Political Questions for JCT
>Date: Mon May 17 04:55:51 1999
>From: charliecmt@hotmail.com ("Charles Michael")
>Hello John and all,
>Your recent post was fairly telepathic. I have precisely been
>thinking about working with the Greens or other similar groups and
>setting out to run for a local office at some point in the future.
>My question(s) for JCT revolve around that.
>Do you have any pointers for someone running for office on a "loopy"
>platform so that one can get some kind of a decent hearing?
JCT: Do not be loopy. Do not look loopy. Wear a suit. The idea is
out of the ordinary enough not to give them any other excuse.
Being the LETS candidate before there were any LETS models in the
world certainly had to battle with the "fringe" label. It was almost
all theory.
I had an excuse for wearing the hard-hat, for picketing, for
defying, but I always wear a suit. I will always be seen as the last
of that LETS fringe breed simply because I was the first and I'm still
there.
But now there are too many elected politicians around the world
have now voted to fund LETS, some most ringing endorsements, without
knowing that the first politician was a notoriously colorful promoter.
Candidates picking up the LETS baton now are getting in for the last
mile when everyone's cheering. No one's laughing anymore.
The Greens everywhere already support LETS, just not very
prominently. Not as prominently as LETS would have been had I been
allowed my shot at the leadership of the Green Party of Canada back in
1984.
With every party I joined was an accompanying tacit but
inevitable bid for leadership to deal with the errant banking system.
Applying for the leadership got me thrown out of the old Social Credit
Party. Sensing I would apply got me thrown out of the Canada Greens.
Twice.
So I have a reputation from back in the old days before LETS
models were around. You're from the new good days with all sorts of
local currencies around. You, the voters can listen to. Me, the voters
still resent for being right about something they could have had 20
years ago.
So you will hear no one laughing anymore. But you might still
rarely get heard. Even Ralph Nader, a wonderfully suitable candidate
for the US. Greens, a strong advocate of local currencies, he didn't
get to debate and score any points. Only two contenders got to score
the big numbers. So US voters chose Clinton over Nader. Can you think
of a greater indictment of their generation. Need I say more as to the
value in his running? Do you think you'd be proud to tell any
grandchildren that you belonged to the generation that picked Clinton
over Nader?
Someday, it will seem just as funny with those who never chose
freedom from debt with the banking systems engineer. Because that's
what LETS does. Freedom from dangerous growing debt through safe
stable debt. A LETS world will really be heavenly.
>Your reports from the last election were helpful. Any more focused
>hints would be appreciated.
JCT: I'm glad someone was listening. Sometimes it seems
repetitive but it's a constant battle to find an entertaining way
of presenting the same old solution as people raise the same old
problem under the guise of different shortages they are suffering.
>Do you have any tapes or transcripts I could purchase and use as
>models on how to explain a complex and unfamiliar lets notion in a
>simple way during a brief speaking opportunity?
JCT: I have audio and video archives but nothing special to
distribute. That's why I stress using the "Interest Charge Island
versus LETS Island" as a handy model.
Just do it once and you'll be the hit of the party you ever go
to. People will ask you questions about it for hours since it exposes
some pretty elementary truths they'd always suspected but had been
deceived by the erroneous information from orthodox Economics. The
game theory shows them Shift B in the clearest most elementary manner.
It's obvious to everyone that prices are forced up, not down, when
bankers charge more interest rates.
It always pains me that people who exhibit great knowledge and
capability rely on their assumption that it's too easy a game to
understand to bother actually playing it. Of course, you see the
fraction who get knocked out. But there elements to the play that are
also exposed. Different ways of modelling profits and taxes.
The advantage to actually playing the game is that all the
attendant questions are raised. Once you get the gist of the games,
the veil has been lifted. No one ever forgets the game. No one ever
forgets where the watch went without any increase in the money supply.
Please, please, please, those who see the difference in the
island games, get the tokens and the coin. Play it with someone and
learn by teaching all you'll need to know about monetary reform just
by answering the inevitable questions. I can think of no better touch-
up on technique for someone who'd like to someday be able to explain
Interest versus LETS Island economies than to get good at explaining
how they're being stolen from. It fascinates people to find out how
it's being done. They're shocked to learn to see of an inflation shift
on the other side they'd never been told about. We'd been taught that
inflation was a result of wheel-barrows full of money.
>Any ideas or suggestions would be welcome.
JCT: Join your LETS and start earning credits. You'll need
campaign workers. Think of an hour you give a LETSer today as an hour
some other LETSer will take to pass out your LETS flyers for you
later. I've read that Denver has some kind of LETS. Find it. And push
to get government to open an account.
Do the game for the crowds and you'll captivate them. I've done
it. You can too.
>IF this idea takes on reality it will be a while yet and I will run
>on more than just a LETS platform. Thanks, Charlie Michael. In Denver
JCT: Once you've found a way to finance the whole budget, what
issues that are plaguing us now do you think will still be viewed as
problematic? I can't think of a one!
>Date: Mon May 17 10:19:23 1999
>From: bfowler@NetRevolution.com
>Hi Charlie and John:
>I have the same notion in my head. I am moving back to the 'loopy'
>"Lotusland" of BC, the home of Canadian loopies. I am in touch with
>a native gal in Duncan, BC on Vancouver Island who is keen on a LETS
>system for First Nations communities. Sounds great to me!
>Baron Fowler
JCT: It's nothing new. They used to call it wampum. And it worked
exactly like LETS with every member able to create a wampum IOU used
as local currency by the others. Exactly like LETS, private money
creation.
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