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REVIEW of Money 15
Money, Money, Money!
Money - we can't eat it, so why do we need it?
We can't live without it. Well, that's not quite true. Basic survival is possible without the need for money, but only in very remote areas populated by the odd tribe which hasn't yet been tainted by our modern civilisation. The only way we could experience such simplicity would be if we were shipwrecked on a desert island, or became lost in the wilderness. Self-sufficiency in this day and age is a pipe-dream (see Focus 26). Money has become so essential to nearly every aspect of life that it dictates what, when, how and why we do things. It can be both a blessing and a curse, depending whether we have sufficient, or are scratching to make some.
The main article was written following the global financial crisis which affected every nation and their peoples. Rich or poor, everyone felt the backlash, and that set me thinking how unfair this was. Then I began wondering about money itself and where it originated. Initially it was about value in trading, a handy substitute when people wanted some necessary item from neighbours, but had no goods of their own to swap for it. It must have taken a while to get off the ground, but soon enough everybody was buying rather than bartering. The currency would have been originally something recognised as universally precious. Eventually gold took on this role, but it was heavy to cart around, so someone came up with the idea of printing paper notes which could be swapped for their declared value in the actual metal.
This should have worked well as long as the total value of notes printed didn't exceed the amount of gold held in reserve. The problem would come when everyone holding these paper tokens wanted to cash them in for the real stuff and the reserves fell short. In effect, a five-dollar paper note couldn't buy the equivalent in gold because there wasn't enough of it. So, that particular currency was over-valued.
How is it possible that governments, banks and the money-moguls could allow this ridiculous situation to occur? If you have the time, read the article to find out.
To read the complete article or download the PDF of Money 15 click here
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