Hunter Beast

“In other words, the modern financial structure results in neocolonialist value extraction in a similar (albeit less direct) way to how outright colonialism did. The method involves financial coercion instead of violent warfare.”
― Lyn Alden, Broken Money: Why Our Financial System is Failing Us and How We Can Make it Better

“Mr. President, I will transmit your message within the hour. Please keep in mind, however, the time differential between Washington and Moscow—” “I know that a weekend has just begun, and that the Soviet Union is a worker’s paradise, but I expect that some of your country’s managers may still be at work.”
― Tom Clancy, The Hunt for Red October

“It’s not so much that a strong or weak currency is inherently good or bad per se, but rather that an artificially strong or weak currency relative to a country’s trade balance is bad. If a country has a persistent trade surplus but constantly weakens its otherwise-appreciating currency by accumulating central bank reserves (mercantilism), then value is siphoned away from workers and toward the leaders. Similarly, if a country has a persistent trade deficit but has an extra monetary premium built onto its otherwise-depreciating currency due to its imperial prowess, then its workers are not very competitive in terms of global labor rates and will likely stagnate, while their political leaders, multinational corporations, and wealthy elite will thrive.”
― Lyn Alden, Broken Money: Why Our Financial System is Failing Us and How We Can Make it Better

“Many Americans assume that part of maintaining quality of life in the country means that we should do whatever we can to maintain the status quo situation of the dollar as the world reserve currency. However, I view it differently. The status quo of the dollar’s hegemony has directly contributed to the domestic hollowing-out that we’ve experienced for decades — especially after the Cold War ended. The system that has been in place since the 1970s is antiquated monetary technology and is inherently unsustainable due to the accrued imbalances that it creates. Losing dollar hegemony at this point would harm special interests in the United States, would reduce the country’s imperial reach, and would require a shift of priorities, but ultimately it would lead toward a more natural and balanced global economy and provide the opportunity for U.S. domestic revitalization. The risk comes when we fail to recognize that and thus fail to make proactive changes from a position of strength. And so far, that’s the path we’ve chosen.”
― Lyn Alden, Broken Money: Why Our Financial System is Failing Us and How We Can Make it Better