Money in War-Ravaged Iraq - Edward Gonzalez - Mises Institute

Money in War-Ravaged Iraq - Edward Gonzalez - Mises Institute: "In the villages, houses and boats needed to be repaired or rebuilt, roads needed attention, and parents wanted to get their children back in school. In order to do all these wonderful things, a medium of exchange was needed. Unfortunately, or fortunately, depending onhow you look at it, the villagers did not put much faith in the paper money printed by the government in Baghdad.

As this was an agrarian society the villagers turned to a time-tested medium of exchange: livestock"

"With these three free market currencies, I watched village markets grow, farmers increase productivity, fisherman save capital in order to improve or build new boats, and young couples commission houses to be built with borrowed money. All this progress was made possible through the real savings of valuable commodities.

So, for those who are deeply worried about a currency crisis in the United States, I bear a positive message. When a currency fails, as long as there is no outside coercion implemented, individuals will act and find sound money in what is around them. Gold and silver will certainly be prime candidates, but even in small towns with limited access to these precious metals, there is an infinite supply of sound money available."