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People of Lakota Launch Private Bank for Only Silver and Gold Currencies

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Natalie replied on Mon, Nov 24 2008 3:17 PM

Let's see how long it takes for them to be taken down by IRS under some pretext or another.

If I hear not allowed much oftener; said Sam, I'm going to get angry.

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Pyramid replied on Mon, Nov 24 2008 3:20 PM

Yeah.  I hope this goes really far but it's a step in the right direction.

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Charlie G replied on Mon, Nov 24 2008 4:38 PM

Pyramid, thanks for posting this. Smile

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Natalie:
Let's see how long it takes for them to be taken down by IRS under some pretext or another.

I'm not sure how the treaties are worded, and since the Free Lakota have said they dissolved the treaty or some such...technically they aren't part of the US. So technically, the IRS can't do a damned thing, AFAIK.

 

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ladyattis replied on Mon, Nov 24 2008 4:57 PM

Knight_of_BAAWA:
So technically, the IRS can't do a damned thing, AFAIK.

Sovereignty doesn't matter as they have the bigger guns.

"The power of liberty going forward is in decentralization.  Not in leaders, but in decentralized activism.  In a market process." -- liberty student

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Pyramid replied on Mon, Nov 24 2008 5:37 PM

With the dollar being almost worthless I'd really like to get my money in this bank were something solid is backing it.  I'm not sure of all the legal stuff but more and more people are realizing the dangers of a fiat currency and the dangers of the FED.

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Knight_of_BAAWA:
So technically, the IRS can't do a damned thing, AFAIK.

ladyattis:
Sovereignty doesn't matter as they have the bigger guns.

I'd actually like to see that. I'm sure it would be reminiscent of the Hollywood cowboy/indian movies--only with sympathy on the side of the Lakota. I think it would be a PR nightmare for the federal government, and the IRS/Treasury dept. would have no option but to back off.

 

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The buy in costs are too high though.  $40 for one ounce of silver?

"When you're young you worry about people stealing your ideas, when you're old you worry that they won't." - David Friedman
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Pyramid replied on Mon, Nov 24 2008 6:31 PM

Isn't that a one time fee though?

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Paul replied on Mon, Nov 24 2008 9:14 PM

Pyramid:

Isn't that a one time fee though?

No; it's a limited-time offer of $40/oz for 1-5oz, $35/oz for 6-10oz, etc.; with a face value of "fifty" (dollars, presumably), which will be the final price...stupid to put a dollar value on it, and $40/oz, or even $14.50/oz (for >500 oz) is just way too expensive.

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ladyattis replied on Mon, Nov 24 2008 11:37 PM

Knight_of_BAAWA:
I think it would be a PR nightmare for the federal government, and the IRS/Treasury dept. would have no option but to back off.

 

In the modern age of media spin, fat chance of the Nation not getting turned into a pariah. I'm not saying there wouldn't be sympathy, but just from my "average Joe" friends on Second life and other online chat services, the attitude tends to be this: Society owns you and the State is the 'club' of society, so you better be 'good' on Society's terms or else. And that's the kind of attitude that has to be fought in such a battle, more so than bombs and tanks.

"The power of liberty going forward is in decentralization.  Not in leaders, but in decentralized activism.  In a market process." -- liberty student

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The best weapon in a PR war is always sunlight. 

"When you're young you worry about people stealing your ideas, when you're old you worry that they won't." - David Friedman
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10Brandonr replied on Mon, Nov 24 2008 11:58 PM

But even if the government, for the first time in its history, actually respected a treaty with the native american governments, how could this currency be considered legal, despite being in direct violation of Federal Legal tender laws? (especially since they claim the movement it is not a act of secession, thus meaning they still have to obey federal law.)

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Of course it's not secession: the native american tribes have treaties with the US, and the US recognizes them as sovereign nations.

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Pyramid replied on Tue, Nov 25 2008 10:09 AM

My main question is, how is this bank different than a holding house?  I cannot use silver or gold as a means of exchange at Macy's, Carl's Jr or wherever. Do the Lakota have a different monetary system?

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DBratton replied on Tue, Nov 25 2008 5:10 PM

Knight_of_BAAWA:
and the US recognizes them as sovereign nations.

Sovereign in name only. The US interferes with the Indian tribes whenever and however it chooses. They even reserve the right to judge which groups are Indian tribes.

 

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DBratton replied on Tue, Nov 25 2008 5:18 PM

Pyramid:
I cannot use silver or gold as a means of exchange at Macy's, Carl's Jr or wherever. Do the Lakota have a different monetary system?

According to their website you can make private payments to other Lakota bank customers in silver. The utility of this is that you can make payments that are not traceable by the IRS, the FBI, the SEC, or anyone else. The government will find an excuse to shut this operation down. Something like this has to be done off-shore.

What is really needed is a competing system of electronic payments similar to the credit card clearing system. Such a system, based beyond the reach of the US courts and US surveillance, would do more to secure American liberties than all the wars we've ever fought.

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Byzantine:

Pyramid:
With the dollar being almost worthless I'd really like to get my money in this bank were something solid is backing it.  I'm not sure of all the legal stuff but more and more people are realizing the dangers of a fiat currency and the dangers of the FED.

If the dollar is worthless, then it makes even more sense to trade it for valuable things like gold, silver, cars, land, etc.  Gold and silver are only economic as currency when people WON'T take paper money.  Until such time, you should HOARD gold and silver, not use them in exchange.


I was considering buying into some of this as I haven't done much of any hoarding thus far.  Despite the high cost, I'm willing to own a few pieces of silver as a just-in-case.  Does anyone else think this might be worthwhile to invest in while it's operating?

"Look at me, I'm quoting another user to show how wrong I think they are, out of arrogance of my own position. Wait, this is my own quote, oh shi-" ~ Nitroadict

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Raize replied on Wed, Nov 26 2008 2:01 AM

liberty student:

The buy in costs are too high though.  $40 for one ounce of silver?

Agreed. If anyone else is thinking of doing this, fair warning, this is a huge scam.

One ounce of silver runs just over $10 right now. If you're going to try to make the argument that $30 covers a well-deserved profit and costs for minting, then that's your prerogative.

Please, if you have never purchased silver before, do not start doing so now with the Lakota Bank, there are much more fair and reasonable alternatives out there for you. That's also not to say they might become more reasonable in the future, it's just that right now you're paying a hefty amount of money for the novelty of it all.

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DBratton replied on Wed, Nov 26 2008 3:05 AM

Raize:

Please, if you have never purchased silver before, do not start doing so now with the Lakota Bank...

From what I can glean from their website the Lakota bank has two lines of business. They accept silver on deposit, store it for a monthly fee, and facilitate government opaque transfers between their customers. They also sell numismatic coins. The coins are no bargain, but then I'd say the same about the Franklin Mint coins. I wouldn't begrudge the bank a bit of profit if they can make it though.

 

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Paul replied on Wed, Nov 26 2008 4:37 AM

Raize:

liberty student:

The buy in costs are too high though.  $40 for one ounce of silver?

Agreed. If anyone else is thinking of doing this, fair warning, this is a huge scam.

One ounce of silver runs just over $10 right now

No; 1000 ounces of silver costs $10.30/oz right now - if you want 1oz minted rounds you'll pay a bit more: probably between $1 and $2/oz more than that, but certainly don't pay $30/oz more - that's just crazy!

(But I don't think it's a scam, as such; it's the same nonsense the Liberty Dollar people were pulling - they put a dollar value on the thing, and expect it to exchange for that dollar-equivalent, so it has to be higher than the silver price to keep the things in circulation as the dollar falls)

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Raize replied on Wed, Nov 26 2008 9:55 AM

I guess I look at it from the perspective of buying into Exchange Traded Funds (ETF) like SLV and GLD. You can buy one share of SLV for 10.23, and while that might be an oversimplification of the price per ounce, it's enough to show that a $30/ounce markup isn't a good investment unless you are a coin collector.

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Harksaw replied on Thu, Nov 27 2008 4:34 PM

Paul:

Pyramid:

Isn't that a one time fee though?

No; it's a limited-time offer of $40/oz for 1-5oz, $35/oz for 6-10oz, etc.; with a face value of "fifty" (dollars, presumably), which will be the final price...stupid to put a dollar value on it, and $40/oz, or even $14.50/oz (for >500 oz) is just way too expensive.

$40 an ounce is absolutely crazy, but 14.50 is completely reasonable.

 

Though, I'd be way too wary of fraud or a government seizure to send seven grand in the mail to them for something that might not turn up.

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Paul replied on Thu, Nov 27 2008 6:55 PM

Harksaw:

Paul:

Pyramid:

Isn't that a one time fee though?

No; it's a limited-time offer of $40/oz for 1-5oz, $35/oz for 6-10oz, etc.; with a face value of "fifty" (dollars, presumably), which will be the final price...stupid to put a dollar value on it, and $40/oz, or even $14.50/oz (for >500 oz) is just way too expensive.

$40 an ounce is absolutely crazy, but 14.50 is completely reasonable

Under normal conditions, you can buy coins in small quantities for 8-10% above spot; the cheapest I can find lately is 18% for 10 coins - that's $12.15 as I write.  How is paying over 40% for a large quantity "completely reasonable"?

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Harksaw replied on Thu, Nov 27 2008 10:14 PM

 

Paul:

Harksaw:

Paul:

Pyramid:

Isn't that a one time fee though?

No; it's a limited-time offer of $40/oz for 1-5oz, $35/oz for 6-10oz, etc.; with a face value of "fifty" (dollars, presumably), which will be the final price...stupid to put a dollar value on it, and $40/oz, or even $14.50/oz (for >500 oz) is just way too expensive.

$40 an ounce is absolutely crazy, but 14.50 is completely reasonable

Under normal conditions, you can buy coins in small quantities for 8-10% above spot; the cheapest I can find lately is 18% for 10 coins - that's $12.15 as I write.  How is paying over 40% for a large quantity "completely reasonable"?

http://catalog.usmint.gov/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?catalogId=10001&storeId=10001&categoryId=10120&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=10191&top_category=10191

 

Well, compare it to the US Mint currently selling proof 1 oz American Eagles for $31.95. It's not the best deal around, but it's better than most places selling new 1 oz rounds of bullion.

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Paul replied on Thu, Nov 27 2008 10:42 PM

Although the drawing on their site looks like a proof round, I don't think that's what they're selling - AFAICT it's supposed to be a circulating medium.

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uowned replied on Sun, Dec 7 2008 11:04 AM

Hello everyone!

My name is Gabriel Sukenik, and I am working as a currency officer for the American Open Currency Standard, a 100% silver-backed currency which will be launching tangentially with the Free Lakota Bank. For those who are interested in ordering silver, my next bulk order will be placed THIS FRIDAY - 12/12. If you would like to join in on this bulk order, please let me know! 1oz rounds will be available for $4.75 over spot price, which will be set on the day of the bulk order. Feel free to contact me with any questions or comments, and check out both www.opencurrency.com and www.freelakotabank.com for more information! To your freedom!

 

Gabriel Sukenik

AOCS New York

gabriel.sukenik@gmail.com

(914)-500-5342

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geo8rge replied on Wed, Dec 17 2008 7:38 AM

I am guessing that they are trying to get into the comemoritive coin business, which is fine with me. Some say the shortage in gold coins is due to government monopolies being unable to cope with demand, so a new entrant would be welcome.  I will not be impressed until the Lakota say all taxes will be paid in Lakota coin (or metal equivalent) and all gov salaries will be paid in Lakota coin.

  

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Harksaw replied on Wed, Dec 17 2008 10:40 AM

I would be extremely cautious with this company. First, the organization doing this has no association with the Republic of Lakotah. Secondly, there are none of these coins available on ebay, which leads me to conclude that none have been delivered to anyone thus far.

 

http://www.republicoflakotah.com/?p=421

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MacFall replied on Sun, Dec 21 2008 9:34 PM

DBratton:

Such a system . . . would do more to secure American liberties than all the wars we've ever fought.

Not a difficult feat. I'm pretty sure the Colonial Secession was the only American war that brought any sort of liberty, and that only short-lived.

Pro Christo et Libertate integre!

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