Political Theory

Re: Competing Currencies in any Government

Bogart — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 14:28:33 GMT

No, government will not spare any amount of force in an effort to keep its little currency monopoly. Think Liberty Dollar???? Why keep capital gains on gold and silver, these are hoarding and not capital according to the monopoly currency holder?

Re: Competing Currencies in any Government

Greg — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 10:32:01 GMT

Zimbabwe is trying it now. See here, here, here. The second article has this to say:

Now shops are stocking up again, after the government in January agreed to allow retailers to conduct business in foreign currency.

The government has even stopped printing Zimbabwe dollars, which it once churned out in trillion-dollar denominations that quickly became worthless under inflation that independent economists estimated in the quadrillions.

The switch to foreign currency has already started bringing prices down in US dollar terms, according to official statistics which are being borne out at the till.

We'll see how it works out.

Competing Currencies in any Government

Luis Buenaventura — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 03:26:08 GMT

Can competing currencies even function in any government-seeing as how it would most likely require the government to force legal tender laws? Would it then be viable to say that competing currencies can only exist in an Anarcho-Capitist society?