Local Money


I don't think we know what it means, money. We confuse it with currency, exchange rates, gold standards, silver, platinium, salary, loans, fiat currency or just paper money.

What is money? We should ask, if we do, wouldn't it be the biggest threat to the central bankers, the IMF...

If I made carrots the "Carrot Standard" of world economy, we could all get on with growing carrots. If you were very good at growing really tasty carrots, you could be super wealthy.

You would be the Carrot King or PM: "Sir Carrot Emperor, Rule Supreme!" "Lord Carrot, Esquire!"


Funny how that is not an option.

We tend to think in terms of wealth more in terms of gossip, rumours, FX rates, heritage, and more or less binding legal tenders. So, what is the option?

What is a 1,000 Yen legal tender note realy worth?

In Waseda, since 2004, they have local Atom community money, perhaps that is a solution? It is also spreading to Sendai and other parts of Japan.

Except you would not be able to go on long holidays to exotic destinations, or get loans to buy fancy imported cars. Local money implies trust. It implies boundaries between "far away" and local. Is this the solution for Greece and other coutries that can't make ends meet?

Comments

Tom O said…
It was Oscar Wilde who coined the phrase about 'knowing the cost of everything and the value of nothing. In Germany 'borrowing' as in credit cards or mortgages is very rare. That legendary Teutonic logic of 'how can you spend money you don't have'. As I heard a Tory politician here mention yesterday we should just cast Greece adrift, as in why does Germany/France have to deal with a country that, for a population of 11 million, sustains armed forces of 400,000. Japan is legendary (excuse the kurikaeshi there) for its citizens saving money, putting it aside for that rainy day. Common sense + money - now there's a valuable commodity!
8:52 pm, July 22, 2011
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