**poll**

[Matthew Crosby]

In article <klSgr.03GlH.4.ntn0 at seanews.akita.com>,
Bill McCormick <billmcc at akita.com> wrote:
>In article <byoderD4ACGL.II at netcom.com>, byoder at netcom.com (Brian K. Yoder) says:
>>In article <3hondn$a1b at lace.Colorado.EDU> buckley at refuge.Colorado.EDU (Charles Buckley) writes:
>>>  When paper money wa first introduced into the US, it was printed
>>>by private banks. The amount of forgeries were staggering. It was 
>>>estimated that up to 1/3 of all currency in the US was counterfeit
>>>(source: The hacker Crackdown. Bruce Sterling). 
>>
>>Actually, I have some copies of currency at that time, and the crude 
>>nature of printing technology at the time had a lot more to do with
>>the counterfeit rate at the time than the fact that it was private banks.
>>Do you seriously think that governments are soehow better able to 
>>produce uncounterfeitable items than private banks?  Get real.
>
>Simple experiment. Which is easier to conterfeit? A US$20 bill or an
>US$20 American Express Traveller's Cheque?
>
>Looks like the private banks have it all over the government here.

Only the Merkin government, and that is mainly because Americans are so 
conservative.  If you look at most other currencies, their is a big
difference.  Check out, for instance, Australian money (which is plastic)

I have just one question for those who want to return to the gold standard:
Have you seen the price of gold lately?  Do you realise how much the gold
supply has increased this century?  Why on earth do you think it will
reduce inflation?

IMHO, if it ever gets to the point where we would need the gold standard
(ie, if the Fed changes its policies, or looses control), then I wouldn't
trust them to stick with it anyway, so it makes no difference.


-- 
Matthew Crosby                                         crosby at cs.colorado.edu
Disclaimer:  It was another country, and besides, the wench is dead.