave ever finds enough courage to become free again Lincoln showed us the way:

"During the Civil War (1861-1865), President Lincoln needed money to finance the War from the North. The Bankers were going to charge him 24% to 36% interest. Lincoln was horrified and went away greatly distressed, for he was a man of principle and would not think of plunging his beloved country into a debt that the country would find impossible to pay back."

"Eventually President Lincoln was advised to get Congress to pass a law authorizing the printing of full legal tender Treasury notes to pay for the War effort. Lincoln recognized the great benefits of this issue. At one point he wrote: "
"(we) gave the people of this Republic the greatest blessing they have ever had – their own paper money to pay their own debts..."

"The Treasury notes were printed with green ink on the back, so the people called them "Greenbacks". "

"Lincoln printed 400 million dollars worth of Greenbacks (the exact amount being $449,338,902), money that he delegated to be created, a debt-free and interest-free money to finance the War. It served as legal tender for all debts, public and private. He printed it, paid it to the soldiers, to the U.S. Civil Service employees, and bought supplies for war.
Shortly after that happened, The London Times printed the following: "If that mischievous financial policy, which had its origin in the North American Republic, should become indurated down to a fixture, then that Government will furnish its own money without cost. It will pay off debts and be without a debt. It will have all the money necessary to carry on its commerce. It will become prosperous beyond precedent in the history of the civilized governments of the world. The brains and the wealth of all countries will go to North America. That government must be destroyed, or it will destroy every monarchy on the globe."

Our fiat currency and the Federal Reserve system guarantee our country will always be in debt and never get out of debt. Will will always be slaves as long as fiat currency exists. Every president that has created interest free money in this country by getting the Treasury Department to print legal tender has been assassinated.

"Give me control of a nation's money supply, and I care not who makes it’s laws". Mater Amschel Rothschild

a reply to: dfnj2015

Hogwash!

Here's the key part of your quote...

That government must be destroyed, or it will destroy every monarchy on the globe.

Then you go on to quote Rothschild; the Rothschild's fortune depends on a monarchy to survive. Without it they would be penniless.

So...what's your point???

ETA...I have no issue with completely overhauling the Fed, or even doing away with it, but the notion of no borrowing (i.e. no interest) would take the World economy back to the stone age.

a reply to: kwakakev

Increases in interest rates are a good thing (contrary to what some here may say). Without higher interest rates you have runaway inflation. Or worse, as we are seeing in countries like Greece, negative interest rates (which are a very bad thing)!

originally posted by: Flyingclaydisk
a reply to: dfnj2015

Hogwash!

Here's the key part of your quote...

That government must be destroyed, or it will destroy every monarchy on the globe.

Then you go on to quote Rothschild; the Rothschild's fortune depends on a monarchy to survive. Without it they would be penniless.

So...what's your point???

Hogwash? My point? You do understand what a fiat currency is and what it means to our people.

I did not invent this criticism of the Federal Reserve. There are a lot more smarter people than I am. Here is a 4 hour video going over the history of the Federal Reserve and why fiat currency is so evil, immoral, and every other possible negative adjective you can come up with:

www.youtube.com...

a reply to: dfnj2015

I edited my post to add a comment about the Fed (above), but I'll repeat it...

I have no issue with completely overhauling the Fed, or even doing away with it, but the notion of no borrowing (i.e. no interest) would take the World economy back to the stone age.

And yes, I am acutely aware of what a fiat currency is. However, you're making a broad generalization between fiat currency, interest rates and the Fed. They are independent concepts. No doubt, the Fed is unbridled and in dire need of change, but to apply that same concept to fiat currency is simply misinformed. If it were not for the power of the US Dollar the Fed would be irrelevant. (In fact, their heads would probably be on pikes). Further, Lincoln didn't create the Fed...as you seem to imply. Conversely, the Fed didn't create fiat currency. So I think you need to separate the concepts you are addressing into separate subjects.

In other words, if you want to discuss the Fed then discuss just that. If you want to address fiat currency, well, that's a whole other discussion.

originally posted by: Flyingclaydisk
a reply to: kwakakev
Increases in interest rates are a good thing (contrary to what some here may say). Without higher interest rates you have runaway inflation. Or worse, as we are seeing in countries like Greece, negative interest rates (which are a very bad thing)!

What you are saying is pure BS. The problem is not the economy overheating. The economy hasn't overheated since the 90s. At some point, when you are willing to face reality, then you will consider what is important. Interest rates do not matter. How much you pay in taxes does not matter. Annual raises do not matter. What does matter is the purchasing power of the median worker's wage after taxes. Since 2008 so much money has been printed there has been massive deflation in purchasing power for the worker making the median wage. Inflation right now is really just a measure of how much money is being printed. It has nothing to do with the economy overheating in my opinion.

For example, the price of a plain pizza as practically doubled in my home town since 2008. My wages have not doubled.

originally posted by: Flyingclaydisk
a reply to: dfnj2015

I edited my post to add a comment about the Fed (above), but I'll repeat it...

I have no issue with completely overhauling the Fed, or even doing away with it, but the notion of no borrowing (i.e. no interest) would take the World economy back to the stone age.

And yes, I am acutely aware of what a fiat currency is. However, you're making a broad generalization between fiat currency, interest rates and the Fed. They are independent concepts. No doubt, the Fed is unbridled and in dire need of change, but to apply that same concept to fiat currency is simply misinformed. If it were not for the power of the US Dollar the Fed would be irrelevant. (In fact, their heads would probably be on pikes). Further, Lincoln didn't create the Fed...as you seem to imply. Conversely, the Fed didn't create fiat currency. So I think you need to separate the concepts you are addressing into separate subjects.

In other words, if you want to discuss the Fed then discuss just that. If you want to address fiat currency, well, that's a whole other discussion.

From my experiences, what you are saying does not make any sense. Maybe I'm not using the terms perfectly. But if you watch the video I have referenced it makes a more compelling argument than I can make. There many videos criticizing fiat currencies. Interest rates are not our friends as you are implying.

a reply to: Flyingclaydisk

Do you realize that inflation is predicated on the volume of the money supply and not the cost of borrowing that money. Governments print more money and inflate the buying/spending cycle to chase less and less goods. Inflation is the Governments friend as they pay their debts in future deflated dollars

originally posted by: Flyingclaydisk
a reply to: kwakakev

Increases in interest rates are a good thing (contrary to what some here may say). Without higher interest rates you have runaway inflation.

You would think the free market would be capable of preventing runaway inflation. The free market solves every other social problem. Why can't it keep inflation under control also?

originally posted by: dfnj2015
You would think the free market would be capable of preventing runaway inflation. The free market solves every other social problem. Why can't it keep inflation under control also?

Single entity monetary supply control wouldn't exist in a true "free market".

As for social problems...a free market fixes societal problems the same way nature does. It doesn't remove suffering, nor has it ever claimed to, it just deals with it in the most efficient manner possible.

a reply to: TheConstruKctionofLight

Ahem, yes, sadly. "Governments" around the world, the US prime among these, are notorious for abusing this illusion. Inflation is a much misunderstood concept by the common man, and government very much do take advantage of people's misunderstanding of these concepts, which is exactly why education about them is so vitally important.

It's a smokescreen for governments to hide behind, absolutely. And right now our Fed is abusing this to the point of calamity, but sadly they are not alone. And this complicates the whole matter even further because you can't hold one variable still while the others continue to move (outside of your control). The big banks (which are essentially the Fed in the US) leverage this concept to their advantage and the people's disadvantage (because they don't understand what's happening).

So yes, inflation is based on the aggregate money supply in circulation and unfortunately, right now anyway, interest rates are one of the only ways to curb said inflation. I mean, it's that or convince people to stop growing an economy and accept less wages which makes no sense whatsoever,

A car which cost $20,000 just 15 years ago now costs $40,000, but in real terms the actual value of the car (when you consider what materials went into it) is less than the $20,000 of 15 years ago. That's inflation.

originally posted by: Flyingclaydisk
So yes, inflation is based on the aggregate money supply in circulation and unfortunately, right now anyway, interest rates are one of the only ways to curb said inflation.

I would propose another method is to link the dollar to a basket of commodities as this will curtail the ability to over-print dollars which perpetuates our current 'easy money' policy.

a reply to: dfnj2015

Oh, a free market would absolutely prevent runaway inflation!! It would also mercilessly CRUSH, chew up and spit out, hundreds of millions upon millions of people and lay waste to much of the world economy.

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus

Okay, no argument, but what commodities? Dirt? I mean, you can't use gold, not right now anyway, and anything you even thought about tagging as one of these commodities would skyrocket before you could tag it. You'd almost have to shut down the world trading markets long enough to establish the links...and even then it would be hard to stop a run on those commodities once the markets resumed.

ETA...No, I think it's going to have to be more punitive than just baselining the dollar and inflation across some commodities in order to be effective.

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus

Just look at the SSI COLA adjustments. Imagine how skewed it would get if this was benchmarked across a stable commodity like say wheat or soy beans (just an example). There'd be seniors in the soup lines. The last few COLA's are not even close to keeping up with 'real' inflation, and that's exactly what COLA is supposed to address.

Net result = unintended consequences.

ETA...Add to this the impact of say China dumping a couple or ten trillion in US debt into the World currency market. You'd wind up having to peg the dollar like they did in SE Asia back in '97. And, they've still not fully recovered from that whole fiasco. (Thanks, Soros...you F# criminal!!)

originally posted by: Flyingclaydisk
Okay, no argument, but what commodities? Dirt? I mean, you can't use gold, not right now anyway, and anything you even thought about tagging as one of these commodities would skyrocket before you could tag it.

Precious metals is a good start, they have a known value for industrial use which is dictated by the free market. You can incorporate petro chemicals, agricultural products and other raw materials, the theoretical supply is nearly unlimited. If it is a broad basket it further helps manipulation of currency as it limits single item control that can spike valuation.

originally posted by: AugustusMasonicus
I would propose another method is to link the dollar to a basket of commodities as this will curtail the ability to over-print dollars which perpetuates our current 'easy money' policy.

If you ever get bored...tie monetary supply to population size. Yes, it will mean assigning an inherent value to a person.
Works out though. And extremely stable over the long term.

originally posted by: peck420
If you ever get bored...tie monetary supply to population size. Yes, it will mean assigning an inherent value to a person.
Works out though. And extremely stable over the long term.

It's an interesting concept, the person as the 'commodity'.

a reply to: peck420

Whoa...there's a concept I've never contemplated!! HMMMmmmmmmmm....

The west would come out on the losing end of that stick though wouldn't they???