Our Threatened Freedom

Are We Watering Down Our Money

Professor: Dr. R.J. Rushdoony

Subject: Political Studies

Lesson: 26-169

Genre: Conversation

Track: 026

Dictation Name: Vol. B - Part 13 – Are We Watering Down Our Money

Location/Venue: Unknown

Year: 1980’s – 1990’s

[Dr. Rushdoony] Are we watering down our money? This is R.J. Rushdoony with a report on our threatened freedom.

We are told that in by-gone years, milk was mixed with water sometimes, before being sold. This was clearly a dishonest practice, and we can be grateful that it has ended. We have today, thanks to the federal government, a far worse and far more deadly practice. Watered down or diluted money. One result of this is inflation. Inflation is an increase in the money supply, by means of printing press money, and the excesses {?}. Inflation is the watering down of money to cheat the public. Everyone who has a savings account, a pension, or a retirement plan, a life insurance policy, or any monetary assets, is robbed. Each year his assets are worth less. If you have a thousand dollars in the bank, by the end of this year it will probably have lost about 15% of its purchasing power. Thus, with 5% interest, you have lost 10% of your money’s value.

But this is not all.

Some economists predict as high inflation as 50 to 80%, by 1985, not too far away. Inflation is a form of larceny. It robs people of all their monetary assets, finally. For a time it rewards the debtors, it enables people to pay off good debts with bad money, as money gets cheaper. Inflation, however, finally wipes out everyone, through confiscatory taxation, the inability of income to keep face with double digit inflation, economic destructions, and the like.

The worst destruction wrought by inflation is of freedom. Because the federal government is the source of inflation, of money creation, it controls more and more of the nation’s wealth, and by taxation, more and more of its income. The federal government increases its power, and decreases our freedom. By creating fiat money, the federal government plays the role of a legalized counterfeiter. Accelerating inflation is the prelude to a number of evils, totalitarianism, economic control, social unrest, and moral decay, revolutionary activities, and more.

Inflation has its root in bad morality it is a belief that larceny can be good if controlled by the federal government. Inflation is born out of bad morals, and it creates even worse morals, it corrupts society. Moreover, freedom dies.

The purpose of the U.S. Constitution, according to the founding fathers was to chain the federal government, in order to keep the people free. Now the federal government is chaining the people, and seeking freedom from all restraints on its powers. If we do not halt inflation, we will lose more than money, we will lose our freedom.

This is R.J Rushdoony, speaking on our threatened freedom.