The extent of the control over all life that economic control confers is nowhere better illustrated than in the field of foreign exchanges. Nothing would at first seem to affect private life less than a state control of the dealings in foreign exchange, and most people will regard its introduction with complete indifference. Yet the experience of most Continental countries has taught thoughtful people to regard this step as the decisive advance on the path to totalitarianism and the suppression of individual liberty. It is, in fact, the complete delivery of the individual to the tyranny of the state, the final suppression of all means of escape—not merely for the rich but for everybody.
Way back when, in fact in the times that Hayek was writing about, my family knew a Wermacht officer who left Germany with his Jewish wife. In order to extract at least some of their wealth from the Nazi system they removed their chrome bumpers on their car and had others cast out of silver.
But for Murphy is is this which is at the centre of his lust for capital controls: \”the complete delivery of the individual to the tyranny of the state\”.
It really is you know.
It’s a nice cuddly tyranny that cares for us and knows what is better for us than we do ourselves.
It’s odd that Murphy is very much in favour of very relaxed rules when it comes to immigration. As a “child of immigrants” he tweets that the government’s anti-immigrant rhetoric is appalling.
However surely his capital controls will just mean that a retired accountant from Munich will be unable to buy a house and retire to the small town charms of Downham Market.
He really is a nasty spiteful little man.
Very true Tim. As I’ve often said, the abolition of cash is on the way. You can hear Naughtie now: “But surely printing physical money is just an expensive anachronism? The money spent – forgive me – on making physical money could surely be better spent on nurses and teachers?”
Lots of dickheads nodding along, clapping on Question Time…
Just interested – how did the officer get allowed out of Germany, especially with his car (presumably loaded up with all his clobber)?
A friend of mine here is a MP reservist and until recently still had to notify his CO (and at least theoretically get his permission) when leaving the country.
The destruction of one form of money (tally sticks) resulted in the complete destruction of the House Of Commons.
We can but hope that history repeats itself.
Tally sticks weren’t money. They were an accounting system. When they were burned it was the equivalent of destroying old but confidential records.
Not for nothing was the ‘Road to Serfdom’ addressed to ‘The Socialists of all Parties’ – Murphy and his acolytes truly believe that only the state can deliver salvation – from 2015 they will have a chance to reinvent the Soviet Union and try and make it work. I would strongly advise those that can get out to do so.
Monbiot issues a correction:
This article was amended on 29 March 2013. The original included a quote from a blogpost by the New Economics Foundation stating that “The 1% are worth more than the bottom 99% put together”, and said a graph which appeared in that blogpost suggested the average property wealth of the top 1% of households is GBP15m. The NEF has since amended its blogpost after finding that a table provided by the Office for National Statistics was mislabelled. The NEF blogpost now says: “It is estimated that the top 1 per cent have up to GBP15 million per household.”
Please don’t say that.
They can abolish their own cash –ie the Pound, euro whatever–but they can’t abolish cash–it is whatever people can agree on as a medium of exchange/store of value. The saga of “Tide” liquid detergent being used as cash by US criminals shows that. The problem is that most are natural slaves who will kiss the arse of their tormenters.
People need to start now on organising networks to work around whichever faction of the ruling classes get themselves elected by 15-20% of the population.
The line is conceptual and blurry. A bank note is, or was, just a record of a debt, same as a tally. “I promise to pay the bearer on demand…”.
Isn’t it remarkable how moonbat’s “correction” only makes things even more obscure?
The top 1% have “up to” 15 million quid? Uh?
Well the bottom of the 1% probably has a bit less than that. So not “up to”. And the top of the 1% has substantially more, so also not “up to”. In fact the guy at the top of the 1% pile probably finds his wealth fluctuates by more than that from one minute to the next.
A magnificent tweet from Daniel Hannan last night that sums the Murphmeister up absolutely
“A man’s admiration for absolute government is proportionate to the contempt he feels for those around him.” Tocqueville