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When times get tough, the tough . . . switch currencies. A fascinating report by Eric Garland in The Atlantic tells of the upswing in “local currencies.” In the United Kingdom, the Brixton Pound is being floated, engraved on its paper notes the likes of “David Bowie in his Ziggy Stardust era.” Pegged to the British pound, it serves mainly as a scheme to promote local business and trade, though maybe it’s a tad more than mere boosterism. Bavarians are also “enthusiastically using the local currency as a protest” — the local currency being the “Chiemgauer.” And “similar currencies have...

The Barter Value Of Skills Tess Pennington April 26th, 2012 This article has been generously contributed by Tess Pennington of Ready Nutrition. After joining the Dallas chapter of the American Red Cross in 1999 Tess worked as an Armed Forces Emergency Services Center specialist and is well versed in emergency and disaster management & response. You can follow her regular updates on Preparedness, Homesteading, and a host of other topics at www.readynutrition.com. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Recently, we talked about the necessity of learning skills to aid us in a survival situation. Don’t underestimate the value of those skills for barter. If the...

Obviously if you are reading this article you already have a modicum of common sense about the impending changes to our capitalist system or the prophesy about the collapse thereof. Some people who have been out of work and have given up on ever finding another job are no longer counted in the unemployment figures since the change in how they are counted so politicians can justify their piss poor job performance…..the rate currently in reality is something akin to 20% not below 10% as touted. Almost 50 million persons receive food stamps and on the rise. Less than 50%...

In America, the federal government seems to control everything. Light bulbs, shoe leather, refrigerators, even the water strength in your shower. Your banker, your doctor, your lawyer, your computer all are regulated beyond belief. What is it in America that the feds can't control? The answer is simple: human nature. We need to eat, and we need to move about; and that means we will use the free market in order to do so, with or without the government. Every capable human engages in market exchanges, even in those countries where it's illegal. Through all of history, humans have advanced...

(Visiting DC)The Obama Administration announced its objection to including President Roosevelt’s prayer on the World War II Memorial in Washington DC. The Obama White House said the prayer would dilute the message of the memorial.Todd Starnes reported: Republican lawmakers and conservative activists are expressing outrage after the Obama administration announced its objection to adding President Franklin Roosevelt’s D-Day prayer to the World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C.The objection was noted during a congressional hearing on Rep. Bill Johnson’s (R-OH) bill – the “World War II Memorial Prayer Act of 2011.”“It is unconscionable that the Obama administration would stand...

If you’re fully stocked and prepared to survive anything, you may want to take that next step and start stockpiling popular bartering items. The exact items you choose to start stockpiling will depend on the situation your planning for, but in general the following items will all probably be in high demand after a total collapse: Water Purification Most people don’t realize how hard finding clean drinkable water will become in a post-collapse situation. When the water treatment plants stop running, people are going to be scrambling to find a way to purify their drinking water. Iodine tablets, bleach, water...

Barter Society Emerges In Greece As Crisis Deepens *Video* Mac Slavo October 29th, 2011 As the Greek economy succumbs to the debt crisis and individual Greeks are made poorer each day through austerity measures and job cuts, many have begun resorting to traditional bartering as a way to make ends meet and at the same time increase their involvement with neighbors and their general community. Services being bartered include anything from language classes and babysitting to hand cooked meals and daily labor. It’s huge. Everything we do is without money, like looking after people or making food by ourselves. …We...

Now, Social Security is sucking money out of the Treasury. This year, it will add a projected $46 billion to the nation’s budget problems, according to projections by system trustees. Replacing cash lost to a one-year payroll tax holiday will require an additional $105 billion. If the payroll tax break is expanded next year, as President Obama has proposed, Social Security will need an extra $267 billion to pay promised benefits.

At a million-dollar San Francisco fundraiser today, President Obama warned his recession-battered supporters that if he loses the 2012 election it could herald a new, painful era of self-reliance in America. “The one thing that we absolutely know for sure is that if we don’t work even harder than we did in 2008, then we’re going to have a government that tells the American people, ‘you are on your own,’” Obama told a crowd of 200 donors over lunch at the W Hotel. “If you get sick, you’re on your own. If you can’t afford college, you’re on your own....

Vice President Joe Biden joined House Democrats in lashing tea party Republicans Monday, accusing them of having “acted like terrorists” in the fight over raising the nation’s debt limit. Biden was agreeing with a line of argument made by Rep. Mike Doyle (D-Pa.) at a two-hour, closed-door Democratic Caucus meeting. “We have negotiated with terrorists,” an angry Doyle said, according to sources in the room. “This small group of terrorists have made it impossible to spend any money.” Biden, driven by his Democratic allies’ misgivings about the debt-limit deal, responded: “They have acted like terrorists,” according to several sources in...

'China, Iran discussing barter system to bypass sanctions' By REUTERS 25/07/2011 Sanctions forbid dealing with Iran in dollar trading; trading services, goods, softer currencies could undermine process, according to report. Iran and China are discussing using a barter system to exchange Iranian oil for Chinese goods and services, as US sanctions have blocked China from paying at least $20 billion for oil, the Financial Times said. The paper, citing people familiar with the problem, said US financial sanctions against Iran, which make it hard to conduct dollar-denominated business, meant China might owe the oil-rich country as much as $30 billion....

Top Post-Collapse Barter Items And Trade Skills Brandon Smith June 10th, 2011 The concept of private barter and alternative economies has been so far removed from our daily existence here in America that the very idea of participating in commerce without the use of dollars or without the inclusion of corporate chains seems almost outlandish to many people.However, the fact remains that up until very recently (perhaps the last three to four decades) barter and independent trade was commonplace in this country. Without it, many families could not have survived. Whether we like it or not, such economic methods will...

The dollar doesn’t have much clout these days. The greenback has lost 12 percent of its value against foreign currencies since the chaotic period after the failure of Lehman Brothers in 2008, and nearly 5 percent since the end of 2010. Economists are debating the end of the era of the dollar, while news organizations paint it as a 98-pound weakling. Our so-called “fiat” currency, backed only by the full faith and credit of the government, no longer commands respect. So wouldn’t we be better off without it? Imagine you woke up tomorrow and the dollar had vanished. The Federal...

The leader of a group that marketed a fake currency called Liberty Dollars in the Asheville area and elsewhere has been found guilty by a federal jury of conspiracy against the government in a case of “domestic terrorism.” Bernard von NotHaus was convicted Friday at the conclusion of an eight-day trial in U.S. District Court in Statesville. The jury deliberated less than two hours, according to the Department of Justice. Charges remain pending against William Kevin Innes, an Asheville man who authorities said recruited merchants in Western North Carolina willing to accept the “barter” currency, according to court records. Innes...

HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- The same shop that made national headlines for opening America's first sex toy drive-thru is offering customers another tantalizing deal just in time for Valentine's Day: Trade your guns for "romance-inspiring gifts," aka vibrators and other intimate items. The handguns for hand toys and other items offer is good Feb. 8 through 15 at Pleasures, located at 4008 University Drive in Huntsville. Owner Sherri Williams promises gifts equal to the value of the guns as determined by licensed gun dealer David Smith of Blue Steel Gun Works, who will be onsite from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m....

LANCASTER, Pa., Dec. 20, 2010 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today's declining economy creates ever increasing financial stress and pressures, causing a struggle to make ends meet. To help solve this problem, a new public service is making its debut nationwide. Community Clearinghouse Agency Inc. is sponsoring a Barter Trade Exchange Network forming a new type of barter service. The new program not only provides income but things people need without spending their money. The agency plans to create some 1500 jobs hiring in all fifty states pumping over $50 million into the economy.Bartering is thousands of years old, people traded vegetables for...

WASHINGTON — Veteran New York Rep. Charles Rangel said Thursday there's no deal yet to settle his ethics case and avoid an election-season trial on charges of violating House rules.

Per Foxnews, a local affiliate is reporting Rangel has struck a deal. FNC is working to confirm...

Those already outraged by the president's health care legislation now have a new bone of contention -- a scarcely noticed tack-on provision to the law that puts gold coin buyers and sellers under closer government scrutiny. The issue is rising to the fore just as gold coin dealers are attracting attention over sales tactics. Section 9006 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act will amend the Internal Revenue Code to expand the scope of Form 1099. Currently, 1099 forms are used to track and report the miscellaneous income associated with services rendered by independent contractors or self-employed individuals.

Over the past 30 years, Columbia artist Jeff Donovan has bartered for artwork, tuition for his daughter's private school, a custom-made suit and, most recently, a couple of visits to the dentist. Bartering gives Donovan a way to use his talent - instead of having to pay cash - to get things he might never buy for himself. Bartering, trading goods or services rather than charging cash, is an ancient practice. But it has gained popularity during the economic meltdown that left many short on cash but rich in talent or treasures. The number of online barter ads has increased...

Republican Reid challenger suggested twice recently that people should barter with their doctors for services. She mentioned--seriously--paying with chickens. See video.

Bartering is Back in North Korea By Yoo Gwan Hee, from South Pyongan in 2008 [2010-01-20 16:27 ] As predicted by experts on North Korea’s economy, since the authorities have yet to officially release state prices, the North Korean people are now surviving by bartering. A defector, who spoke with his family in North Hamkyung Province on Tuesday, reported the news to the Daily NK, “I called my family to send some money to them as I had heard they were in trouble, and they told me that the current situation is unspeakably terrible. They live only by bartering with...

Amongst the other topics for discussion on his daily talk radio show (The Good Day Show) on Tuesday morning this week, Doug Stephan and one of his co-hosts, Roberta Facinelli, highlighted the benefits of putting MBE-barter to good use. Featured ‘live via phone’ was Merchants Barter Exchange (MBE) founder and President, Steve Bolles, as a guest and expert on barter.

New video from Mr. Yankovic about the Internet site Craigslist in the style of Jim Morrison and the Doors. Enjoy!

Bartering makes a comeback for those short on cash The Associated Press Wednesday, February 25, 2009 BOISE, Idaho: Tired of her pink bathroom countertops but short on cash for a remodel, Rachel Alemany decided to get the work done the old-fashioned way: through bartering. Alemany has experience putting down flooring, so she and her husband traded flooring work with a neighbor who has tiling experience.

Yahoo ran an interesting article this morning indicating a rise in the number of survivalist communities cropping up around the country. I have been wondering myself how much of the recent energy crisis is causing people to do things like stockpile food and water, grow their own vegetables, etc. Could it be that there are many people out there stockpiling and their increased buying has caused food prices to increase? It’s an interesting theory, but I believe increased food prices have more to do with rising fuel prices as cost-to-market costs have increased and grocers are simply passing those increases...

[A] growing community — offline and online — [] is enthusiastically embracing bartering, particularly in this economy, when it is often more palatable to spend time than money. As we all know, exchanging goods and services goes back, well, forever. But being a neophyte barterer, I was surprised, once I started checking around, at the deals some friends, and friends of friends, have negotiated. Jane Heyman, an artist in Los Angeles who paints portraits, has traded her work for top-of-the-line haircuts, legal services and even plastic surgery. “I had a show, and the doctor liked my painting of Warhol, which...

CHICAGO - An attorney has been suspended for more than a year for accepting nude dances from a stripper as partial payment for the legal fees she owed him. The Illinois Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission on Thursday said Scott Robert Erwin will begin serving a 15-month suspension for misconduct next month. Erwin, who practices in the northern Illinois city of DeKalb, and his client mutually agreed that she'd perform nude dances for him in his office as a way to reduce her legal fees, the commission's report said. He credited her for $534 toward his bill for services of...

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that paper money illegally discriminates against the blind and ordered an immediate ban on its use. “Government services must be equally accessible to all Americans,” the Court wrote. “Since paper money is inaccessible to blind, it must be made inaccessible to everyone.” The Court rejected the demand that it was responsible for identifying a substitute for the now illegal currency, but suggested, unofficially, that “we might try bartering. Goods-for-goods exchange allows for tactile identification of the items in trade. This might pass muster in any future litigation of...

European, Asian and Canadian companies are taking advantage of the weaker dollar to buy their U.S. counterparts at a record pace, increasing investment in the United States but also raising fears about a potential loss of jobs and autonomy. "We could be looking at the world's largest tag sale if we continue to see declines in the dollar," said Donald Klepper-Smith, chief economist at DataCore Partners. In the latest large deal aided by a weak dollar, Commerce Bancorp, which is based in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, agreed Tuesday to be acquired by Toronto-Dominion Bank of Canada in a cash-and-shares deal...

Kyle MacDonald harnessed the power of the Internet to trade a red paper clip for something better, over and over again. Since last July, he’s managed to turn a red paper clip into a year’s free rent on a house in the desert, the Associated Press reports. "It's totally overwhelming; I'm not going to lie," he said by phone from Montreal, where he and his girlfriend, Dominique Dupuis, live with two roommates. "But I'm still trading for that house. It's this obsessive thing." MacDonald’s obsession started with an ad he placed in the Craigslist.org barter section, saying he wanted something...

FLOYD, Va. (AP) - They came to Floyd to get back to the land, to be alone, to find community, or to make music. They fit in here because they didn't quite fit in anywhere else. Here the counterculture met the mountain culture and something unique was born. The two lifestyles had something in common, lack of money. The locals wanted it but didn't have it. The newcomers with the tie-dyed shirts didn't care much about the dollar - some despised it - but, like everyone else, they had to pay the bills. So together they took something ancient and...

Money, Community & Social Change -------------------------------- An Interview with Bernard Lietaer By Ravi Dykema "Bernard Lietaer has been involved in the world of money systems for more than 25 years, and his experience in monetary matters ranges from multinational corporations to developing countries. He co-designed and implemented the convergence mechanism to the single European currency system (the Euro), and served as president of the Electronic Payment System in his native Belgium. He also co-founded one of the largest and most successful currency funds. Lietaer is the author of nine books on money and finances, including "The Future of Money" (Random...