Last Updated: Oct 22nd, 2010 - 15:35:08 Newsletters : 2007 Newsletters : 2 February 2007 Thought for the Day If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by deflation, the banks...will deprive the people of all property until their children wake up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered.... The issuing power should be taken from the banks and restored to the people, to whom it properly belongs. -Thomas Jefferson Feb 2, 2007, 12:58 Newsletters : 2007 Newsletters : 2 February 2007 A Vote of “No Confidence” We started the Foundation for Economic Growth because New Zealand was in serious economic decline when compared with the other countries of the world. From a standing start in 1840 we raised ourselves up to be the second wealthiest country in the world per head of population by 1900. Having England provide security and capital during this transformation was very helpful! Having a very small government with no income tax was the major driving force! We prospered from 1900 to 1950 at which time we were third in the world wide wealth stakes. Since then it has been all downhill (except for a leveling out a few years ago) and we are still on the downhill path. One thing I have come to realise recently is the way that our government uses our paper money system to enrich itself at our expense. The government just needs to issue more credit or print more notes and it has instant money to spend. As this money works its way through our system it devalues the money that was already in place. In effect it is like another tax. The government gets the full 100% value when it prints it but at the end of the line the worker gets a dollar that has decreased in value by the amount of extra dollars printed. An extra 10% credit issued by government is like an extra 10% tax on the worker. In the year from November 2005 to November 2006 our M3 money supply (the broadest measure of money) was increased by 15%. Should we be worried? Congressman Ron Paul has an interesting story to tell about how he sees things from the USA perspective. Times seem good because there is a continual supply of paper money floating around the world. This love affair with fiat money cannot continue forever. Jan 24, 2007, 16:00