Money

Ok what is money? Money is a promise issued by the government to provide goods, property or services to the value of the coin or note. It is in the UK generally measured in sterling, sterling silver, hence the metal strip in notes.
It’s worth always was only based on a belief in a promise. It was a way of carrying bartered promises with you and exchanging them with others.
When the belief that the government cannot back up its promises there tends to be huge inflation and a situation where people demand their money back, they want their promises fulfilled. This becomes what is known a ‘run on the banks’. Now you could demand a pounds worth of sterling silver or even gold for your pound of cash, which is why a country needs to hold reserves. The Government do not want you to do this.
The concept of ‘money’ is so simple yet so complex. Once upon a time, long long ago, the government (Royalty and the Royal Court) had very finite reserves. Their only lines of credit were form the land owners (Barons) and if they refused to lend monies then taxation was the other option. But even this was finite. It depended upon factors such as how the harvest had gone, what riches were obtained through barter, negotiation, diplomacy, trade and yes war with other kingdoms. It was also often based upon perceived strength, and as Britain had the best and strongest Navy in the world, and led the field in soldiering, we not only invaded countries, increasing our Empire and therefore wealth reserves, we had countries clamouring to be our friends in order for Britain to protect them.
We (as in Britain) were a ‘super power’ on the world stage. We still had huge numbers of folk living in poverty, dying of starvation on our streets, homeless, disease, but our ‘rich’ were the wealthiest class of people in the world.
Throughout our empire there may be famine, genocide, torture and death but the King or Queen of the day had the best finery and luxury that money could buy.
Yes there were rebellions both abroad within the empire and here in Britain but the mighty armed militias soon quelled them with violence and cruelty, sanctioning entire regions, putting leaders to death in many imaginative ways.
We were the Richest nation on Earth!
But then came the time of steam, of electricity, of radio. Things changed. Rebellions were no longer localised, they were world news, one tinder pot set off another. The cost of ‘policing’ started to eat into profits. Small military campaigns grew, and when they went awry other dissidents were encouraged to act.
The Boar war and Crimean war, along with uprisings on the Indian continent were costing dear. Then came the first world war, and Britain had to consider borrowing money off other nations, one of its biggest allies Russia had a revolution and this hit the British in ways never publicised. The main one in the pocket.
So at this point the British government started getting into debt. Now they were at this point only borrowing money that could be offset against the reserves of gold and silver held in the treasury. Then came the biggy, WW2, this was a fight to the death, the enemy with the advances in war machines were truly able to bring the fight to our door. This truly was all out war. We were out gunned and out numbered. As an Island State we depended upon our Empire to provide so much of the basics needed to sustain life within this ‘modern’ world.
To keep these supply lines open we needed ships, and lots of them. Every day we were losing ships to German U-boats (submarines) and the German airforce was decimating industrial areas of Britain. We were alone and starving to death. But then came ‘lease lend’. A way of the USA helping us without being seen to ally to us. This meant we would lease ships and arms from the USA to keep our supply lines open, to replace ships lost, and to fight off our enemies.
America was the most industrious nation ever by this point.
To keep us going the US government and firms extended us credit way beyond our gold reserves and our means. We took it, in the same way a drowning man reaches for a rope. No consideration for cost in the future, these were desperate times.
Soon the navy were sailing US ships, the airforce flying US planes and the army riding in US tanks.
Then came Pearl Harbour. December 1941 the Japanese attacked American naval and air forces. The decimated the American battleship fleet.
America entered the war.
Now you would think that as our allies now the US would start supplying equipment free of charge, ending lease lend? But nope we carried on sending promissory notes for money we did not have.
Eventually the war was won by the allies. Germany capitulated then Japan.
Now was time to pay. We were given terms by the US that would keep us afloat and fairly well off but also in debt to the US for a very long time. In the 1950’s the cost of policing the empire became so great that the Queen announced its dissolution. People thought it was because she personally was being humane to those nations we stripped and enslaved, but nothing was further from the truth, we were losing power and it was but a tactical retreat.
The British Establishment were still strong militarily but couldn’t counter peaceful demonstrations such as those led by Ghandi. Times were changing. But do not get it wrong her, this was not capitulation. The British tied these countries in trade deals through the formation of the Commonwealth. Like the EU but where Britain remained firmly in control. An Empire that did not need policing.
Now there are other factors too in the changing world that effected Britain, the main one was the rise of the union movement in the 19th and 20th centuries. This meant an end to domestic slavery of the workers, it was the foundation of fair pay, of fair working hours, of holiday pay, sick pay, health and safety in the workplace, of workers and human rights.
This had a huge impact. The Establishment were now to some degree accountable.
Votes for women also made huge changes. Challenging the patriarchy and its power over us all. Giving women a true voice. All these changes were won through shedding of blood, loss of freedom and lives. It is due to the actions of the brave folk that fought these battles against their self appointed masters that we have the rights now, that this government are determined to strip us of.
So back to money, money works as a system as long as it flows, is exchanged, however capitalism does not preach that. Capitalism is about hoarding these promissory notes, about controlling the flow of such promises whilst holding onto as many of them as you can.
To those with money it is not about the choices it gives us, the buying of that suit, coat, or even tampon! Of whether we eat or the kids do! Even of whether we can afford to go to hospital and pay the parking charges. To the rich, its about game play, we are all just indicators of how much more money they have than us.
In some ways their role us not to make more money it is to prevent us making any. In their insular world money truly is power and as with all abusers it is power they crave.
At the moment we pander to that, we spend our power on things that have no true value, upon a label, the latest technology we do not need, on entertaining and deflecting, distracting us of the cruel reality of our lives.
Until we realise this, that money truly is a tool to keep us in our place we will always be subjugated, controlled and owned. We will be subservient to those with copious. Amounts of money, we will only ever be the chaff to them.
I am not rich, I often need to decide whether I eat or live. That is our reality. And if you think ‘I am alright Jack’ because you have a good job, savings, a nice living standard, so did I until a few years ago, then I got ill! Now I exist, barely as do so many others, and all my savings and luxury did not last as long as you think.
So please read, share and open your eyes to reality if not already all too aware.
Jonesy
http://www.thejonesy.com