Local Currency Plan

[truthforsooth]

Sorry I came into this discussion late, but I'd like to refer back to:

The transition Town movement is introducing several local currencies in England. I don't really support their ideas so far. First of all, you have to buy one alternative 'pound' with a normal pound. One is simply swapping national currency for local currency. The idea is that the novelty factor will encourage people to spend more in the local area.

My understanding of the Transition Towns currency is that you buy (say) 10 local pounds for 9 national pounds. You can spend these in any participating local shop. You get £10 local retail value for £9 of national money, and the local shopkeepers get your business in exchange for this 10/9 (is that 11 per cent?) discount. They make that much less markup on their sale, but at least they get your business.

[PigPus the Truthteller]

Yes, but the IOU would be issued in exchange for national currency. It is a way for a business to get a loan from its customers if the banks do not lend. It is not really an alternative money supply.



The transition Town movement is introducing several local currencies in England. I don't really support their ideas so far. First of all, you have to buy one alternative 'pound' with a normal pound. One is simply swapping national currency for local currency. The idea is that the novelty factor will encourage people to spend more in the local area.

Secondly, the alternative pounds are not acceptable for taxes. History demonstrates that a currency must be accepted as payment for taxes or other state charges if it is to survive.



The most successful so far. We should look at that more than the others. It is similar to the scrip currency issued by Franklin's Philadelphia and the Greenback.

You would be issueing the IOU denominated in Hours of Work, which is all you have got, you value it at 10 euros.

The efforts where the local currency is exchangable for sterling at a fixed rate are of no real benefit as they are just examples of currency boards.


Forget about the greenback in this discussion. The aim of the local currency is to avoid the government.

[PigPus the Truthteller]

When did America have a socialist government?

Local currency - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The example being discussed was in Austria.

"In spite of the tangible benefits of the program, it met with stiff opposition from the regional socialist party and from the Austrian central bank, which opposed the local currency as an infringement on its powers over the currency. As a result the program was suspended, unemployment rose, and the local economy soon degenerated to the level of other communities in the country"

[Kensington]

I just disagree on how you plan to regulate. I dont see how a Dublin Central Bank would be any better at than the ECB or an Irish Central Bank.

Ok, first of all, the Central bank would be the only institution that could create money. They would have exclusive direct control over the money supply.

When it comes to local currency, it would work simmilarly. The local council would have exclusive direct control over the local money supply. Maybe, we could elect the leader of the local central bank as we do a councillar. A local currency would only ever account for maybe 20% to 30% of the money supply. It would benefit the local community, but if it worked, would show that that system could work on a national level. The ultimate aim is a national government-issued money.

If you and me could come up with a better way on how notes created, we may actually have something.

Well, notes and coins are created by the Government debt-free as it is. The problem is that they only account for maybe 2% of the total money supply. The other 98% is simply digital created as debt by banks. I want the 98% digital money to be created just like the 2% currency is now created- debt-free by the Governemnt.

There's not a lot that needs to be done so long as two things hold true:

1. The businesses still accept legal tender (i.e. Euro)

2. You have to pay your taxes in Euro.

Would it be acceptable for local taxes and charges to be paid in local currency?

What if these things were called vouchers? Could a local council not give out vouchers for local taxes, and then allow the vouchers be traded on the open market?

[Christel]

I think the town of Ballinasloe introduced a similar system in recent months. The LETS system is what its called.

<LETS.html>

We had a Lets system in my area until probably 5 years ago. It was given up, because interest faded, as "people were well off" then. It wasn't taken up really by true "locals" anyway, though.

Still it had remit. It was also a nice way to get to know people at the "Lets fairs".

[Christel]

The amount of money in the economy has to be regulated and money has to be universally accepted so as to perform its function as a medium of exchange. It, therefore, has to be regulated by some authority.

Why has the amount of money to be regulated?

Mutual acception I can see as necessary.

Like a language. It needs to be understood to work as a tool to exchange thoughts etc.

But we produce it all ourselves whenever we want to exchange.

Why is this not possible with money?

I assume because money is not just an exchange tool, but also a measurement tool. That's the difference to language? Is that necessarily so?

[localcurrency]

Ireland already has local currencies.
Kenmar Youro
Kenmare Youro Transitiontownkenmare’s Blog
and
The Liquidity Network

Mark
Community Currency Magazine

[Kensington]

[QUOTE]Why has the amount of money to be regulated?[QUOTE]

If too much money is created, as would probably happen, it would be inflationary. Money's job is to be a medium of exchange which is universally accepted and a store of value.

As we all know, prices have inflated by about a factor of 50 over the last, maybe, 100 years. This is because inherent in our present debt-based system is the need for the money supply to constantly increase.

Runaway inflation or deflation can devastate an economy and peoples' savings and the supply of money needs to be regulated to combat it.

[flamez911]

If local currencies were so fantastic, then in a world where they weren't regulated, everyone would start using local currency, and eventually it would devolve into city- (or even district-) states.

It's an idea which on a very small scale can benefit one local economy at the expense of others around it, but on a large scale it would be economically crippling, since it's basically ultra-protectionism on a very low level.

[PigPus the Truthteller]

Ireland already has local currencies.
Kenmar Youro
Kenmare Youro Transitiontownkenmare’s Blog
and
The Liquidity Network

Mark
Community Currency Magazine

Thanks a million youros for posting, I watched both parts of the presentation. It was very uplifting. Am I reading correctly between the lines that once the people is familiar with them and a trust level is built up that the setting aside of euros will be dispensed with.

The whole concept of begging some crowd of crooks in Europe for a few euro that they can print at will is insane.

I assume ye get zero encouragement from politicians. Ye should get a grant for printing and advertizing.

Note how the opening poster wanted the county council to issue. Regardless of the benifits some will want the state to retain control.

That man should run in the next election on this very idea.