georgephillip
Diamond Member
Michael Hudson sums up his analogies between debt slavery in the ancient world with today's banker-controlled centralized economy in the US and Eurozone with a simple mathematical and political principle: "Debts that can't be repaid, won't be."
Hudson begins by showing how this same form of debt slavery destroyed Rome and why it will vanish the US from the page of time if it isn't stopped:
"Book V of Aristotles Politics describes the eternal transition of oligarchies making themselves into hereditary aristocracies which end up being overthrown by tyrants or develop internal rivalries as some families decide to 'take the multitude into their camp' and usher in democracy, within which an oligarchy emerges once again, followed by aristocracy, democracy, and so on throughout history.
"Debt has been the main dynamic driving these shifts always with new twists and turns...
"Since the Renaissance, however, bankers have shifted their political support to democracies. This did not reflect egalitarian or liberal political convictions as such, but rather a desire for better security for their loans.
"As James Steuart explained in 1767, royal borrowings remained private affairs rather than truly public debts. For a sovereigns debts to become binding upon the entire nation, elected representatives had to enact the taxes to pay their interest charges..."
Recent events from Ireland to Greece to Spain suggest bankers are shifting support from democracies by demanding fiscal austerity and the sales of public commons, thereby turning 21st Century international finance into a new mode of warfare.
"Every economy is planned.
"This traditionally has been the function of government. Relinquishing this role under the slogan of 'free markets' leaves it in the hands of banks.
"Yet the planning privilege of credit creation and allocation turns out to be even more centralized than that of elected public officials.
"And to make matters worse, the financial time frame is short-term hit-and-run, ending up as asset stripping. By seeking their own gains, the banks tend to destroy the economy.
"The surplus ends up being consumed by interest and other financial charges, leaving no revenue for new capital investment or basic social spending."
Debt Slavery
Hudson begins by showing how this same form of debt slavery destroyed Rome and why it will vanish the US from the page of time if it isn't stopped:
"Book V of Aristotles Politics describes the eternal transition of oligarchies making themselves into hereditary aristocracies which end up being overthrown by tyrants or develop internal rivalries as some families decide to 'take the multitude into their camp' and usher in democracy, within which an oligarchy emerges once again, followed by aristocracy, democracy, and so on throughout history.
"Debt has been the main dynamic driving these shifts always with new twists and turns...
"Since the Renaissance, however, bankers have shifted their political support to democracies. This did not reflect egalitarian or liberal political convictions as such, but rather a desire for better security for their loans.
"As James Steuart explained in 1767, royal borrowings remained private affairs rather than truly public debts. For a sovereigns debts to become binding upon the entire nation, elected representatives had to enact the taxes to pay their interest charges..."
Recent events from Ireland to Greece to Spain suggest bankers are shifting support from democracies by demanding fiscal austerity and the sales of public commons, thereby turning 21st Century international finance into a new mode of warfare.
"Every economy is planned.
"This traditionally has been the function of government. Relinquishing this role under the slogan of 'free markets' leaves it in the hands of banks.
"Yet the planning privilege of credit creation and allocation turns out to be even more centralized than that of elected public officials.
"And to make matters worse, the financial time frame is short-term hit-and-run, ending up as asset stripping. By seeking their own gains, the banks tend to destroy the economy.
"The surplus ends up being consumed by interest and other financial charges, leaving no revenue for new capital investment or basic social spending."
Debt Slavery