Covering the history of centralized banking, the danger of today’s concentration of wealth in the hands of a few who are working to completely control humanity; and the need to reinvent money, devolve power to local communities, and create honest “home-grown” means of payment (liquidity). His highly acclaimed book, The End of Money and the Future of Civilization, is being revised, updated, and expanded to reveal how the dysfunctional money system operates, and how to reinvent money to enable the honest exchange of value. New chapters are being posted serially on Future Brightly, on his website, as well as on his Substack and Medium channels. Almost all his writings and accumulated resources for researchers and monetary innovators can be downloaded free at BeyondMoney.net.
You can view or download the video here or on Podbean
I am scheduled to be interviewed by Bruce de Torres on his World Stage program on Saturday, February 24, 2024 during the first segment of the program from 2 PM to 3 PM Eastern time (11 AM to Noon Pacific time, Noon to 1 PM Arizona time). You can tune in to listen live at https://tntradio.live/.
To satisfy my curiosity about AI, and ChatGPT in particular, I’ve been posing certain questions to it and been pleasantly surprised by the results. ChatGPT uses information that was publicly available online up to September 2021, so the responses that it generates will not include recent changes.
Here is one of my requests which, while much shorter, pretty well summarizes what I myself have written about the matter. I present it here for your information and your comments.
THG: Summarize the unique features of the work of Thomas H. Greco, Jr. on money and economics.
ChatGPT:
5/5 Thomas H. Greco, Jr. is known for his groundbreaking work on money and economics, focusing on alternative monetary systems and local economies. Some of the unique features of his work include:
Decentralized Monetary Systems: Greco advocates for the development of decentralized and community-based monetary systems that empower individuals and local communities to create their own means of exchange. He emphasizes the importance of currencies that are not controlled by centralized authorities like governments or banks.
Complementary Currencies: Greco promotes the idea of complementary currencies, which are designed to work alongside national currencies to facilitate local transactions and trade. These currencies are often tailored to specific communities or regions and can help stimulate local economies.
Democratization of Money Creation: He challenges the conventional model of money creation by banks and governments. Greco believes in the democratization of money issuance, allowing communities to create their own money based on real value and resources.
Mutual Credit Systems: Greco’s work includes the concept of mutual credit systems, where participants can extend credit to one another within a network. This can foster cooperation and exchange without the need for traditional banking intermediaries.
Localized Economies: He emphasizes the importance of localized economies that prioritize community resilience and sustainability. Greco’s work encourages communities to rely more on local production and resources to reduce dependency on distant supply chains.
Interest-Free Economics: Greco criticizes the conventional practice of charging interest on loans and believes that interest-free systems could lead to more equitable distribution of wealth and resources.
Advocacy for Change: Through his writings and lectures, Greco advocates for individuals, communities, and governments to explore and implement alternative economic and monetary systems. He believes that a shift away from the current monetary paradigm could lead to more just and sustainable economies.
In summary, Thomas H. Greco, Jr.’s work revolves around reimagining money and economics by proposing alternative monetary systems, promoting decentralized currencies, advocating for interest-free economies, and encouraging the development of localized, community-based economic structures. His ideas challenge conventional economic thinking and aim to create more resilient, equitable, and sustainable societies.
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Update: Monday, August 28, 2023 This iteration is a bit more complete:
Thomas H. Greco, Jr. is known for his unique contributions to the fields of money and economics, particularly in the realm of alternative currencies and monetary systems. Some of the key features of his work include:
Local and Complementary Currencies: Greco emphasizes the importance of local and complementary currencies as tools for promoting economic resilience and community development. He advocates for the creation of currencies that are tailored to specific communities or regions, helping to stimulate local economic activity and reduce dependence on centralized national currencies.
Decentralization of Money Creation: A central theme in Greco’s work is the decentralization of money creation. He believes that allowing communities to create their own currencies empowers them to meet their specific needs, bypassing the traditional centralized banking system and enabling greater control over their economic destiny.
Credit Clearing Systems: Greco explores the concept of credit clearing systems, which facilitate transactions without the need for traditional currency. These systems work by enabling participants to exchange goods and services directly based on mutual credit agreements, reducing the reliance on scarce official currency.
Integral Theory and Economics: Greco integrates principles of integral theory into his economic thinking, considering not only economic factors but also social, ecological, and cultural dimensions. He emphasizes the need for a holistic approach to economics that takes into account the interconnectedness of various aspects of human life.
Monetary Reform Advocacy: Greco is an advocate for monetary reform, particularly in response to issues such as inflation, financial instability, and wealth inequality. He proposes alternative monetary systems that prioritize stability, fairness, and sustainability.
Educational Efforts: Beyond his academic work, Greco is involved in educational efforts to raise awareness about alternative currencies and monetary systems. He has authored books and conducted workshops to help individuals and communities better understand and implement these concepts.
Focus on Empowerment: One of the overarching themes of Greco’s work is empowering individuals and communities to have a greater say in their economic affairs. He believes that by rethinking the way money is created and circulated, people can gain more control over their economic lives and reduce their vulnerability to systemic financial crises.
Sustainability and Resilience: Greco’s work aligns with the principles of sustainability and resilience. By promoting local economies and alternative currencies, he aims to create systems that are more environmentally friendly and less susceptible to the boom-and-bust cycles of traditional monetary systems.
In summary, Thomas H. Greco, Jr.’s work on money and economics revolves around the development of local and complementary currencies, decentralization of money creation, credit clearing systems, integral theory integration, monetary reform advocacy, educational initiatives, empowerment, and a focus on sustainability and resilience. His ideas challenge conventional economic thinking and offer potential solutions for creating more equitable and community-driven economic systems.
The US dollar is rapidly losing its status as the global “reserve currency.” One after another, nations outside of the western coalition are waking up to the fact that dollars are needed only to pay for imports that come from the United States. In trades with other countries they are choosing to begin paying one another by using their own currencies, as reported in videos like this. They are recognizing that the real resources that they own are much more valuable than the empty promises that are embodied in inflated US dollars or other political currencies. The exploitation of weaker nations by the western powers that has been ongoing for centuries is coming to an end and the emergence of a multi-polar world order is now unstoppable.
The Bretton Woods agreement that established the post-war world financial order in 1944 was based on the promise that US dollars would be redeemed for gold at $35 an ounce. But the continuous debasement of the dollar over the years made that completely unrealistic, and ultimately its impossibility was formally recognized when President Nixon in 1971 “closed the gold window” and announced that the US government was reneging on that commitment. It would no longer give gold for dollars except at the prevailing market price. From that point on the fate of the dollar was sealed; it was just a matter of time. Despite the imposition of a series of extreme financial, economic, political, and military measures by the US and its western allies, time has run out on dollar dominance and the unipolar world order.
The main questions now are, 1) to what further extremes will the western empire resort in its desperate effort to forestall the inevitable political reordering, and 2) what sorts of new monetary and financial arrangements will be established to supplant the old Bretton Woods arrangement?
Regarding the first of these, the past several decades have seen a succession of both covert and overt interferences designed to weaken or neutralize monetary dissidents and potential political and economic rivals. Notable among the former have been Saddam Hussein, who in 2000 began selling Iraqi oil for Euros instead of dollars, and Muammar Gaddafi the Libyan leader who had plans to launch a pan-African currency called the Gold Dinar to free Africa from American domination. As a consequence, both men were murdered and their countries destroyed. Following the NATO invasion of Libya, and the murder of Gaddafi, then Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, disgustingly and arrogantly boasted, “We came, we saw, he died!”
But nuclear armed Russia and China are not so easy to push around and brought to heel. When their Russian puppet Boris Yeltsin chose Vladimir Putin to succeed him as prime minister, the globalist western oligarchs thought they could continue to rape Russia and exploit its vast resources for their own purposes. But Putin surprised them with his loyalty to “Mother Russia” and his unwillingness to betray the Russian people to the globalists. Whatever we in the west might think about the man, his stance has clearly endeared him to the Russian people.
When the Soviet Union collapsed, the western powers promised not to move NATO farther to the east, but they have reneged on that promise, and one by one have brought the former Soviet republics into the western fold. [Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has elaborated on this point in his recent speech and highlighted the importance of respect for Russia’s legitimate security concerns if ever there is to be peace]. Then, in 2014 the CIA engineered the overthrow of the elected government in Ukraine and replaced it with their own puppet government to further pressure the Russian government to play ball. The perceived existential threat of NATO weapons, even nuclear ones, on their very doorstep, was too much for Russia’s leadership to bear. It should have come as no surprise to anyone that the Russians reacted as they did to counter that threat by launching their “special military operation.” Putin had stated repeatedly that he hoped to negotiate a deal that would respect Russia’s national security interests but the US government has chosen to perpetuate the war in order to weaken Russia and force it to submit. Former nuclear weapons inspector, Scott Ritter, with his military experience and vast knowledge of the region provides a much more nuanced picture of that siltation than the biased sound bites one typically gets from the mainstream media.
Farther to the east, China a major economic, political and military power, has also balked at submitting to a New World Order in which the Western Empire calls all the shots. So now the globalist oligarchs who control the US government see China as a major obstacle to their plan for establishing a trans-human, technocratic utopia under the control of the elite Super Class. Hence, we see continual saber rattling, military and political provocations, and endless prating about the “Chinese threat.”
Regarding a new system of exchange and finance, I expect that we may soon see the emergence of a multilateral system for clearing credits among nations, one that will be more along the lines of the Bancor plan that John Maynard Keynes proposed at Bretton Woods in 1944. Not that Keynes should be the last word on the matter, but he at least proposed a way of preventing trade deficits from becoming perpetual as they are now, by imposing a levy (interest) on positive balances, as well as negative balances, that would seem to eliminate the debt trap. Professor Perry Mehrling provides a brief description of the Bancor plan in this video.
I expect eventually to see the complete depoliticisation of money and the broader application of credit clearing directly among buyers and sellers at the level of individual traders, as they have been doing for decades through the scores of commercial trade exchanges that have been operating around the world. Money is, after all, merely an information system about credits and debits that enables goods and services that are sold to pay for other goods and services that are bought. Further, the settlement of accounts will be done not only through reciprocal exchange, but also through cooperative support and forgiveness of debts, which will bring with it greater fairness and finally a peaceful world. Indeed, there may someday be a world government, but it will not be imposed by force, nor will it be the product of greed and materialistic human minds.
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Addendum: In this excellent article, America Has Just Destroyed a Great Empire, Prof. Michael Hudson offers a history lesson that underlines the points I’ve made in my article.
Here is a small excerpt:
Having endowed the region’s cosmopolitan Temple of Delphi with substantial silver and gold, Croesus asked its Oracle whether he would be successful in the conquest that he had planned. The Pythia priestess answered: “If you go to war against Persia, you will destroy a great empire.”
Croesus therefore set out to attack Persia c. 547 BC. Marching eastward, he attacked Persia’s vassal-state Phrygia. Cyrus mounted a Special Military Operation to drive Croesus back, defeating Croesus’s army, capturing him and taking the opportunity to seize Lydia’s gold to introduce his own Persian gold coinage. So Croesus did indeed destroy a great empire, but it was his own.
Fast-forward to today’s drive by the Biden administration to extend American military power against Russia and, behind it, China. The president asked for advice from today’s analogue to antiquity’s Delphi oracle: the CIA and its allied think tanks. Instead of warning against hubris, they encouraged the neocon dream that attacking Russia and China would consolidate U.S. control of the world economy, achieving the End of History.
But that’s not the way it’s working out. Please read the full article.
What You Need to Know About Money. Currency, Credit, and Exchange
Abstract: There remains today, even among economists and “experts,” a general lack of understanding about the essential nature of money, currency and credit, and sound principles of their creation and management. This article provides a point-by-point summary of fundamental concepts and basic principles of exchange, it outlines the systemic defects and destructive nature of the dominant political, central banking, interest-based, debt-money system, and describes the ways in which honest and effective exchange media can be created on a decentralized basis outside of the banking system and in lieu of political money. A wider understanding of these points will lead to the widespread creation of honest exchange mechanisms and the devolution of financial, economic and political power that can change the course of civilization from self-destruction toward peace, justice, freedom and harmonious relationships.
The essential nature of money/currency A currency is a credit instrument, i.e., a promise to deliver valuable goods and/or services.
Basis of Issue A currency must therefore be issued into circulation on the basis of some value foundation, i.e., goods and/or services that the issuer is ready, willing, and able to sell immediately or in the near future.
Purpose of a currency The sole purpose of a currency is to facilitate the reciprocal exchange of value in the market. It is not a measure of value, nor is it a savings medium.
Reciprocal Exchange Reciprocal exchange is the voluntary exchange of one sort of value for another in the market.
Issuance A currency enters into circulation when a provider of value offers it to another seller who accepts it as payment for their own goods or services, i.e., it is spent into circulation, not sold for fiat political money.
Circulation If it is to serve as a currency, a credit instrument must circulate freely and can change hands many times before eventually returning to the issuer for redemption, not for political money, but for the goods or services that are the issuer’s stock in trade.
Redemption and Extinction A currency is redeemed and extinguished when the reciprocity circuit has been closed, i.e., when the issuer accepts it back as payment for the goods and/or services that they are prepared to deliver immediately or in the near term.
Liquidity Liquidity is quite simply the ability to pay, i.e., having a payment medium that is widely accepted.
Monetization Monetization is the process of converting the value of an illiquid asset into a liquid form, i.e., a form that can be used as a payment medium (money/currency).
Who is qualified to issue a currency? Since a currency is a promise to deliver value, only producers and providers of real value are qualified to issue a currency.
Fallacious myths about money
The belief that money must be issued and controlled by governments and/or central banks.
The belief that banks collectively should have a monopoly on the allocation of credit.
The belief that interest is a necessary element in money creation and finance. How is conventional political money issued, and who issues it?
Virtually all political fiat monies are created by banks when they grant loans.
What are the flaws in political money system, and what are their impacts?
Most bank loans are made on an improper, or inadequate, basis or foundation.
Government and central bank currencies are no longer defined in terms of any real concrete value unit.
Thus, most political money is illegitimate and dishonest.
The interest that banks charge on loans far exceeds the cost of providing the service of monetizing the value of the collateral assets. This causes debts in the aggregate to grow exponentially over time making it impossible for all borrowers to repay what they owe, and making it certain that some must fail.
The concentration of money power in the hands of ever larger banks, in collusion with central governments, concentrates financial, economic and political power in the hands of an elite “super class” and undermines democratic government.
Assertions and Prescriptions
To preserve any semblance of social justice, economic equity, individual freedom, and democratic government, power must devolve to people in their various communities. The only feasible way of achieving that is through the creation of independent and honest mechanisms for exchanging value.
Such honest mechanisms include private currencies issued by providers of real value, and credit clearing associations that allocate credit on a sound basis to producers of real value, and enable them to exchange value without reliance on bank borrowing or the use of political money.
Such systems are not new; they have long existed and need only to be optimized, standardized, and networked together to provide means of exchange that are locally controlled yet globally useful.
The future will see the proliferation of entities that organize and enable the allocation of interest-free exchange credit to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that are the backbone of resilient and sustainable community economies.
Standard procedures and protocols for credit allocation and management will emerge that will allow the effective networking of those entities into a global “internet of exchange” using credit that is locally controlled but globally useful.
____________________________ The Emerging New Civilization
Is our civilization collapsing? If so, what can be done about it? Can it still somehow be saved? If, not, what will be the impact on people in various places and cultures? What sorts of new systems and structures will emerge to take the place of the old?
These are some of the questions that my longtime friend and correspondent, Prof. Jem Bendell, addresses in his new book titled, BREAKING TOGETHER – a freedom-loving response to collapse. Having received and read an advance copy, I’ve been deeply impressed with the depth of Jem’s research and clarity of vision, and moved by his personal story of mind-change and commitment to advancing the common good. Far from doom and gloom, the message of this book is hopeful and inspiring.
In his introductory chapter, Recognising and Responding to Collapse, Prof. Bendell addresses these topics:
Finding our bearings in a world that’s lost
What is collapsing?
Why is this perspective not widely known?
Allowing the emotion of it all
From repentance to radicalization
Freedom from the failing of fables
Freeing humanity to our true nature
Breaking together
I strongly recommend that you listen to a reading of that chapter at SoundCloud. For information on purchasing Prof. Bendell’s, book, or to receive a free copy as an e-book, go to his website.
“Backlash against the COVID-19 fiasco of the last three years is building among a public that is slowly waking up to the unprecedented power grab and wealth transfer that took place under cover of a pandemic.”
“Can a coalition be built in a divided and suffering population to combat the political and economic nexus — namely the corrupt merger of state and corporate power — that is ruining the health of the people and the planet, and trampling our rights and freedoms in the process?”
“He (Prof. Jem Bendell) writes (in his new book, Breaking Together) that “climate concern is being highjacked by a mix of corporate profiteers and authoritarians, so that ineffective and counterproductive policies are being implemented and thereby generating a backlash against any kind of concerted action.”
His proposed solution is to reboot environmentalism into an “eco-libertarian” movement that seeks to protect both our freedoms and the environment from big corporations, corrupt governments and Davos elites.”
“In the overlap between the Left and Right versions of the popular revolt against the corrupt merger of state and corporate power, laid bare by the glaring abuses of the COVID-19 era, there may be room for unexpected political bedfellows to build a broad-based movement that appeals to significant segments of the electorate.”
Indeed, I’ve been seeing the emergence of what may become “a new grassroots populist majority that transcends the old boundaries of left, right, and green, liberal and conservative, rural and urban.” If we are to save democracy, the environment, and our very humanity, and build a just and equitable “new civilization,” we must overcome our knee-jerk reactions, listen deeply to each other, look at all the evidence, and build new alliances that transcend old labels and political rivalries. ____________________________ Fifth generation warfare and Sovereignty
“Fifth generation warfare is a war of information and perception,” and you are the enemy. In his excellent presentation, Dr. Robert Malone outlines the strategies, tactics, and technologies that are being used by “the national security state” to manipulate people’s emotions, and shape our thoughts, attitudes, values, and beliefs. He states that, “In fifth generation warfare your mind is the battleground,” and gives us guidance on how we can shield ourselves and ultimately win.
In this interview, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. recounts some essential history of his uncle’s Presidency, including his continuous battle with and the CIA and “the military-industrial complex” that President Eisenhower warned us against. Kennedy says flatly that “…the case against the CIA in the assassination of my uncle is beyond a reasonable doubt.” You can view a one minute video of his assertion from the New York Post.
The Most Dangerous Man in America is a documentary film about Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers. I first viewed it prior to its release in 2009 and then, a few days ago I got together with some friends and watched it again (on Kanopy). In light of what has transpired in the interim, it seems even more important now for people to be aware of it and grasp the significance of its message. In this interview with The Guardian (UK), looking back 50 years, Ellsberg says, “I’ve never regretted doing it.”
“The man who exposed US lies about the Vietnam war says the culture of official secrecy is worse today. But he urges whistleblowers: ‘Don’t wait years till the bombs are falling and people have been dying’”
____________________________ My Recent Interviews and Posts
In this interview I provide a succinct description of the present central banking, interest-based, debt money system and its dysfunctional nature, the global crisis that it has resulted from it, and what we can do to transcend it.
In this conversation we discuss our collective predicament and what people are doing to preserve our freedoms, assert our rights, and build a better world.
This post will be of particular interest both to monetary and economic researchers, and to practitioners. It describes my sizable and unique collection of books, pamphlets and other print materials, many of which are available in digital format, and announces a couple important additions, specifically, Ralph Borsodi’s, Inflation is Coming and What to Do About It, and, Hugo Bilgram’s, A Study of the Money Question.
____________________________ Finally, I have agreed to present at an Anti-authoritarian gathering in Switzerland on the 21st of July. I will most likely participate remotely to avoid depleting my strength with a long intercontinental journey. The gathering is billed as Anarchy 2023, but don’t be put off by that label. Oligarchs and despots have sullied the word “anarchy” by equating it with chaos, but the true meaning of the word “anarchy” is “without rulers,” it raises the question of the true locus of sovereignty and seeks the empowerment of people instead of kings, emperors, presidents and “representatives” that inevitably become repressive and tyrannical.
In this conversation we discuss our collective predicament and what people are doing to preserve our freedoms, assert our rights, and build a better world.
In this interview I provide a succinct description of the present central banking, interest-based, debt money system and its dysfunctional nature, the global crisis that it has created, and what we can do to transcend it.
In October of last year (2022) I gave a remote presentation to the 6th Biennial RAMICS International Congress in Bulgaria. RAMICS is the Research Association on Monetary Innovation and Community and Complementary Currency Systems, which includes both academics and practitioners. In my illustrated presentation titled, Private and complementary currency systems: purposes, principles, practices, and performance, I provided a concise summary of key points and fundamental principles that need to be understood in order to transcend the dysfunctional and destructive political money system by decentralizing the control of credit and creating honest and effective, non-political exchange media. Here is an abstract of its contents.
Through the generous assistance and editing work of Ken Richings, the presentation is now available for viewing on YouTube. ______________ Peace or Empire?
Dennis Kucinich at Rage Against the War Machine At the February 19 anti-war rally in Washington, DC, former US Congressman Dennis Kucinich made an inspired call for peace, justice, compassion, and an end to corruption in government. I don’t believe that any reasonable person of good would disagree with his message. In a subsequent message, Can they ‘repeal’ the dead? Ask Orwell, Kucinich recounts the criminal invasion of Iraq by the US in 2003, the lies which were used to justify it, and its tremendous cost in material resources and lost lives. Another major consequence has been an erosion of trust in the US government both at home and abroad.
The achievement of peace in the world requires mutual respect and good faith negotiations, but unfortunately, peace is not the goal of those who have for some time been in control the US government under administrations of both parties, rather, they are bent on achieving “full spectrum dominance” and have chosen to restart the Cold War in hopes of weakening Russia and forcing it into line with the agenda of the New World Order in which the Western powers control all the Earth’s resources. If you want to get a more accurate picture of what’s actually been going on in eastern Europe, pay attention to former Marine and UN nuclear weapons inspector, Scott Ritter starting with his post, Give peace a chance.
And to round out the story of why the world is now on the brink of an unprecedented catastrophe, listen to the ever insightful Noam Chomsky, still sharp and coherent at age 94, speak about Putin, Ukraine, China, and Nuclear War. ______________________ Disturbing Thoughts (about the economy)
John Mauldin is “a visionary thinker, a noted financial expert, a New York Times best-selling author.” I’ve been a subscriber to his Mauldin Economics newsletter for at least a couple years. This edition seems particularly important, especially the section titled, “We’re Going to Have a Crisis.”
Citing the recent bank failures and the government’s decision to insure even the uninsured depositors, Mauldin observes that deposits will inevitably be withdrawn from smaller banks and placed in banks that are considered “too big to fail.” He argues that a major change is needed but that, “Our political system is sadly not up to the task. The current structure is all we have, and it won’t improve until a crisis forces change.” He quite emphatically concludes that “…the situation demands changes. Which means—and I don’t say this lightly—we’re going to have a crisis which will give us that change.”
Mauldin continues with an analysis of the developing crisis, particularly with regard to small banks’ exposure to declining asset values in commercial real estate. You can read the entire newsletter at Mauldin Economics. ___________
In April the Sonoran desert blooms, the fragrance of orange blossoms fills the air along with that of creosote bush, Palo Verde and a host of other plants. The winter chill has gone and the summer heat has not yet arrived. It is a particularly pleasant time to be here. I hope you are enjoying your home turf as much as I am mine.
It should be clear by now that there are many aspects of our present civilization that are neither just and equitable nor sustainable. But in the midst of the deepening global mega-crisis we have the opportunity to re-imagine and reinvent the systems and structures that are failing us, particularly those of money and the exchange of value. In this event we will discuss practical ways to pay and be paid without the need to use the kind of money that we are accustomed to, ways that can empower our communities by rewarding those who produce and provide real value. Sign up today at Eventbrite.
The original 2009 edition of my book, The End of Money and the Future of Civilization , is out of print but the Kindle edition and used copies can be ordered from Amazon.com. Chapters of the new 2024 edition will be posted as they are completed. You can find them here.
To order signed copies of my previous books, click on the title below:
Beyond Money 