Milwaukee neighborhoods could print own money

[-Cp]

2 neighborhoods consider printing own currency for exclusive use in local stores

By Erika Slife | Tribune reporter
December 3, 2008
They may be talking funny money, but it's not funny business.

Residents from the Milwaukee neighborhoods of Riverwest and East Side are scheduled to meet Wednesday to discuss printing their own money. The idea is that the local cash could be used at neighborhood stores and businesses, thus encouraging local spending. The result, supporters hope, would be a bustling local economy, even as the rest of the nation deals with a recession.

"You have all these people who have local currency, and they're going to spend it at local stores," said Sura Faraj, a community organizer who is helping spearhead the plan. "They can't spend it at the Wal-Mart or the Home Depot, but they can spend it at their local hardware store or their local grocery store."

Incentives could be used to entice consumers into using the new money. For example, perhaps they could trade $100 U.S. for $110 local, essentially netting them a 10 percent discount at participating stores.

It's not a new concept—experts estimate there are at least 2,000 local currencies all over the world—but it is a practice that tends to burgeon during economic downturns. During the Great Depression, scores of communities relied on their own currencies.

And it's completely legal.

As long as communities don't create coins, or print bills that resemble federal dollars, organizations are free to produce their own greenbacks—and they'd don't even have to be green.

In Wisconsin, could that mean dough that looks like cheese?

http://www.chicagotribune.com/busine...,2902061.story

[Trigg]

Interesting, but how does the money have any real worth.

If the stores take local money, how doest that translate into the real stuff to replenish their stock?????????????

[5stringJeff]

Good. The federal government should not be given monopoly over money. In fact, in the 1800's, banks printed their own bank notes, the value of which was backed by the soundness of the bank's balance sheets.

I say, go for it!

[Noir]

seems a good idea, I know of a group that live in the mountains in my country who do not use money, but instead they use wool, wood and meat ect. And it seems to work for them fine.

[Binky]

Interesting, but how does the money have any real worth.

If the stores take local money, how doest that translate into the real stuff to replenish their stock?????????????

I'm wondering that myself. How are they going to purchase stock with "play money"? Or pay bills, for that matter? Something to think about.

[Noir]

I'm wondering that myself. How are they going to purchase stock with "play money"? Or pay bills, for that matter? Something to think about.

They won't be able to pay bills and stuff with it. But both people and shops buy into the xurrency, costing $100 for $110 of play money, which is used in local shops as if it were normal money, then the local shops will have to trade it into really money again.

Costomers get an extra $10 for every 100, by shops lose that 10 in every 100, but if the shops trad increases by more than 10% then all the locals win. I think LOL.

[Mr. P]

A business accounting nightmare! Not to mention the work to keep the funny money separate from US currency. In addition, some folks won't use it so don't try giving them funny money as change if they hand you a US ten dollar bill.

[Binky]

They only get an extra $10 over the $100? Doesn't seem worth it to me. You'd think they have a lot of fianancial problems with it. Confusion and such!

[red states rule]