AMERICAN MONETARY
INSTITUTE
Tel. 518-392-5387, email ami@taconic.net
http://www.monetary.org
Stephen Zarlenga, Director
Dedicated to the independent study of monetary history, theory and
reform
REPORT ON THE 2005 AMI MONETARY REFORM CONFERENCE
Dear Friends of the American Monetary Institute,
Judging by the comments and many congratulations from
participants - speakers and attendees
alike, the 2005 AMI Monetary Reform Conference held in Chicago from
September 29th to October
2nd was an important success.
One often heard comment was:
"The best conference I ever attended."
Additional comments are at the bottom of this page, under the membership form.
Altogether Seventy five people came - our initial expectation. It appeared to be a wonderful
experience for all. Participants told us how much they learned and enjoyed being with people who
understood the monetary problem. There was excellent interraction with speakers who for the most
part attended the whole conference. For myself and AMI's advisors, it was very rewarding to see the
American Monetary Institute moving forward on this program to reform America's money system, to
bring it in line with both our Constitution and with moral considerations of fairness, sustainability, and
good environmental sense.
The AMI's Vision of Reform Was Clearly Presented:
The conference focused on the three areas outlined at the
www.monetary.org/2005conferencepage. As promised, we presented
AMI's vision of the needed
reforms:
*To move away from privately controlled money systems toward governmental ones;
*To end the privilege of private banks to create purchasing media as interest bearing loans;
*To spend money into circulation interest free for infrastructure repair and development that
promotes the general welfare.
Each of these themes was described by several speakers in terms of why they were necessary and
how they would work. Our specific reform proposal was placed into its wider historical context as truly
a part of our American tradition, originating in proposals put forward by some of the best economic
minds in American history. For example our programs similarities with the Chicago Plan which came
out of the Great Depression were described in detail. The proposed American Monetary Act is a
comprehensive program that gets to the root of the problem.
Some speakers presentations were on how to get the reforms enacted. Some gave detailed
descriptions of the kinds of trouble our money system has caused including the horrendous debt
buildup in our society, with its related obscene concentrations of wealth into just a small part of the
population; and the neglect of infrastructure which now amounts to a $1.6 trillion dollar requirement
just to get the system to a decent grade. Some speakers gave previews of the kinds of progress
toward a much better future -even a paradise - that can start to be created on our planet Earth, with
properly run money systems. A money power under societal control instead of the
privately controlled
system that has been leading us into a man-made hell.
Keynote Speaker Congressman Dennis Kucinich Inspired the Participants
Congressman Dennis Kucinich's Keynote address emphasized the importance of thinking in terms
of what can be, not just what is; and of the potential importance of having this monetary tool
available not just to solve pressing problems but to start building a wonderful future on Earth. He
stressed the need of bringing this discussion to Washington, to re-examine and look again at the
problems caused by fractional reserves and at why this great power was turned over to the
Federal
Reserve System. His inspiring video can be viewed in its entirety at our homepage - see link below.
The Conference also discussed the American Monetary Act, (version 9), which starts to put
these
reforms into legal terminology, and we requested suggestions from attendees both at the conference
and through later correspondence. Additional views will be sought, and then we'll be ready in a
couple of months with version 10 of the draft legislation, which will be publicly distributed for
comment. A lot more work will be needed on this, and with version ten we feel comfortable to throw
open that discussion to the public, even though it will still admittedly be a work in progress.
A Consensus Emerged
A few participants disagreed and voiced other views. Two thought banks should be allowed to
continue to create money in modified form. However no-one could give really convincing reasons to
award this powerful privilege to bankers, though asked to do so. The one argument that emerged on
those lines was that without this special privilege the profits of the banking system would be too low.
We recognize the necessity of a viable banking system but argued that its immoral to give any group
special privileges and pointed out that it creates an aristocracy forbidden by our constitution. Also
that the bankers have done a dismal job, and that results of government controlled money have been
much better. But we advised that the argument is best framed in moral terms. Banks are of course
necessary - especially when performing their legitimate functions - but those do not include money
creation.
We had not expected unanimity, but overall there appeared to be a general
consensus on AMI's
program, and emails to me after the conference have confirmed it. That was good to see, since weve
put about 15 years of focused work into getting it to this point. Lots of refinements will be needed,
but so far no "back to the drawing board" indications. So the AMI moves forward with its program in
a measured open manner - open to all sound suggestions and all are welcome to join with us on this
quest for monetary justice. Please contribute toward its achievement!
3Brief Summary of the Monetary Reform Significance of Each Speakers Talk:
We take seriously our responsibility to present knowledgeable, disciplined
researchers at our
conferences.
Prof. Nic Tideman's presentation on using housebricks as the ultimate form of
commodity money
made a very outstanding point: those who claim to want commodity backing for money should be
considering housebricks, rather than the normally discussed gold and silver. What it really means is
that the goldbugs are not so much for commodity backing as they are for promoting fetish gold,
connected with their coin collections and gold shares, etc. They forget that everything that makes
gold a good investment makes it no good as money.
Dr. J.W. Smith's presentation on Adam Smith vs Frederich Liszt made the
important point that
nations have been built using Liszts system, but never with Adam Smiths system. Adam Smith is still
worshipped as a god in the economics community, but you cannot have both Adam Smith and
economic justice at the same time. It must be one or the other and it is past time to cut Adam Smith
down to size.
Jack Bidell showed how the standard method of trying to fight inflation by
raising interest rates is a
perverse policy that actually increases inflation in a world where debt and interest payments form
such a large part of economic activity - a concept that Alan Greenspan never grasped while head of
the Fed. Since they are wrong about this - their main tool, imagine the other errors and inniquities
that are built into the system.
Dan Sullivan presented Henry George's viewpoint that society must share
and protect a modern
"commons" in both land ownership and in the monetary area. Values in both areas that result from
our actions as a society rightly belong to all of us and should not be alienated.
Randy Cook showed that the shortfall in actual money payments to raw material
producers is roughly
equivalent to the total debt in our society, as the raw materials were exchanged for debt instead of
for money. A fascinating concept that deserves deeper analysis.
John V. O'Holleran described a bleak picture of America's deteriorating
infrastructure situation, now
requiring over $1.6 trillion dollars in repair work, to raise it from its current "D" rating up to
acceptable levels. The outlook is that it will reach D- soon. This infrastructure problem, in AMI's view
represents an unanswerable indictment of the present monetary system, which has been unable or
unwilling to address America's infrastructure needs.
Ken Bohnsack described his years of experience in getting over 3,000 signatures
of support for the
Sovereignty proposal, from governmental bodies from school boards to states. His enthusiastic
presentation energized the audience - especially his attitude that in this process one might get
disappointed, but never discouraged.
Charles Walters talk described how the parity payments system had worked well
for so many years in
assuring farmers that they would be able to at least approximate getting their costs of production
back for crops produced under reasonable conditions. This talk along with Randy Cook's provide some
of the key elements of monetary information for reasonable monetary management and control as
envisaged in the AMerican Monetary Act.
Richard Distlehorst
demonstrated statistically that we know about how much money will be created
per year by recent standards, and that we then have a choice - to give the banks the privilege to
create this money and lend it back to us at interest, or to have our own government create it interest
-free and spend it into circulation to promote the general welfare. He left no doubt which choice we
should make!
J. Edward Andersons
presentation of Public Rapid Transit systems was a view into the future of
congestion free, environmental friendly, efficient, time saving transport which is clearly the main
answer to remaking our cities into liveable sensible environments. Step inside the cars, press a
button for your destination and sit back and relax, read, doze. A picture of the kind of life that money
reform can create.
Prof. Glen Martin's well received talk on the necessity of viewing mankind as a
whole, not merely as
divided into political structures attempting to take advantage of each other with policies leading
inexorably toward warfare. Human rights are universal! A money system in so much conflict with
human rights in our own country, extends its injustice around the world. We must eliminate the
moves toward warfare now, or the warmongers will be in a position under the false guise of
"security" to restrict our rights including those that enable us to reform our system.
Stephen Zarlenga gave a description of the "Chicago Plan" which came
out of the Great Depression as
a solution to the banking crisis, and was endorsed by the then great economic minds in the nation.
He showed how the American Monetary Act incorporates the main elements of the Chicago Plan and
adds some more, based on our experience since the 1930's.
Congressman Dennis Kucinich's
inspiring keynote address can be viewed in its entirety at
http://www.monetary.org
The American Monetary Institute issued the following press release after the
conference. Please feel
free to distribute it and the entire message above, to your contact lists.
PRESS RELEASE - For Immediate Release, October 6, 2005 by the American
Monetary Institute - a
monetary policy think tank - Chicago
2005 Monetary Reform Conference - Congressman Dennis Kucinich, Keynote Speaker
MONEY REFORM PLAN WOULD SAVE TAXPAYERS $ BILLIONS PER YEAR IN KATRINA
CLEANUP
"An alteration in the way money is introduced into our economy would save at least $10 billion dollars
per year in the cleanup and rebuilding aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. If the cleanup loans
last the normal 30 years, the savings will be over $250 billion," says Stephen Zarlenga, Director of
the American Monetary Institute. The plan, known as The American Monetary Act was discussed at
the AMI 2005 Monetary Reform Conference, held in Chicago over the weekend at the Essex Inn.
The proposed three part reform of our currency system would have the U.S. Government directly
spend the money into circulation rather than the present method of allowing the banking system to
create the money and then the government borrowing the money. Funding such infrastructure
expenses through bonds generally doubles to triples their final cost.
The reform avoids this expense by removing the fractional reserve provision of the present system,
which in effect allows the banking system to create the much needed new money that must be
continually introduced into the economy, as population and economic activity expands; or when
emergencies such as Katrina, or warfare require great expenditures. Under the reform only the U.S.
government, not the private banking system would be allowed to create money.
"What we're proposing is very similar to the 'Chicago Plan' which came out of University of Chicago
economists in the 1930's and was widely supported nationwide by the economics profession back
then," said Zarlenga.
Under the plan the government spends the new money into circulation on necessary infrastructure,
including education. A presentation at the conference by the American Society of Civil Engineers
pointed out the deteriorating condition of American infrastructure, which currently receives an overall
grade of D, and is predicted to reach D- soon.
MOST OF KATRINA'S DAMAGE ON NEW ORLEANS COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED
"This method of introducing new money through infrastructure creation and repair would actually
have stopped most of the damage and loss of life in New Orleans because the money would have
been available to repair the levees, and they would have probably held" said Zarlenga.
"The difference is that under the present private control, money goes largely into speculative
bubbles, including wall street games and real estate" he said, "Under societal control it would go
much more toward promoting the general welfare. Inflation is avoided because real material wealth
has been created in the process, and catastrophic loss including loss of life is prevented."
The keynote speaker at the conference was Congressman Dennis Kucinich, on the topic of Economic
Justice. The American Monetary Institute is a 501c3 publicly supported charitable trust organized in
1996 to promote the independent study of monetary history, theory and reform. This was the
institutes first public conference and annual conferences are planned. The institutes website is at
www.monetary.org. where a complete video of Congressman Kucinich's speech can be
viewed.
Inquiries by email to ami@taconic.net, or by telephone to 518-392-5387.
Contact person: Stephen Zarlenga, Director of the Institute
A brief bio and photo of each speaker can be viewed at
http://www.monetary.org/2005schedule
Warmest regards to all of you! Please help us now by becoming supporting members of the American
Monetary Institute, and stay in touch!
Stephen Zarlenga
Director, Ami
To View the AMI Home Page Click Here:
http://www.monetary.org