sound money

Bloomberg: Bitcoin May Be the Global Economy’s Last Safe Haven

"One of the oddest bits of news to emerge from the economic collapse of Cyprus is a corresponding rise in the value of Bitcoin, the Internet’s favorite, media-friendly, anarchist crypto-currency. Bitcoin thrives where people would prefer to throw in their lot with anonymous strangers instead of the world economy. It’s gold-bug thinking reinvented for an age of fluid transparency and instantaneous transactions. And as such it’s an excellent indicator of anxiety. Where you see Bitcoins in action you find a weird and heady mix of speculative angst, a fear of being left behind, and people who appear to have lost faith in institutions, who feel most left behind." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBloomberg: Bitcoin May Be the Global Economy’s Last Safe Haven

Cyprus bank controls to last a month, minister says

"Cyprus conceded on Thursday that tight capital controls would remain in force longer than expected as the island's banks reopened for the first time after the government was forced to accept a tough EU rescue package to avoid bankruptcy. The government initially said the controls would remain in place for a week, subject to review. Economists say they will prove hard to lift as long as the economy is in crisis. To help the Cyprus banks weather the crisis, the European Central Bank flew in 5 billion euros ($6.4 billion) in cash overnight from Frankfurt, a German newspaper reported." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCyprus bank controls to last a month, minister says

Cyprus and the Unraveling of Fractional-Reserve Banking

"The 'Cyprus deal' as it has been widely referred to in the media may mark the next to last act in the the slow motion collapse of fractional-reserve banking that began with the implosion of the savings-and-loan industry in the U.S. in the late 1980s. This trend continued with the currency crises in Russia, Mexico, East Asia, and Argentina in the 1990s in which fractional-reserve banking played a decisive role. Even more than the unprecedented financial crisis of 2008, however, recent events in Cyprus may have struck the mortal blow to fractional-reserve banking. For fractional-reserve banking can only exist for as long as the depositors have complete confidence." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCyprus and the Unraveling of Fractional-Reserve Banking

Betray Your Bank Before Your Bank Betrays You

"The way it’s supposed to work at failing banks is that shareholders get wiped out first. Next the losses go up the ladder from junior debt holders to senior bondholders, and then all the way to uninsured depositors, if need be. Taxpayers and insured depositors shouldn’t have to absorb others’ losses or put money at risk to spare them. Troubled banks should have to fend for themselves. This was the approach imposed on Cyprus. In ordinary circumstances, it would be considered fair. The best argument for why it wasn’t is that Cyprus had been lulled into believing it would be treated just as well as Europe’s other bailout recipients." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBetray Your Bank Before Your Bank Betrays You

Evaluating Drug Decriminalization in Portugal 12 Years Later

"Twelve years ago, Portugal eliminated criminal penalties for drug users. Since then, those caught with small amounts of marijuana, cocaine or heroin go unindicted and possession is a misdemeanor on par with illegal parking. Experts are pleased with the results." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEvaluating Drug Decriminalization in Portugal 12 Years Later

Seized drugs stolen from Fribourg police building

"Red-faced police in the canton of Fribourg are admitting that 34 kilograms of hashish and marijuana seized by officers from drug offenders has been stolen from a warehouse. Police had stored 28.6 kilograms of hash and 4.8 kilograms of pot, seized from three different investigations, in a building in Châtillon, near the city of Fribourg. The drugs were likely stolen in late November or early December last year but the theft was only recently noticed, according to media reports. Cantonal police said they discovered that a metal bar on one of the windows at the rear of the warehouse had been sawn off on December 5th." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingSeized drugs stolen from Fribourg police building

Kentucky Legislature Passes Hemp Bill, Rand Paul Vows Support From D.C.

"The Kentucky Senate joined the House in approving a hemp regulation bill last night. This morning, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) released a statement applauding the bill's passage and promising to continue to push for a federal waiver from the Controlled Substances Act for future Kentucky hemp growers." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingKentucky Legislature Passes Hemp Bill, Rand Paul Vows Support From D.C.

Tea Partier Rand Paul Shows Up Obama on Drug Policy

"Despite President Obama's youthful flirtation with drugs, the Obama administration has repeatedly refused to acknowledge America's turning tide in the so-called war on drugs. A recent Quinnipiac poll found that a majority of Americans now support legalizing marijuana use. This has become a more mainstream position in recent years as states began to decriminalize the drug, despite federal statute, and as more members of the medical community have affirmed the drug's medicinal benefits, particularly for those battling chronic or terminal ailments." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingTea Partier Rand Paul Shows Up Obama on Drug Policy

Afghan villagers flee their homes as US drones terrorize them

"Barely able to walk even with a cane, Ghulam Rasool says he padlocked his front door, handed over the keys and his three cows to a neighbor and fled his mountain home in the middle of the night to escape relentless airstrikes from U.S. drones targeting militants in this remote corner of Afghanistan. Rasool and other Afghan villagers have their own name for Predator drones. They call them benghai, which in the Pashto language means the 'buzzing of flies.' When they explain the noise, they scrunch their faces and try to make a sound that resembles an army of flies." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAfghan villagers flee their homes as US drones terrorize them

Louisiana: Jefferson Parish To Refund Red Light Camera Tickets

"Officials in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana are moving forward on plans to refund $4.7 million in red light camera tickets. About 284,000 tickets were issued in the program until it was suspended over ethical concerns on January 27, 2010 -- long before the Chicago scandal broke. In light of the early revelations of impropriety, a third of recipients threw their photo tickets in the garbage. Redflex had paid a 3.2 percent cut of the firm's profit on each ticket issued to lobbyist Bryan Wagner, a former New Orleans city councilman, who in turn shared the funds with the wife of District Judge Robert Murphy." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingLouisiana: Jefferson Parish To Refund Red Light Camera Tickets