Activist Post
If you went out and took a poll of the American people on July 4th (Independence Day) and asked them if they are free, what would the results look like?
Of course the results would be overwhelmingly lopsided. Most Americans believe that they live in "the land of the free" and that they are not enslaved to anyone. But is that really the case?
Slavery does not always have to involve whips and shackles. There are many other forms of slavery.
One dictionary definition of a slave is "one that is completely subservient to a dominating influence". I really like that definition.
One dictionary definition of a slave is "one that is completely subservient to a dominating influence". I really like that definition.
Today, millions of Americans are slaves of the system and they don't even realize it. Debt is a form of slavery, and millions of Americans having become deeply enslaved to our debt-based financial system. When someone enslaves someone else, the goal of the master is to reap a benefit out of the slave. You don't want the slave to just sit there and collect dust. Today, most Americans have willingly shackled themselves to a system that systematically drains their wealth and transfers it to the very wealthy. Most of them don't even realize that they have been enslaved even as the system sucks them dry.
Just think about it. Where is the "big money" in the United States today? When asked that question, most Americans think of Wall Street. Well, who controls Wall Street? The bankers do.
The borrower is the servant of the lender, and they generate massive amounts of wealth by lending us money.
Perhaps an example will be helpful.
Have you ever run up $5000 of credit card debt? Many people have run up much, much more than that, but let us use $5000 for our example.
According to the Federal Reserve, if you only make the minimum payment every month, at a 20% interest rate it will take you 49 years to pay that credit card off and you will pay back a total of $26,169.
So you would have gotten the original benefit of spending the $5000 and you would have had to work extremely hard to pay back an additional $21,169 to the bankers.
In essence, you would be working as a servant of the bankers until you had paid back that entire debt plus interest.
Unfortunately, our entire system is now designed to get you to go into debt.
It starts before we even get into the "real world". We are constantly told that wecannot get a "good job" without a college degree, but a college education is so ridiculously expensive these days that most of us cannot afford one without going into lots of debt.
Many of you out there know exactly what I am talking about.
Do you have a pile of student loan debt?
I do.
In fact, the total pile of student loan debt in the United States is now over a trillion dollars.
Unfortunately, when a lot of us graduated we found out that the "good jobs" that we were promised simply were not there. Last year, 53 percent of all Americans with a bachelor's degree under the age of 25 were either unemployed or underemployed.
So many young adults are starting out life already enslaved to a gigantic pile of debt but without a good job that will enable them to comfortably service that debt.
The really "lucky" graduates from the top schools flock to Wall Street so that they can make lots of money running the debt-based financial system that is enslaving all the rest of us.
Once young people leave school, there are lots of other "debt traps" to fall into.
Once you get out into the "real world", just about every major purchase is going to involve another pile of debt.
Do you want a house?
That is going to mean more debt. As I have written about previously, mortgage debt as a percentage of U.S. GDP has more than tripled since 1955.
Do you want a car?
About 70 percent of all vehicle purchases in the U.S. now involve at least some borrowed money.
Consumer debt is particularly insidious. Our stores are filled with very beautiful things, and it is really easy to buy a bunch of stuff and "put it on plastic".
Since 1971, the total amount of consumer debt in the United States has increased by 1700%, and approximately 46% of all Americans now carry a credit card balance from month to month.
We just keep plunging ourselves deeper and deeper into debt slavery. Most Americans never seem to learn. Over the past 30 years those of us in the "bottom 95 percent" have seen our financial shackles just get heavier and heavier. The following is from a recent CNN article....
When you pile up lots of debt, you aren't just working for yourself anymore. You are also working for those that you owe the debts to. Your hard work and sweat end up making them a lot wealthier.
Our state and local governments have enslaved themselves to debt as well. Total state and local government debt is now about 8 times higher than it was 30 years ago.
At this point, many U.S. cities are in very serious trouble with debt. In fact, another California municipality has just declared bankruptcy. On Monday, the town of Mammoth Lakes announced that it has formally filed for bankruptcy.
But this is just the beginning.
The truth is that we are a nation that is absolutely drowning in debt and we need a lot more money in order to keep up with all of this debt.
But there is a problem.
In our debt-based financial system, the creation of more money actually creates more debt.
So how are we ever going to get out of the hole that we are in?
Today, the U.S. national debt is more than 5000 times larger than it was when the Federal Reserve was first created back in 1913. This is why it is so important for the American people to realize that the Federal Reserve is a perpetual debt machine.
The Federal Reserve system itself does not make much money. The vast majority of the profits that the Federal Reserve makes are transferred back to the U.S. government.
But that is not what the Federal Reserve was created to do.
What the Federal Reserve was created to do was to set up a system where the U.S. government would borrow money and pay interest on it instead of just creating the money itself.
Last year the U.S. government spent more than 454 billion dollars just on interest on the national debt. That is a form of national slavery. 454 billion dollars that we worked very hard to make was taken from us and transferred into the pockets of some very wealthy people.
The truth is that the U.S. government does not actually need to ever borrow a single penny from anyone. As a sovereign government it could directly issue money into circulation.
But lending money to governments is very, very profitable and it is the kind of thing that wars are fought over.
For example, the First Bank of the United States (the very first central bank in our country) was established in 1791 and the charter for that bank expired in 1811 and was not renewed.
So what happened the very next year?
The War of 1812. During that war Washington D.C. was actually captured and burned. The final major battle of that war was the battle of New Orleans which took place on January 8, 1815.
So what happened the very next year?
President James Madison signed the charter for the Second Bank of the United States on April 10, 1816.
The goal has always been to enslave the American people. Debt is used to enslave us individually, it is used to enslave our businesses, it is used to enslave our state and local governments and it is used to enslave our federal government.
So are you a slave of the system?
If you are in debt, then you are a slave at least to some degree.
Unfortunately, the global financial system has become so saturated with debt that it is now on the verge of collapse. It appears that things could be getting significantly worse during the second half of this year, and the years ahead do not look very promising at all.
Sadly, most Americans do not see any of this coming. In fact, a new CNN/ORC International poll has found that about 60 percent of all Americans think that the U.S. economy will be in good shape next year.
Can you believe that?
The mainstream media has done a fantastic job of brainwashing the general public.
The "blue team" is convinced that if Barack Obama wins the election and the Democrats take control of both houses of Congress that prosperous times are on the way.
The "red team" is convinced that if Mitt Romney wins the election and the Republicans take control of both houses of Congress that the U.S. economy will be put back on the right track.
Well, the truth is that there is not going to be a solution to our economic problems on the national level. We have accumulated the greatest mountain of debt in the history of the world, and it is going to collapse and crush us no matter which brand of corrupt politicians we sent to Washington.
On July 4th, millions upon millions of Americans will celebrate "Independence Day" with cookouts, parades and fireworks without ever realizing the true nature of what is really going on.
Hopefully we can get more of them educated while there is still time.
Just think about it. Where is the "big money" in the United States today? When asked that question, most Americans think of Wall Street. Well, who controls Wall Street? The bankers do.
The borrower is the servant of the lender, and they generate massive amounts of wealth by lending us money.
Perhaps an example will be helpful.
Have you ever run up $5000 of credit card debt? Many people have run up much, much more than that, but let us use $5000 for our example.
According to the Federal Reserve, if you only make the minimum payment every month, at a 20% interest rate it will take you 49 years to pay that credit card off and you will pay back a total of $26,169.
So you would have gotten the original benefit of spending the $5000 and you would have had to work extremely hard to pay back an additional $21,169 to the bankers.
In essence, you would be working as a servant of the bankers until you had paid back that entire debt plus interest.
Unfortunately, our entire system is now designed to get you to go into debt.
It starts before we even get into the "real world". We are constantly told that wecannot get a "good job" without a college degree, but a college education is so ridiculously expensive these days that most of us cannot afford one without going into lots of debt.Many of you out there know exactly what I am talking about.
Do you have a pile of student loan debt?
I do.
In fact, the total pile of student loan debt in the United States is now over a trillion dollars.
Unfortunately, when a lot of us graduated we found out that the "good jobs" that we were promised simply were not there. Last year, 53 percent of all Americans with a bachelor's degree under the age of 25 were either unemployed or underemployed.
So many young adults are starting out life already enslaved to a gigantic pile of debt but without a good job that will enable them to comfortably service that debt.
The really "lucky" graduates from the top schools flock to Wall Street so that they can make lots of money running the debt-based financial system that is enslaving all the rest of us.
Once young people leave school, there are lots of other "debt traps" to fall into.
Once you get out into the "real world", just about every major purchase is going to involve another pile of debt.
Do you want a house?
That is going to mean more debt. As I have written about previously, mortgage debt as a percentage of U.S. GDP has more than tripled since 1955.
Do you want a car?
About 70 percent of all vehicle purchases in the U.S. now involve at least some borrowed money.
Consumer debt is particularly insidious. Our stores are filled with very beautiful things, and it is really easy to buy a bunch of stuff and "put it on plastic".
Since 1971, the total amount of consumer debt in the United States has increased by 1700%, and approximately 46% of all Americans now carry a credit card balance from month to month.
We just keep plunging ourselves deeper and deeper into debt slavery. Most Americans never seem to learn. Over the past 30 years those of us in the "bottom 95 percent" have seen our financial shackles just get heavier and heavier. The following is from a recent CNN article....
In 1983, the bottom 95% had 62 cents of debt for every dollar they earned, according to research by two International Monetary Fund economists. But by 2007, the ratio had soared to $1.48 of debt for every $1 in earnings.
When you pile up lots of debt, you aren't just working for yourself anymore. You are also working for those that you owe the debts to. Your hard work and sweat end up making them a lot wealthier.Our state and local governments have enslaved themselves to debt as well. Total state and local government debt is now about 8 times higher than it was 30 years ago.
At this point, many U.S. cities are in very serious trouble with debt. In fact, another California municipality has just declared bankruptcy. On Monday, the town of Mammoth Lakes announced that it has formally filed for bankruptcy.
But this is just the beginning.
The truth is that we are a nation that is absolutely drowning in debt and we need a lot more money in order to keep up with all of this debt.
But there is a problem.
In our debt-based financial system, the creation of more money actually creates more debt.
So how are we ever going to get out of the hole that we are in?
Today, the U.S. national debt is more than 5000 times larger than it was when the Federal Reserve was first created back in 1913. This is why it is so important for the American people to realize that the Federal Reserve is a perpetual debt machine.
The Federal Reserve system itself does not make much money. The vast majority of the profits that the Federal Reserve makes are transferred back to the U.S. government.
But that is not what the Federal Reserve was created to do.
What the Federal Reserve was created to do was to set up a system where the U.S. government would borrow money and pay interest on it instead of just creating the money itself.
Last year the U.S. government spent more than 454 billion dollars just on interest on the national debt. That is a form of national slavery. 454 billion dollars that we worked very hard to make was taken from us and transferred into the pockets of some very wealthy people.
The truth is that the U.S. government does not actually need to ever borrow a single penny from anyone. As a sovereign government it could directly issue money into circulation.
But lending money to governments is very, very profitable and it is the kind of thing that wars are fought over.
For example, the First Bank of the United States (the very first central bank in our country) was established in 1791 and the charter for that bank expired in 1811 and was not renewed.
So what happened the very next year?
The War of 1812. During that war Washington D.C. was actually captured and burned. The final major battle of that war was the battle of New Orleans which took place on January 8, 1815.
So what happened the very next year?
President James Madison signed the charter for the Second Bank of the United States on April 10, 1816.
The goal has always been to enslave the American people. Debt is used to enslave us individually, it is used to enslave our businesses, it is used to enslave our state and local governments and it is used to enslave our federal government.
So are you a slave of the system?
If you are in debt, then you are a slave at least to some degree.
Unfortunately, the global financial system has become so saturated with debt that it is now on the verge of collapse. It appears that things could be getting significantly worse during the second half of this year, and the years ahead do not look very promising at all.
Sadly, most Americans do not see any of this coming. In fact, a new CNN/ORC International poll has found that about 60 percent of all Americans think that the U.S. economy will be in good shape next year.
Can you believe that?
The mainstream media has done a fantastic job of brainwashing the general public.
The "blue team" is convinced that if Barack Obama wins the election and the Democrats take control of both houses of Congress that prosperous times are on the way.
The "red team" is convinced that if Mitt Romney wins the election and the Republicans take control of both houses of Congress that the U.S. economy will be put back on the right track.
Well, the truth is that there is not going to be a solution to our economic problems on the national level. We have accumulated the greatest mountain of debt in the history of the world, and it is going to collapse and crush us no matter which brand of corrupt politicians we sent to Washington.
On July 4th, millions upon millions of Americans will celebrate "Independence Day" with cookouts, parades and fireworks without ever realizing the true nature of what is really going on.
Hopefully we can get more of them educated while there is still time.
This article first appeared here at the Economic Collapse Blog. Michael Snyder is a writer, speaker and activist who writes and edits his own blogs The American Dream and Economic Collapse Blog. Follow him on Twitter here.
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15 comments:
Would you like to see nowdays and hystory of slavery? Read book "Evolution of dictate" by Kaitoukov V.M. at
http://www.philosophyevolution.com/main_en.htm
Yurist
Are You A Slave of the 'System'? Duh. Uh-huh.
It's July 4th, 2012 - Do YOU KNOW what time it is?
(It's time to pass H.R. 459, and AUDIT THE 'FED'!)
http://chooseliberty.org/auditrphf3.aspx?pid=0703
All of us are, one way or another. If u think otherwise, definitely u are an imbecile...
Michael,
You wrote a very good article with timely information. Can I make a suggestion (constructively)?
In the paragraphs where you mention "For example, the First Bank of the United States (the very first central bank in our country) was established in 1791 and the charter for that bank expired in 1811 and was not renewed.
So what happened the very next year?
The War of 1812. During that war Washington D.C. was actually captured and burned. The final major battle of that war was the battle of New Orleans which took place on January 8, 1815.
So what happened the very next year?
President James Madison signed the charter for the Second Bank of the United States on April 10, 1816." I think you may need more information here. There may be a link between the charter expiring in 1811 and the war beginning in 1812, but you haven't explained it.
Your article was great, don't get me wrong. I am in agreement with all you said. I would just like to see the link between the charter expiring and the war. In fact, you may also want to point out that Abraham Lincoln tried to print his own money, along with JFK; we all know what happened there. Also, WWI and WWII both began in dire economic situations.
Just my thoughts, take 'em or leave 'em...
Ridiculous. Truly ridiculous hyperbole.
Debt is a tool of the master? It's a tool of the borrower! If you make it so, that is.
I had student debt. I paid it off. I used the money borrowed by me to get schooling, get a career, and pay it off. I used that money to good effect. They made money by loaning me money, I made money by turning their money into an education.
That's not being a slave. That is using a system to your advantage. Credit card debt? It's useful. If you can use it well. But it's hardly the bank's fault for letting you ruin your own life.
But you're right. You ARE a slave. A slave to slave thinking. You've convinced yourself you are one of the oppressed little people.
And forever you will stay that way.
Oh say can you see......?
Government hasn't been taken over by banksters. It is the tool of the elite to ensure slavery of the masses. Who makes the laws and issues the punishments?
Citizenship documents are the registration papers that indicate who your owners are. Social Security/Insurance numbers are your ID. You are, after all, valuable Human Resources.
Involuntary payment of taxes is slavery. Money represents your labour and anyone who forces you to pay for something is forcing you to work, which is slavery.
Don't expect government to right this atrocity. It is part and parcel to its implementation.
Stop cooperating.
...o'er the land of the slave and the home of the naive.
Mr.Flakefizer....
The judges will be judged.
I feel empathy for you sir. May all your years be filled with sunshine and positive energy.
Galatians 5:1
“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.”
I AM the 'Underground Railroad',(except I AM a Spirit, and I AM teleportational, so fuck all that running and hiding).
good article.
The whole concept of Americans being enslaved to a system of debt didn't occur to me until 2006 when I read Howard Zinn's book, "A People's History of the United States." Wonderful read but veeeery long.
The poor and underclass have always been taken advantage of and preyed upon by the wealthy and elite; this is not just an American issue but a global issue. The system was designed to favor those with the most money and 'connections'. The elite, most of whom see their sole purpose on earth as amassing more wealth at any cost, use their wealth and consequent power and influence to control what happens to everyone else. The growing inequality in this country was planned from the begging - it's all very deliberate.
Mr. Flakfizer; Congratulations, clearly you are not included in the 53% of graduates mentioned in the article who, upon obtaining their degrees, remain either underemployed or unemployed. Why don't you try telling those men and women who believed the lie that their situation is merely a 'slave state of mind', you jackass.
Consider yourself very lucky and fortunate to NOT be (for now at least) just another statistic. If you believe this situation is as cut and dry as simply changing your attitude, or that the corrupt system has no responsibility for the economic crises (see economic depression) we're now experiencing on an individual and global level, then its obvious your higher education did not serve you in the area of critical thinking but that comes as no surprise.
The reality for the vast majority trying to work within this broken, corrupt system is that if you do everything by the book, the way you're expected to, then you wind up getting shafted in the end.
No one wants to consider themselves a slave to anything but the reality is that many who attempt to do everything they're told is right and go by the rules find themselves caught in a vicious cycle they're unable to extricate themselves from - hence the many suicides of people (many of them students) unable to find their way out of debt because they cannot find a job that pays them enough. Many of us here and abroad - like Greece, Italy - are caught in a cycle that, despite our best efforts, there's seemingly no way out of. And, IT WAS BUILT THAT WAY ON PURPOSE. Read, do a little research, and maybe one day you'll get the bigger picture instead of what you've been taught to believe which has no basis in reality.
Excellent article. Society does not and never did need money or debt, providing everyone with freedom and human rights, with full control and choice on how they they lead their lives (as long as it does no harm others). Simple things like organic food, clean safe unpolluted water, housing, natural safe healthcare, free energy, free transport and communication and an organic plant based diet. However his will never happen in this reality.
Great article! Anyone interested in seeing the debt stacked in $ bills should visit the website: demonocracy.info
According to demonocracy.info (economic infographics) the 9 largest US banks owe over $228 trillion in derivative (casino style gambling) debt while the US Government owes over $122 trillion i unsecured debt liabilities for it public programs including medicare/medicaid, social security and salaries of public employees.
People IS enslaved and WILL be as long as the Fed will be privatized, back to the greenback is the ONLY solution. REF: webofdebt.com/article and canobs.livejournal.com
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