Control money and you control the individual

By

Hazel Speed

Having listened to BBC Radio 4 regarding Sweden’s Central Bank and its plans to consider digital banking, thereby eventually abolishing cash completely, I think this will be the most worrying political sea-change, just when we thought we had seen it all in the last couple of years with the UK Referendum (Brexit) and its American style metaphorical equivalent, albeit within a different arena.

It had been mooted for a number of decades via whispers here and there, sometimes testing the waters. What amazes me is the fact it was considered a step too far until now, i.e. potential political suicide – but now there is unrest, and people are imposing their democratic rights and wishes on Governments, not the other way around.

If one listens to the specific interview there are some telling comments given in favour of digital currency and so-called elements of discrepancy between existing bank notes (with their written promises thereon), and bank or credit cards, i.e. two different forms of underwriting, existing cash and cards of various forms.

Unless one is a millionaire, it is doubtful that the average person will be disadvantaged in such ways between the two formats just mentioned.

Also, some direct questions were not answered but sidestepped when raised.

‘New lamps for old’ is the term that springs to mind.

If we consider some ‘innocent’ and practical advantages to a cashless society, they could be:-

No robberies at a bank, or during deliveries to a bank, nor any raids on stores or outlets, the end of personal robberies and burglaries (whether cash or cash earned through sale of stolen goods) – also lack of injuries and thereby the end of physical, emotional or psychological loss.

So how would it be implemented – that was an interesting question? The answer was not forthcoming in any precise term just a moment of silence….

Surely, there are two basic reasons for such a move within the banking world.

Before addressing those, what about digital crime – most recently in the UK, Tesco bank accounts were hacked. In relative terms many say they think that cash is safer and a high proportion of society still opts out of internet banking.

Now let us consider the specific reasons which may be behind this move into proposed digital banking (and I address a hypothesis ‘as if’ this will soon become a world stance to abolish cash).

The black economy: This really refers to those who hypothetically/metaphorically (though some in reality will do this too), keep their cash ‘under the mattress’, i.e. not in the bank, so probably undeclared income.

Many Government forms even ask if a person has money in a piggy bank saving for something – it is funny they never ask millionaires if they have any hidden overseas bank accounts as that may offend (grin). Besides, they probably know if they have anyway.

As the people of numerous nations are finding their collective political voice, some Governments may be considering other forms of control over them.

As we have already seen elsewhere in recent weeks, regarding the abolishing of certain specific national bank notes, if a digital currency only will soon prevail (however long ‘soon’ comes into effect), there will be queues of people outside banks waiting to deposit new-found wealth rather than lose it, especially if for instance, the Bank of England puts a deadline whereby thereafter they will no longer honour the value on its cash currency as once it did, unending.

Overnight, with such mass deposits into national banks, the wealth of a country will benefit. The cost to some individuals however may be disastrous by way of loss of Housing Benefits and/or possible backdated fines for non-declaration of savings, etc.

The key factor will prevail as the State then has potential power of/over the individual.

Granted, there would be a ‘supply and demand’ growth for hackers as how else would one access digital currency other than for the digits themselves to be morphed, alternatively movement from one account to another, albeit real or created.

Full control of the individual in this way now moves into the arena of Biblical prophecy in the minds of some, though a non-religious concept of the same principle can still prevail to be considered, in theory at least.

What mode of access to one’s own currency might an individual have to digital monies, as errors, unlike the world of cash (even within the existing world of cash money banking and its aspects of any kind), would be catastrophic compared to existing set-ups?

So if the bank and credit cards are to be superseded, (and in the UK initial rubber notes recently introduced are not proving to be popular or practical to keep folded, etc), then the inevitable format has to be a physical mark on the body, e.g. 666 or its equivalents referred to in Biblical prophecy – regardless of one’s belief or otherwise. It could be a bar code or one’s name or the mark of the State of any given Country or eventually, universal power.

In America, there are Christian groups who welcome The Rapture and Second Coming of Christ asap so support each stage of Biblical Prophecy as soon as possible whereby other Christian groups consider it their duty to defy anything that might trigger prophecy as they consider they are therefore thwarting evil which is represented by such things as body bar-coding. Also the Jewish Nation still have emotional and physical scars of being tattooed with a number on the inside of their lower arms in Death Camps of the Second World War.

Digital currency, does not automatically in itself herald the above, but it does concern me that a currency of that nature is the potential equivalent of having some overseeing State controlling every facet of our existence and we would be at its mercy just buying a loaf of bread, the cost of which would be deducted via some physical mark being scanned at point of purchase. Not unlike an ink stamp used on the back of hands when attending rock concerts now.

It is just a question of time from that point before we learn that the dots may be joined up and the State (whoever that may be), digitally knows who we vote for, where we go (CCTV, etc), mobile phone or other device within a personal digital mark/bar code, what we can afford based on our digital income, savings and outgoings – thereby triggering an alert if we stray outside our specified remit. Medical records, any arrest details, prison time served if any, who we associate with, vote for, etc .

Regardless of any religious belief structure, such a scenario may already be in planning but this is why I think we should be very concerned indeed if digital currency becomes a reality.

During the interview referred to above, (even if it were said in an ‘innocent way’) it sent a chill down my spine to hear that for something supposedly in its early stages of consideration, that categories for the elderly and disabled had already been set in mind, yet earlier they did not offer any suggestion as to mode of digital currency access for an individual but had apparently decided there had to be social degradation first – deja vu?

Hazel Speed

Photo (c) Hazel Speed – used by kind permision to Tuck Magazine

Hazel Speed is a Philosopher, Writer, and Artist with various creative projects at differing stages of development. Her flaship project is an animation which has produced a film short: www.thepinkprofessor.com. She has also written an E-novel, ‘Just Suppose…!‘ which is available via the attached link.

Art sites: www.candystoreart.com, www.terrificart.com, www.artbadges.co.uk.