The first lesson of international business is that the monopolies that drive the commercial trading system only hold loyalty to the god of capital. Making money means retaining a profit on trading transactions of business companies. The notion of MAKING MONEY means something very different to the financial empires that speculate on currencies, commodities, bonds and equities. When the two worlds come together to celebrate the common interest of their pirate culture, the Davos port of call, is a necessary winter holiday.

No doubt, the world’s financial outlook is still bleak. The needed measures and will to repudiate the ill gained debt bubble, that has much of the world facing insolvency, is a taboo alternative. The proverbial can that cannot be kicked far enough down the road of postponement keeps the party going for a little while longer. The life style of the super wealthy accustomed to flying into the Alpine village on Gulfstream V’s, hardly relate to the plight of people eating cat food. No surprise, this is the reality that escapes normal reporting.

However, what happens when the EU collapses and nation-states return to their own national currencies? The cardinal rule of the financial buccaneers is to keep the serving of the interest on the debt instruments that they hold as assets, paid by their captive debtors.

When the Fox Business Channel sends a Warren Buffet “groupie” like Liz Claman to cover this year’s World Economic Forum in Davos, you know you will get soft interviews and approving reporting. The same can be said of the coverage by most of the financial media. Watching questions at a press conference usually provided a strong sucking sound coming from the journalists in a desperate hope to gain favor among the titans of financial business.

It is refreshing to read in The Economic Times an account about Britain’s Prime Minister David Cameron. His slamming of the eurozone as uncompetitive and branding a planned transaction tax “madness”, strays from the strategic objectives of the financial elites. The financial speculation leveraged by the City of London brought the UK to the brink of collapse. Nevertheless, as a lone voice that squelches a retooled “Tobin Tax”, Cameron deserves credit. He may just be serving his own domestic political interest, but any opposition to refloating the debt with another round of additional taxes, is a positive. Even if he falls far short with true systemic solutions, the road to global taxation needs derailing. Cameron scornfully dismissed French-led plan:

“Even to be considering this at a time when we are struggling to get our economies growing is quite simply madness,” he declared.

“Of course it’s right that the financial sector should pay their share. In the UK we are doing exactly that through our bank levies and stamp duty on shares. And these are options which other countries can adopt.”

The legally protected financial bandits are dedicated to the extraction of even higher taxes in order to rollover maturing obligations. As the EU economy falters and shatters, who will bail out the bankrupt economies? The answer may not exist. John Quelch, the dean of the Shanghai-based China Europe International Business School offers the following assessment in Forbes,

“Last year at Davos, there was wishful thinking about China. Surely China would stumble on its relentless path to economic superpower status, and give the West some breathing space to reboot and revitalize?

This year at Davos, there is also wishful thinking about China, but of a different kind. How can China save the world economy? Surely the Chinese can consume more? And can’t the Chinese government do even more than it already has to prop up the Euro and invest in more Euro denominated assets?”

When people mature in their economic understanding, the harsh reality hits them. The criminal elites who designed this perverted global monetary system actually benefit with a total collapse of the nation states. A total implosion of world markets will not bring down the crooks that already own most of the choice global assets.

Davos is not about advancing productive international business. It is about plotting the next global crisis that drives the plutocrats to demand control that is even more draconian and punitive. Trade often brings mutual benefits when the marketplace operates with balance and equilibrium. However, when cartels dominate commerce and transnational corporatists force monopolistic restraints upon competing enterprises, the net result dampens alternative markets.

The way to view the business practices of the authoritarian model of the privileged Davos cabal is to see their relationships and overlapping confederations as a filtering system that expels any opposition to their long-term plans for both economic and political domination.

The analogy that describes this difference is seen in the protective environments that the Davos connections operate as compared to the meager existence of the average consumer. The vast multitude is preoccupied with economic survival. This sharp contrast with the self-appointed shapers of the world financial system, know of no such constraint.

Businesses that actually produce a product or useful service never bridge the gap between practical consumable innovations and the monetary manipulators that feed off the dynamic and industrious efforts of legitimate commercial enterprises. The money interests that dominate gatherings like Davos bring little to the advancement of actual commerce. Wealth creation is different from the accumulation or theft of riches.

The insurmountable resolution of the world debt bubble is evident to everyone. Yet the banksters care little for solutions, especially since their efforts are the true cause of the coming disaster. The Chinese controlled model will not rescue the globalist trading system. What the Davos elites have in mind is to convert independent economies into subservient appendages of a top down dependent debtor society.

Lowering the standard of living for Western economies is an unpleasant fact. The masters of manipulation desire this outcome. Until society recognizes that the debt created financial system is the root cause of the next planned panic, none of us will be safe from the crony state/capitalist juggernaut.

James Hall – February 1, 2012

http://www.batr.org/negotium/020112.html

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Source: http://www.vrijspreker.nl/….gold/

(Het Nederlands artikel volgt snel)

 September 18 we published these questions and here are the first answers.

We repeat the questions of the Dutch Socialistic Party with the answers of the Secretary, and follow up with first comments of the Vrijspreker. We think further questions are justified!
Question —Answer—Comment

1 Did the Dutch Central Bank (DNB) loan part of their gold? If yes, how much and to whom?

No. DNB has informed me that they have stopped loaning out gold as of 2008.

 Comments Vrijspreker: if so, why doesn’t DNB make that clear in the annual report? Why hide such crucial information.

2 Why are gold and gold loans stated as one line item in the annual report 2010 instead of mentioned as 2 separate items?

DNB follows the rules for valuation, determination of result and balance sheet presentation of the European system of Central Banks. The asset ‘Gold and Gold Receivables’ reflects the physical gold inventory.

 Comments Vrijspreker: good international accounting standards oblige companies to separate cash from receivables, as they’re clearly different. Why wouldn’t these standards apply to central banks? In times of increasing civil unrest because of opaque financial schemes being set up by governments, central and commercial banks and the demand for more transparency, how would you justify these special rules for central banks? Are they above the law?

3 Can you give an overview of the yearly yields of the gold loans during the past years?

No gold has been loaned out over the past years.

4 Where IS the physical gold of DNB? At which locations and how much is where? What is the reason that the gold is still at these locations?

DNB has a location policy, which means that the gold has been spread over the following locations: New York, Ottawa, London and Amsterdam.

 Comments Vrijspreker: why doesn’t the Secretary answer all the questions? What is the amount per location? And what exactly is the location policy?  Why New York instead of any random other city? Also it’s important to know how often and by whom the vaults are audited.

5 What was the most important reason for DNB to sell the gold in the past? Are the storage costs a reason? What are the actual costs to store the gold?

By selling gold in the past, DNB has tried to align its gold holdings with other gold holding countries. The storage costs were not a factor in the decision to sell the gold, because they are relatively low. Currently, DNB’s total annual storage costs paid to other central banks amount to a few hundreds of thousands of euros. The costs vary per location.

Comments Vrijspreker: why would DNB want to align its gold holdings with other central banks’ holdings? Is there a coordinated central policy amongst all central banks? Has this been prescribed by the Bank of International Settlements? Are the recent gold purchases by developing countries’ central banks not conflicting with this international policy. Could you outline the details of this policy?

6 Can you confirm that since 1991 of the 1700 tons of gold about 1100 tons have been sold? Is the remark of journalist Peter de Waard correct that because of these historic sales there is a loss of about 30 billion euro? If not correct, what is the right amount?

Since 1991, 1,100 tons of gold have been sold. Back then it was concluded that DNB held relatively much gold compared to other central banks. Decided was to align the amount of gold with other important gold owning countries. Sales proceeds have been added to DNB’s general reserves and have been invested in interest generating investments. Comparing the actual, as a result of the financial crisis, higher gold price with the historical gold price does indeed lead to more or less the amount as mentioned by Mr. De Waard. However, one has to take into account the investment income generated since selling the gold and the fact that the result of said calculations heavily depend of the strongly fluctuating price of gold.

Comments Vrijspreker: again, why align the gold holdings with that of other central banks? What exactly is the purpose of that policy?

7 How much of the National Debt has during the past 20 years been paid off with the proceeds of the gold sales? Are you of opinion that the sustainability of the national debt will be improved by paying off the debt and at the same time selling the gold?

Gold is an asset of DNB. The sales proceeds have been invested in other assets and have hence not been used to reduce the national debt. The return on investments will flow back to the Dutch government as a result of DNB’s dividend payments.

8 What is in your opinion the present function of the gold stock?

DNB’s physical gold holdings function as the ultimate reserve and anchor of trust in times of financial crisis. Further, gold is being held for diversification reasons.

 Comments Vrijspreker: clearly DNB sees value in gold. For that reason, it needs to be more transparent, and so should all central banks.

9 What is the relation between the size of the market of the gold stock and the size of the market of gold derivates? What are the possible consequences of this?

The size of the physical gold market and derivatives market cannot easily be compared because of diverging measures for the size. For the trade in physical gold the turnover is measured: in the most important market (London) this amounted to USD 136 billion in the second half of 2010 according to the London Bullion Market Association. For the derivatives market the underlying value of outstanding derivatives (swaps, future contracts and options) is of importance. For the second half of 2010 these amounted to USD 396 billion according to the Bank of International Settlements. In general one can say that the availability of derivatives markets promote efficient price discovery.

 10 Can you confirm that recently a number of countries have even enlarged their physical gold stock? Do you have an explanation for this development?

Buyers are developing economies that show strongly growing official reserves or where gold traditionally only constituted a small portion of the reserves. There is also a wide group of countries that have sold gold the past decade (including France, Spain, UK and Switzerland)

Quote of the century: “Don’t buy gold – it’s not backed by anything. Unlike the U.S. Dollar which is backed by the government and is going to be around for awhile” WOW can you believe this?

Source: http://www.goldcore.com/

Utah Coin Act

Recently, I was interviewed on the Fox Business Channel regarding the Utah Legal Coin Act. Here is a little background and some interview questions.

For the first time since 1971, gold and silver are once again considered legal tender in at least one part of the United States. The State of Utah passed the “Utah Legal Tender Act,” which “recognizes gold and silver coins that are issued by the federal government as legal tender in the state and exempts the exchange of the coins from certain types of state tax liability.”

The law, signed by Governor Gary Herbert on March 25, is a voluntary system that provides an alternative to the fiat-based Federal Reserve notes that are created out of thin air in unprecedented proportions.

The most significant change from a practical perspective is that the Utah’s state tax code now considers gold and silver coins issued by the U.S. Mint as currency rather than an asset, which means since it is considered money it cannot be taxed. However, federal taxes still apply on these transactions.

1. What is this Utah Legal Coin Act about?

The Utah Legal Tender Act (HB 317) is designed to reinstate gold and silver coin as an optional medium of exchange in Utah intrastate commerce. The bill recognizes the inherent and inalienable right of citizens to voluntarily employ these time-tested, inflation-proof, complementary currencies to foster economic development throughout the state. The bill draws its authority from Article 1, Section 10 of the United States Constitution which provides that no state shall make anything but gold and silver coin a tender for payment of debts. Grounded in long-standing principles enshrined in the supreme law of the land, this statute addresses current, pressing monetary issues in modern American society—issues to which gold and silver coin solutions are uniquely suited.

2. Why do we want/need sound money?

Because the founders of our nation had experienced first-hand the ills attendant with unbacked fiat currency, they provided in Article 1, Section 10 of the United States Constitution that no state is to make anything but gold and silver coin tender for payment of debts. Unfortunately, we’ve departed from the wisdom they imparted, and embraced a medium of exchange that has no intrinsic value whatsoever. The value of today’s dollar is upheld by governmental edict, backed only by the indebtedness of our nation and its citizens. Because of sharp increases in our money supply, our national debt is on an upward trajectory, set shortly to eclipse our gross domestic product. Since there is no historical precedent for a totally fiat money system such as ours ever lasting more than a few decades, prudence dictates that alternative, sound means of exchange be put in place well in advance of any potential crises, such as those endured by the fiat-financed nations and empires of the recent and distant past.

Even absent the specter of catastrophic consequences, an alternative sound money system confers many benefits on citizens and state governments alike. Such a system serves as a refuge from the ills that fiat money produces, including the insidious “inflation tax” that our current monetary system imposes. Consider that the U.S. dollar has lost more than 95% of its purchasing power since decoupling from gold and silver backing. By contrast, sound money systems of the past continued virtually inflation-proof for centuries on end.

3. Are there other states that are looking at something similar?

Virginia House Joint Resolution 557
Georgia Constitutional Tender Act
Ohio Honest Money Project
Idaho Silver Gem Act, Bill No. 633
South Carolina House Bill No. 4501
Missouri House Bill No. 561
Washington House Joint Memorial 4010
Colorado Honest Money Act (HB09-1206)
Indiana Senate Bill No. 453
Montana House Bill No. 639
New Hampshire Gold Money Bill 1.1.

4. Why are the states doing this and not the Federal Government?

Because of the co-dependent relationship between Congress and the Federal Reserve, the likelihood of any sound money reform coming out of Washington is remote indeed. Individual states, exercising their sovereign authority, are best equipped to restore sound money to its prior status as a trading currency. So look for a sound money comeback on a state-by-state basis. It makes sense to first support states that are well positioned to make sound money a reality today. Then as the movement gains momentum, reluctant jurisdictions will see the advantages of embracing sound monetary systems.

More information can be found at www.utahsoundmoney.org.

We have received feedback on this from many people so far and many are of the belief that Gresham’s Law will mean that no one will spend real money (gold or silver) into circulation. We will not argue with the concept but will make the case that the market will decide and perhaps there will be some who want to “spend” their profits into the community. For example, when silver was approaching the $50 level there could have been (in theory) people who wanted to take advantage of that price and spend some profits for some good or service.

Also, we think that some merchants favorable to sound money principals might offer a discount for real money being used in a transaction. We can envision two prices—a silver price and a fiat price. Again, the market will decide and it is our hope that real money circulates enough to encourage other states to adopt such measures.

We find it interesting that some of the opponents of the law come from the CPM Group:

Opponents of the law warn such a policy shift nationwide could increase the prospect of inflation and could destabilize international markets by removing the government’s flexibility to quickly adjust currency prices.

“We’d be going backward in financial development,” said Carlos Sanchez, director of Commodities Management for The CPM Group in New York. “What backs currency is confidence in a government’s ability to pay debt, its government system and its economy.”

Larry Hilton, a Utah attorney who helped draft the law, disagrees and says the gold standard would restore faith in American money at a time when spiraling debt is weakening confidence.

“We view this as a dollar-friendly measure,” Hilton said. “It will strengthen the dollar by refocusing policy matters in Washington on what led to the phrase, ‘the dollar is as good as gold.’”

We, of course, side on the principle of sound money and think the U.S. has not instilled confidence for a very long time. I am scheduled to fly to Utah and be with Governor Gary R. Herbert for a ceremonial signing of this law. We again are hopeful that other states will follow and the principle of fair weights and measures will once again be restored to the people.

Summary

We applaud Utah and are anxious to see if this is a moral victory, or actually becomes a trend. In our view a great deal depends upon how the implementation process proceeds. David Morgan interview the creator of the bill and this will be published in the July issue of The Morgan Report.

David Morgan

Become a member today: http://www.silver-investor.com/amember/signup.php

Source: http://www.silver-investor.com/blog/silver-market-update/utah-coin-act/

From the DailyCaller

Television viewers are used to seeing commercials that encourage them to exchange their gold for money.

Now, they can expect to see commercials suggesting they exchange their money for gold, thanks to American Principles in Action, a group that advocates the gold standard.

On Thursday, the group launched two television ads that encourage viewers to support a return to the gold standard. The first ad portrays a senator confessing his national spending problem to his psychiatrist, who suggests that he adopt the gold standard to limit the amount of money he can print and spend.

The second ad addresses the problems with a currency that can fluctuate in value, with citizens watching paper currency literally shrink in their wallets.

The goal of these ads, according to Policy Director for American Principles in Action Jeff Bell, is to bring awareness to voters in the hopes that it becomes a major issue in the 2012 election. Currently, the only candidate bringing attention to this issue is Ron Paul, who is a staunch supporter.

(Presidential candidates to speak at pro-gold standard events)

The ads are being shown in Iowa to get the attention of those attending the Iowa caucus early next year.

“The main thing is to get the caucus-goers to ask the right questions of the candidates,” he said.

Despite the lack of national attention, Bell is confident that there is a growing interest with officials at the state level. “They’re willing to go outside of the box,” he said, explaining that state officials are more willing than national politicians to tackle “gold and other things that might be seen as bold.

“They’re much more open to that at the state level,” he said, “in part because they’re closer to the people.”

Earlier this year, Utah became the first state to recognize gold and silver coins as legal tender. The bill was passed in March and took effect in May. According to Bell, twelve other states are attempting to pass similar legislation, “and the number has been growing.” Inspired by the current economic situation and Utah’s success story, “the interest has taken a quantum leap in the last few months,” Bell said.

(Conservatives may be able to harness youth disillusionment in 2012)

Bell is optimistic that interest will continue to grow. “I think that people sense that something is wrong,” he said. “[The gold standard] really gives the people control of the money supply. It takes it away from Ph.D.s and elites in Washington.”

Original Article by Kate Tummarello Published: 10:09 AM 06/17/2011    Source: http://dailycaller.com/2011/06/17/new-ads-encourage-voters-to-support-gold-standard/

Some other gold standard web sites to read are:

GoldStandard2012 — http://goldstandard2012.com/

TheGoldStandardNow — http://www.thegoldstandardnow.org/