Utah Open Source Planet

I missed another Liberty Book Club meeting this week, but I have been reading the books. This month’s book was Murray Rothbard’s The Case Against the Fed, which you can buy from Amazon, The Ludwig von Mises Institute, or download for free (MP3s).

Anyone who wants to really understand the underlying causes of our dangerous boom and bust cycles really needs to read the The Case Against the Fed to understand how the Federal Reserve (and other similar central banks) manipulate our money supply. The Case Against the Fed does an excellent job of explaining how fractional reserve banking, “legalized counterfeiting”, and other other inflationary policies really do rob the poor to feed the rich. The book explains how our monetary policy, controlled exclusively by the Federal Reserve with almost no congressional oversight, is a direct cause of economic bubbles and ensuing recessions (or depressions). It even addresses how and why credit crunches occur.

I wish this book weren’t so painfully relevant, but it is. The Federal Reserve’s manipulation of our money supply has been an underlying cause of so much evil in our time –so much so that most of us have never known anything different. It’s like America suffers from battered-wife syndrome, and we’ve lived with it so long that we really don’t know anything else. The problem is hard to identify (our schools teach almost nothing about economics, let alone monetary policy), and possibly harder to admit. It’s like the whole world groans and doesn’t know why.

The current recession was caused by Federal Reserve. Sure, there were lots of other factors, but the Fed was the great enabler of them all. And now they come on their white horses to save us all. How? By consolidating even more wealth into even fewer hands, meanwhile continuing to destroy our currency.

And what do we get out of it? All we get is more debts and more taxes, “known instruments for bringing the many under the domination of the few…” This whole thing bailout thing is a complete farce.

How much has it cost America to be “rich”? It may well cost us everything.

We are apt to shut our eyes against a painful truth… Is this the part of wise men, engaged in a great and arduous struggle for liberty? Are we disposed to be of the number of those who, having eyes, see not, and having ears, hear not…? For my part, whatever anguish of spirit it may cost, I am willing to know the whole truth. —Patrick Henry

Please read The Case Against the Fed so you can begin to understand the real truth, and what to do about it. (Yes, the book actually recommends a sane remedy that doesn’t involve guns and pitchforks.) And if you’re interested in joining the Liberty Book Club, contact me and I can put you in touch with the folks that run it.

Also of note, Tomorrow (November 22nd) is End the Fed day. There will be rallies outside 39 Federal Reserve banks around the country, including Salt Lake City. What a great way to raise awareness about a terrible evil! Too long have private bankers manipulated and abused America!

From yesterday’s excellent Campaign for Liberty mailer:

After the Paulson $700 billion bailout package passed in early October, we knew it was only a matter of time before Congress moved to use your money yet again to bail out a struggling industry.

Now, a vote to give funds to the “Big 3″ auto manufactures, GM, Ford, and Chrysler, is likely to come up in the Senate tomorrow [today].

Call your Senators today and ask them to oppose bailing out the auto industry, whether with funds from TARP, revisions of previous loans, or any new grants. To find the information for your Senators, click on our “States” page and look for your state. Phone numbers and links to contact forms can be found near the bottom of each state’s page. We have included recommended letters at the end of this email to send your Senator.

Who knew when we started giving out “free money” with no strings attached that other people might want some as well? This whole thing is absolutely scandalous and inexcusable. Bailouts are nothing more than legalized theft.

Please sign up for Campaign for Liberty if you haven’t yet. Hopefully enough people will rally to the cause of liberty that we can put a stop to this kind of crap.

UVU is showing an important (although significantly flawed) documentary tonight. “I.O.U.S.A.” is important because it highlights just how bankrupt we are as a country. It describes how our current debt and obligations (unless significantly curtailed) will enslave future generations for years to come, essentially charging the cost of our glut to our children’s and grandchildren’s credit cards.

“I.O.U.S.A” is seriously flawed because it entirely ignores the very central role the Federal Reserve has played in enabling this glut. But it’s still important to see nonetheless. Here are the details:

OREM, UTAH — UVU Student Government, many UVU clubs, and the Concord Coalition are hosting a screening of the free full-length featured documentary titled “I.O.U.S.A.” The critically-acclaimed “I.O.U.S.A.” documentary, directed by Patrick Creadon (”Wordplay”), follows The Concord Coalition’s “Fiscal Wake-Up Tour” and tells the story of America’s four key deficits — budget, savings, balance of payments and leadership — and their implications for the nation and U.S. citizens. The movie, an official selection of the 2008 Sundance Film Festival, features Concord Coalition Executive Director Robert Bixby and Fiscal Wake-Up Tour keynote speaker, former Comptroller General of the U.S. David Walker. It contains interviews with Concord Coalition President Peter G. Peterson and Concord Board members Robert Rubin and Paul Volcker.

Democrats, Republicans, Independents, and Third Party members all agree that something must be done about the nation’s growing deficits and accumulating national debt. The topic of debt is too often ignored by the media and misunderstood by citizens. However, the national debt affects us all. This movie will leave you stunned and wondering why nobody is doing anything about it. The movie will cover the debts’ history and what can happen if we don’t immediately address the issue. The will be shown on November 3rd and held at the UVU Ragan Theater in the Student Center and is movie is free and open to the public. UVU is located at 800 West University Parkway Way, in Orem, UT. Doors open at 6:30 pm and the movie will begin promptly at 7:00 pm. For more information please visit www.iousathemovie.com or email Tyler at petersty[at]uvu.edu.

You can also view the condensed version of I.O.U.S.A. online.

On this election day eve, it’s important that we understand the fiscal crises facing Americal so we can take the steps necessary to correct our “leadership deficit” and get ourselves out of this mess before it’s too late. There is an alarming silence in Washington on the precient issues of over-spending and inflationary debt. I hope you watch this film so we can correct those issues before the price of our glut tears our country and families and apart.

If you think not being able to flip your house in a shrinking housing market is bad, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet.

Our government’s epidemic overspending and the Federal Reserve’s willingness to devalue your money by simpling printing more will eventually leave the American middle class impoverished as compounding interest drives taxpayers to their knees. The longer we glut, the more we’ll have to pay, and the more socialized we’ll have to become when the bills come due.

This is one of the most important issues of our day because the very freedom we enjoy depends on our ability to make good on our exponentially increasing debts.

“The fostering of full economic freedom lies at the base of our liberties. Only in perpetuating economic freedom can our social, political and religious liberties be preserved.”

Author: David O. McKay, Source: Church News, 3/12/52 via Quoty

Want more? Watch this video, courtesy (again) of the Chris Knudsen blog.

My brothers are such big Mitt Romney fans that they drove to Iowa to help get out the vote. I like Romney and even made a substantial donation to his campaign, but these days I’m a Ron Paul man, through and through.

I’ve actually been meaning to post about why I support Ron Paul for a long time, but who has time for that long of a blog post? Luckily, Chris Knudsen posted a series of videos that sum up the main reason I support the Ron Paul campaign. In them Glenn Beck interviews Ron Paul and US Comptroller General David Walker about how the United States government is basically bankrupt after mortgaging our future to pay for unnecessary programs. Basically, the money is gone, but the US government keeps spending like it’s going out of style –and nobody is acknowledging that the crap has to hit the fan sometime.

Anyway, please watch the videos. You will be amazed (disgusted) at the extent to which our government has sold us out.

Here are some other excellent posts Chris has on the subject:

• Fiscal Cancer
• David Walker is my Hero
• More from David Walker
• US Government Fails its Financial Audit for 11th Strait Year
• Subprime Nation

And finally, a brilliant quote from David Walker:

“We are mortgaging the future of our children and grandchildren at record rates, and that is not only an issue of fiscal irresponsibility - it’s an issue of immorality.”

It seems to me that Ron Paul gets this more than any other candidate, and that’s the main reason he has my vote.