Today, fiat money is more common than commodity money. The U.S. dollar and the Euro are both forms of fiat money. Fiat money is based on the perceived value, not the intrinsic value, of the currency issued by a certain government. The value is based on that country’s economic activity and the perceived stability of the government backing it.
America is a great example of the contrast between commodity money and fiat money. In 1973, America switched from a representative commodity money system to a fiat money system. Prior to 1973, the value of the American dollar was based on gold. If the value of gold increased, the value of the dollar increased. To introduce more dollars into the economy, more gold of a corresponding value would first have to be purchased and stored. The combined value of all the U.S. dollars at that time corresponded directly with the value of the gold that the U.S. government owned. Nevertheless, American money had always been made of paper bills and (non-gold) metal coins.
When the switch was made to fiat money, the Federal Reserve was given authority to add dollars to the economy based on need rather than based on buying more gold. Now, the value of the dollar is based on the health of the American economy. If the value of gold was to suddenly take a nosedive, the value of the American dollar would only change in correspondence to the change in its buying power.
The use of commodity money can be compared to trading of items. Suppose Jim is an early American settler looking to buy vegetables for his family. Jim is a fur trapper, and his neighbor Bill is a farmer. Jim gives Bill three beaver pelts in exchange for 10 bushels of collard greens. The pelts served as commodity money because both parties agreed that they were valuable and that three beaver pelts had an equal value to 10 bushels of collard greens. more
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The original "Make Money Fast" letter was written around 1988 by a person who used the name Dave Rhodes. Biographical details are not certain, and it is not clear if this was even the person's actual name. The letter encouraged readers of the email to forward one dollar in cash to a list of people provided in the text, and to add their own name and address to the bottom of the list after deleting the name and address at the top.[1] Using the theory behind pyramid schemes, the resulting chain of money flowing back and forth would supposedly deliver a reward of thousands of dollars to the ones participating in the chain, as copies of their chain spread and more and more people sent one dollar to their address.
According to the FAQ of the net.legends Usenet news group, Dave Rhodes was a student at Columbia Union College (now Washington Adventist University), a Seventh-day Adventist college in Maryland, who wrote the letter and uploaded it as a text file to a nearby BBS around 1987.[2] The earliest posting to Usenet was posted by a David Walton in 1989, also using a Columbia Union College account. Walton referred to himself as, "BIZMAN DAVE THE MODEM SLAVE", and referred to "Dave Rhodes" in his post.[3] The true identity of Dave Rhodes has not been found. A supposed self-published web site by Dave Rhodes was found to be fake.[4][5]
The scam was forwarded over e-mail and Usenet. By 1994 "Make Money Fast" became one of the most persistent spams with multiple variations.[6][7] The chain letters follow a rigidly predefined format or template with minor variations (such as claiming to be from a retired lawyer or claiming to be selling "reports" in order to attempt to make the scheme appear lawful). They quickly became repetitive, causing them to be bait for widespread satire or parody. One widespread parody begins with the subject of, "GET.ARRESTED.FAST" and the line, "Hi, I'm Dave Rhodes, and I'm in jail".[8] Another parody sent around in academic circles is, "Make Tenure Fast", substituting the sending of money to individuals on a list with listing journal citations.[9]
Legality
The text of the letter originally claimed this practice is "perfectly legal", citing Title 18, Sections 1302 & 1341 of the postal lottery laws.[1] The U.S. Postal Inspection Service cites Title 18, United States Code, Section 1302 when it asserts the illegality of chain letters, including the "Make Money Fast" scheme:[10]
It also asserts that, "Regardless of what technology is used to advance the scheme, if the mail is used at any step along the way, it is still illegal."[10] The U.S. Postal Inspection Service asserts the mathematical impossibility that all participants will be winners, as well as the possibilities that participants may fail to send money to the first person listed, and the perpetrator may have been listed multiple times under different addresses and names, thus ensuring that all the money goes to the same person.[10]
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