NEXT: DIGITAL TOTALITARIANISM-THE CONSPIRACY TO ABOLISH CASH

Next: Digital Totalitarianism - The Conspiracy to Abolish Cash

Ted Rall

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For many years figures on the political fringe, especially on the right, have claimed that the government and its corporate owners want to transform us into a cashless society. Their warnings about the conspiracy against paper money fell on deaf ears, primarily because the digitalization of financial transactions seemed more like the result of organic business trends than the manifestation of some sinister conspiracy.

Now, however, those who want to do away with liquid currency are stepping out of the shadows. They talk about increased efficiency and profit potential, but their real agenda is nothing less than enslavement of the human race.

"Physical currency is a bulky, germ-smeared, carbon-intensive, expensive medium of exchange. Let's dump it," argued David Wolman in Wired.

Citing a 2002 study for the Organization for Economic Development that states "money's destiny is to become digital, " a Defense Department-affiliated economics professor has authored an Op/Ed for The New York Times that asks: "Why not eliminate the use of physical cash worldwide?" Jonathan Lipow urges President Obama to "push for an international agreement to eliminate the largest-denomination bills" and urges the replacement of bills and coins by "smart cards with biometric security features."

Lipow's justification for calling for the most radical change to the fundamental nature of commerce since industrialization is, of all things, fighting terrorism. "In a cashless economy, insurgents' and terrorists' electronic payments would generate audit trails that could be screened by data mining software; every payment and transfer would yield a treasure trove of information about their agents, their locations and their intentions," Lipow writes. "This would pose similar challenges for criminals."

Terrorism is a mere fig leaf. According to the annual "Patterns of Global Terrorism" report compiled by the U.S. State Department, the highest total death toll attributed to terrorism in the last 20 years occurred in--surprise--2001. Including 9/11, only 3,547 people were killed in 346 acts of violence worldwide. Tragic. Obviously. But, in the overall scheme of things, terrorism is not a big deal.

Measured in terms of loss of life and economic disruption, terrorism is a trivial problem, hardly worth mentioning. According to the UN, 36 million people die annually from hunger and malnutrition. Over half a million die in car wrecks--but you don't hear people like Lipow demanding that we get rid of cars. A more legitimate concern is the "loss" of taxes upon the underground economy, estimated by the IMF at 15 percent of transactions in developed nations.

What the anti-cash movement really wants is digital totalitarianism: a dystopian nightmare in which the entire human race is enslaved by international corporations and their pet governments. An anti-establishment gadfly like WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange could be instantly deprived of money--and thus freedom of movement--with a couple of keystrokes. (We saw a preview of this when PayPal and Amazon shut down WikiLeaks donation mechanism and web server, respectively.) The high-tech hell depicted by the film "Enemy of the State" would become reality.

REST AT THE LINK: http://www.smirkingchimp.com/thread/ted-rall/33387/next-digital-totalitarianism-the-conspiracy-to-abolish-cash

...AND LOOK UP MY ARTICLE "WHAT'S A DOLLAR?" TO LEARN HOW TO COMBAT THIS!