Greenspans Stunning Admission - Gold Is Currency - No Fiat Currency-Including The Dollar-Can Match It

[Butifldrm]

Greenspans Stunning Admission - Gold Is Currency - No Fiat Currency-Including The Dollar-Can Match It

zerohedge.com 
NOVEMBER 07, 2014

 

 

 

 

Submitted by Tyler Durden on 11/07/2014 13:28 -0500

 

For some reason, the Council of Foreign Relations, where Ex-Fed-Chief Alan Greenspan Spoke Last Week [9], decided The Following Discussion Should Be Left Out Of The Official Transcript [10]. We can perhaps understand why... as Gillian Tett concludes, "comments like that will be turning you into a rock star amongst the gold bug community."

 

http://youtu.be/Oz4-Tru_30A

 

 

 

TETT: Do you think that gold is currently a good investment?

GREENSPAN: Yes... Remember what we're looking at. Gold is a currency. It is still, by all evidence, a premier currency. No fiat currency, including the dollar, can macth it.

 

Which Is Missing From The Official CFR Transcript... [10]

*  *  *

 

 

GREENSPAN: ...remember, we had that first tapering discussion, we got a very strong market response. And then we reassured everybody to have no -- remember, tapering is still (audio gap) of an agreement that the central banks have made -- European central banks, I believe -- about allocating their gold sales which occurred when gold prices were falling down (audio gap) has been renewed this year with a statement that gold serves a very important place in monetary reserves.

 

And the question is, why do central banks put money into an asset which has no rate of return, but cost of storage and insurance and everything else like that, why are they doing that? If you look at the data with a very few exceptions, all of the developed countries have gold reserves. Why?

 

TETT: I imagine right now, it's because of a question mark hanging over the value of fiat currency, the credibility going forward.

 

GREENSPAN: Well, that's what I'm getting at. Every time you get some really serious questions, the 50 percent of the gold price determination begins to move.

 

TETT: Right.

 

GREENSPAN: And I think it is fascinating and -- I don't know, is Benn Steil in the audience?

 

TETT: Yes.

 

GREENSPAN: There he is, OK. Before you read my book, go read Benn's book. The reason is, you'll find it fascinating on exactly this issue, because here you have the ultimate test at the Mount Washington Hotel in 1944 of the real intellectual debate between the -- those who wanted to an international fiat currency which was embodied in John Maynard Keynes' construct of a banker, and he was there in 1944, holding forth with all of his prestige, but couldn't counter the fact that the United States dollar was convertible into gold and that was the major draw. Everyone wanted America's gold. And I think that Benn really described that in extraordinarily useful terms, as far as I can see. Anyway, thank you.

 

TETT: Right. Well, I'm sure with comments like that, that will be turning you into a rock star amongst the gold bug community.

As a reminder, here is Ben Bernanke putting people straight on Gold...

 

 

 

Ron Paul asks the Bernanke if he thought gold was money. Bernanke almost swallows his tongue, stares blankly for a few seconds and then says, “no.”

 

Paul then asks why banks hold gold on their balance sheet?  Why not diamonds?  Bernanke says, “tradition, I suppose.”  

 

So let me get this straight, banks hold billions of dollars of an asset that pays no interest or dividends on their balance sheet for reasons of "tradition".  nothing to do with anything else, just tradition.  uh, yea.  That must be it.

 

 

 

http://goldsilver.com/news/greenspans-stunning-admission-gold-is-currency-no-fiat-currency-including-the-dollar-can-match-it/

Edited November 10, 2014 by Butifldrm

[thegente]

Hahaha...all the shyteheel banksters will start singing that tune soon as well in hopes of being spared when SHTF..too little too late Greenie. Reset is close folks...thx But if!

[Rayzur]

Thanks BDrm!!! Great piece... wish I understood half of it.... Maybe Trinity will do Greenspan for Dummies
 Just like any other "science" economy has it own definitions for its own terms and I didn't have the glossary...

In any event, did you read the not so chipper summary of Greenspan's discussion that day?

 

I think it's been a fascinating discussion. I take away three keys points, firstly, that the current state of the world is very unhealthy and unbalanced; secondly, that we're not going to be able to exit this without some form of turmoil or crisis, let's call it turmoil; and, thirdly, that Chairman Greenspan is trying to engage with these fundamental problems in a very refreshingly frank manner. And for that, I think we can all be very grateful, indeed. So thank you very much, indeed, for a fascinating debate.

 

Not sure how being frank as to how bad it really is, would be considered a key point in light of the two that preceed it...Though maybe if one spoke ban kan ese... it might be possible to take more away from this than the summary.... Do these talks ever come with Cliff notes    .

[Butifldrm]

Hahaha...all the shyteheel banksters will start singing that tune soon as well in hopes of being spared when SHTF..too little too late Greenie. Reset is close folks...thx But if!

Yes I do believe you are correct gente,  Bretton Woods reset took control off the global economy from Great Britain to the United States.  The next reset will take control from the United States and more than likely hand it over to the IMF, giving the SDR reserve status.  There will be much turmoil when this happens and from many economists opinions people will run to Gold and Silver for it's intrinsic value.  The since has since 2010 not signed the agreed upon IMF code of reforms giving the BRICS a larger vote on world economic changes for a reason.  We see Russia and China going around the IMF to build their own developmental bank and tragically for the US bypassing the Dollar. We see trade agreements being made with the BRICS globally to trade within their own currencies.  Historically, when these economic events happen, War is soon to follow.

 

 

 

Thanks BDrm!!! Great piece... wish I understood half of it.... Maybe Trinity will do Greenspan for Dummies

 Just like any other "science" economy has it own definitions for its own terms and I didn't have the glossary...

In any event, did you read the not so chipper summary of Greenspan's discussion that day?

 

I think it's been a fascinating discussion. I take away three keys points, firstly, that the current state of the world is very unhealthy and unbalanced; secondly, that we're not going to be able to exit this without some form of turmoil or crisis, let's call it turmoil; and, thirdly, that Chairman Greenspan is trying to engage with these fundamental problems in a very refreshingly frank manner. And for that, I think we can all be very grateful, indeed. So thank you very much, indeed, for a fascinating debate.

 

Not sure how being frank as to how bad it really is, would be considered a key point in light of the two that preceed it...Though maybe if one spoke ban kan ese... it might be possible to take more away from this than the summary.... Do these talks ever come with Cliff notes    .

For sure economics is a foreign language to me also.  I have learned a great deal being in this investment (the Dinar) that is.  I have found it truly amazing how the geopolitical situation we/the world is in now, has been so related to what is going on in Iraq, and the middle east in general.  The dollar solely being used as the reserve currency has starved many nations, bringing forth Arab Spring and now we see Isis emerge.  For in due respect these people need jobs.  they need to be able to feed their families.  They can't afford to pay the spread to trade in Dollars.  This is why the major push for the Brics and other developing countries to trade within their own currencies, even gold.  They save a lot of money.

Here's another great interview from the man/economist Greenspan references in his talk Benn Steil.  He goes into great detail about the reset at Bretton Woods.  I't long but very educational. 

 

[SocalDinar]

Gold is money, not currency. Big Difference

 

Thanks Butifldrm

Edited November 11, 2014 by SocalDinar

[skeetdog]

Thanks Beautifldrm...There's a lot of game changers happening... The USA has to make the transition changes as the world transcends...We need to gear our steel, industrial and manufacturing industries back to life. Start our mills back up that refined the products and local delivery and supply houses...We helped China build what they've got...It's time we bring Home the majority of our foreign aid to deal with domestic issues that are closer to home...We're got a lot of work to do in our own yard....  

[lupine49]

Unless they took it down,  the US Treasury's web site states that the US dollar is not money.  

 

Alan Greenspan even made a statement in 1953 that the US fiat economy was a "house of cards" that would one day collapse.   Sorry I don't have the quote any more.   It was lost when Microsofts lousy security let a nasty bug into my computer.