ZEITGEIST: THE MOVIE

[c] Since the colonists were thus forced to pay in silver or gold, anyone lacking in those metals had to borrow money, at
interest, from the British banking system, which was regulated by the Central Bank of England. This resulted in a large
contraction in the Colonies money supply, causing widespread unemployment and poverty.
In the words of English Historian John Twells:
“In a bad hour, the British Parliament took away from America its representative money, forbade any further issue of bills
of credit, these bills ceasing to be legal tender, and ordered that all taxes should be paid in coins. Consider now the consequences:
this restriction of the medium of exchange paralyzed all the industrial energies of the people. Ruin took place
in these once flourishing Colonies; most rigorous distress visited every family and every business, discontent became
desperation, and reached a point, to use the words of Dr. Johnson, when human nature rises up and assets its rights.” 1
(5) “In the words of Peter Cooper, former vice president of the NY board of Currency.:
“After Franklin had explained…to the British Government as the real cause of prosperity, they immediately
passed laws, forbidding the payment of taxes in that money. This produced such great inconvenience and misery
to the people, that it was the principal cause of the Revolution.” ”
SOURCE:
Peter Cooper: “Ideas for a Science of Good Government”. New York, Trow’s Printing,1883 p.221 2
(6) “In 1783 America won its independence from England. However, its battle against the Central Bank concept
and the corrupt, power hungry mentality associated with it... had just begun.
So what is a central bank? A central bank is an institution that issues and regulates the currency of an entire nation.
[a] Based on historical precedent, the typical powers inherent in central banking practice include the control
of interest rates and the expansion and contraction of the money supply itself. [b] ”
[a] Central Bank Defined: “The generic name given to a country’s primary monetary authority, such as the Federal Reserve
System in the U.S. [It] usually has [the] responsibility for issuing currency, administering monetary policy, holding
member banks’ deposits, and facilitating the nation’s banking industry.” 3
[b] While there are variations among Central Bank models between countries, certain functions are in common. Monetary
regulation within the US Federal Reserve System essentially consists of three actions:
[1]“Open Market Operations”: These operations consist of the Fed buying and selling previously issued U.S.
government securities, or IOUs of the federal government. The Fed adds extra credit to the banking system when
it buys Treasury securities from the dealers, and drains credit when it sells to the dealers. 4
This is a means of controlling the money supply/controls for inflation.
[2] “Reserve Requirements”: Reserve requirements are the percentages of certain types of deposits that banks
must keep on hand in their own vaults or on deposit at a Federal Reserve Bank. The Fed has the authority to set
reserve requirements on checking accounts and certain types of savings accounts. 5
This isn’t changed often, but functions as a means of controlling lending/hence controlling the money supply.
[3] “Discount Window Lending”: The Discount Rate is the interest rate that the Fed charges banks for short-term
loans. Increases in the discount rate generally reflect the Federal Reserve’s concern over inflationary pressures,
while decreases often reflect a concern over economic weakness. 6
This manipulation of Interest Rates is also a means for controlling the money supply.
1 Quoted by Congressman Charles Binderup in 1941: “ How America created its own money in 1750: How Benjamin Franklin
Made New England Prosperous,” Reprinted in “Unrobing the Ghosts of Wall Street.
2 http://books.google.com/books?id=qm4aAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA208&lpg=PA208&dq=The+Cause+and+Cure+of+National+and+I
ndividual+Distress+PETER+COOPER&source=bl&ots=lmD4NmHk44&sig=vnqGrlvAAuNmqSyFXiokizHwrsw&hl=en&ei=g-flS_-IMIH-8-
Aay6t2CDA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CBsQ6AEwAQ#v=snippet&q=Revolution&f=false
3 http://www.investorwords.com/801/Central_Bank.html
4 http://www.ny.frb.org/education/fed/tools.html#discount
5 http://www.ny.frb.org/education/fed/tools.html#discount
6 http://www.ny.frb.org/education/fed/tools.html#discount