The Federal Reserve is Neither Federal, Nor a Reserve. Discuss.

You will probably not see much news coverage on this, if any, but today thousands of people gathered in 39 American cities in a national rally to support a movement to abolish the Federal Reserve. I participated in the Chicago rally. I'm guessing approximately 200 or so people attended.

Today's date (11-22) has double-significance for the cause. It's both the anniversary of the highly confidential meeting on Jekyl Island where an elite group gathered to plot the execution of the Federal Reserve and the anniversary of the death of JFK, the last President who dared to take actions against the Federal Reserve. We rally started at 401 N Michigan where the Festival of Lights activities were going on, then moved through Millineum Park, through downtown streets, until we ended up outside of the Chicago Federal Reserve building. The crowd's chant was End the Fed and many wore t-shirts and carried signs with the same message. I refused the free t-shirt because I didn't like this message. It's too confusing and only makes sense to people who are already informed. Not only that, but I've recently come to believe that the only effective focus of a protest effort is on the positive message of the change you are seeking (example: an anti-war message is not as powerful as a pro-peace message.) So, my message today was to encourage people to become educated about our monitary system, how it affects us as individuals, and to take a stand for a currency not based on debt. At one point in the the march, an older gentleman who held an End the Fed sign and had been chanting End the Fed wondered aloud why people looked at us as if they were confused. I explained to him that End the Fed is a terrible message because people likely think we are protesting to end the Federal Government or they are unaware that the Federal Reserve is not a government institution. They just aren't educated about it. As soon as I said that, he agreed and started telling other people the same thing. Later, two young girls handing out t-shirts and a teenage boy approached me and asked me what message might be more effective to tell people as we marched. I said that we should explain that we are protesting to get rid of the private bank that runs our government. Doesn't exactly roll off the tongue, but they agreed it was a more direct explanation. I also told them that the most important thing about today's rally is to incite people to ask questions about it and get them motivated to learn about our government and I believe we were successful in that goal. The sign I carried read, "Stand for CHANGE, Support HR 2755." Though the U.S. fiat currency has been a problem since the inception of the Federal Reserve, the issue has been ignored by the public at-large until recently as it now directly affects every American's personal income. So, there is no better time to educate than now, while people are looking for answers to what real options we have to improve the American and global economy without infringing on our civil liberties.

What I enjoyed most about the rally is that, while I knew that most of the people there were either Ron-Paul-republicans, libertarians (also RP supporters), or constitutional party folks the rally was not party-focused at all. As we walked, we got thumbs-up and smiles from people of all walks of life who were shopping on Michigan Avenue and State Street. Even ones that were not exactly sure of the connection between the Federal Reserve and our financial crisis could tell that we were a friendly group of people who were taking a stand for the rights of all Americans. Some even thanked us for marching and for our attempt to inform the public. There were many beautiful moments like this. One woman who was shopping with her two young daughters wondered aloud about what were were marching for. I stopped to explain it to her and almost before I could finish she enthusiastically thanked me for informing her, grabbed her daughters by the hand and jumped into the march screaming right along with us.

There was not a single opposing voice to be heard as we walked, because there is no reason not to support getting rid of the Federal Reserve. Since it the Fed was created, the dollar has decreased in value 98% and the next step is either a regional or world currency to replace it. The problem with this? The private bankers (Fed) who control the U.S. will then control the world, because the group that controls the money source has all the power (including military influence) no matter what official is elected by the people.

Some actions to be ready for based on history: when the inflation gets so bad we cannot afford food and gas, the government will mandate fixed prices on these which will cause nationwide shortages of goods and fuel. When there are shortages, people get desperate and do desperate things to feed their families...enter Martial Law. Once Martial Law is instated, the world as we knew it will be a very different and scary place. Check out the circumstances of the Weimar Republic prior to WW2. You will find many parallels. All of this would occur because of the declining value of the dollar which is due to our money being a "reserve note" (an IOU note + interest) to the Fed (those non-elected people living high off your tax dollars).

America hasn't always been this way. The way to combat inflation and return to a stable economy is to go back to a monitary system where the dollar does not represent debt, but rather represents something of actual value: gold or silver, as it once did. This was the basis of the today's rally. This is the ultimate goal. It's the already-proven answer to the economic crisis. Now, if we can just get Obama to take up the torch. :) If that happened, I would know he could be trusted to lead us into a better America. But then again, he may fear the fate of JFK to stand against the Fed. If the majority of the American people supported abolishing the Fed, the governing elite would know better than to lay a hand on Obama if he jumped on board for this. There'd be too much at stake. This time, we'd be too informed to not know who'd be responsible and we might just take justice into our own hands.

- jen

p.s. The best explanation I have seen to-date on how our money system works is on the Zeitgeist Addendum video (see my link on the lefthand side). Since the whole video is 2 hours+, you can get the abbreviated explanation of just the U.S. money system by watching it beginning at 7:05 minutes into the film until 25 minutes in. It is a truly amazing account of why the middle and lower classes will never get ahead, by design.