January 7th, 2010 by Alex
I made a few minor changes to the book for 2010. The main thing I changed was the section titled “Fractional Reserve Lending” on page 64. What I put in that section originally, I put in for the sake of simplicity because I didn’t want to have to get into the subject of capital requirements (especially since those kinds of details are subject to change). However, I broke down and chopped that section up and now talk about the total capital requirement of 8% of total risk-weighted assets (loans) imposed by the the Bank for International Settlements (the central bank of central banks). Since modern banks don’t really loan out deposit money, the 8% capital requirement is the primary limit on bank money creation. The only other notable change is on page 111. I now talk about how infrastructure dollars could first be implemented by states. All states would have to do is create their own banks (like North Dakota has) and make their own interest-free credit to fund infrastructure. I also updated a few charts, but that is about it.
The book should become a bit more widely available within a few months.
January 7th, 2010 by Alex
I’m all for healthcare reform, but I certainly don’t see any reform in the current corporatist debacle trying to get through congress. It is really disgusting: forcing people to buy private insurance. That is sick. It is just another Wall Street bailout. True healthcare reform would start with monetary reform, because that is the way to stop corporatism. And as long as the government is corporatist all reform will be corporatist.
This video outlines a realistic solution for real healthcare reform.
1) Change the tax code so that employer provided health insurance is no longer tax exempt. In other words, separate health insurance from employment.
2) Scale back state regulations to create a national market for health insurance.
3) Encourage health savings accounts as an alternative to traditional insurance.
Overall, government needs to get all in or all out of healthcare. But for the government to get all in to healthcare it would have to get its financial act together, particualrly though monetary reform. I hear people say all the time things like “Canada and the UK have free healthcare,” suggesting that government healthcare is free. There is no such thing as free healthcare. Unless you never earn or spend any money in your life, you pay in those systems in one way or another. Nonetheless, I’d be happy to support government run universal healthcare relative to forced insurance any day. At least I’d probably feel like I was getting something for my tax money in such a system. But I’d personally rather make my own decisions concerning my money and healthcare in a government-free free-market system. All I know is that it is all pretty hopeless, because corporatism of some form will always win as long as the current government is involved with the system. And just on a basic level it is hopeless because regardless of the system, either healthy people are going to pay for sick people while healthcare gets ever more expensive, and or sick people are going to be out of luck unless they have money and or insurance before they get sick. Both those things occur in the current system.
September 19th, 2009 by Alex
This is a nice article explaining how The Fed controls dissent. Go here.
February 17th, 2009 by Alex
The second edition of Dissolving Dollars is out now. If you own the first edition go here and you can download a PDF of the second edition (you’ll need to have the first book handy to complete the download because there is a secret code in the book that you’ll need). The second edition has about 10% new content with numerous tweaks and refinements; it is smaller, but with 50% more pages (142 pages). The idea behind the book has always been to keep it simple by not dabbling in too many unnecessary complexities, and I’ve stuck with that idea for the second edition. I made the second edition’s size and shape like a regular book (as opposed to the more comic book quality of the first edition); it has a regular spine and everything and I even got rid of the all CAPS text. The second edition costs a dollar more than the first due to the extra pages. But I started a thing where if you want multiple copies, you can get them for $9.99 each if you order them from this link; once the books are in your shopping cart, enter this discount code DSC53EL8 (there will be a place for it). Although Amazon offers free shipping for orders over $25, the $9.99 deal is even worth it if you are ordering one copy, because there will only be a $3 or so shipping fee, with the $9.99 deal. And they usually ship fast even with economy shipping, even if when ordering they give a ridiculously long estimate on shipping time. If you want to order a whole bunch of books contact me and I’ll give you an even better deal!
November 12th, 2008 by Alex
Second Edition Out February 13, 2009.
Pop quiz! Where does money come from? Who makes it? What is inflation? What is the Federal Reserve? Why is America so buried in debt? Unsure how to answer such questions? Then you really can’t afford to miss this book. Through the help of the accessible style of a comic book, DISSOLVING DOLLARS will take you on an intriguing, eye-opening journey through American history, banking, and modern money. You’ll discover the scandalous truth about inflation, debt, interest, the Federal Reserve, banks, taxation, bailouts, economic growth, the creation of money, and much more. Whether you are a novice or otherwise, DISSOLVING DOLLARS will fill you in on exactly what you need to know. So get the inside story today. Your dollars depend on it!
Nominated for The Prestigious Stephen T. Colbert Award for The Literary Excellence!
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Click Here to page through the book to music and see Cover Photos.
