Over at the Huffington Post they have achieved a heretofore thought impossible level of stupidity. They have what they think is a new way to avoid the debt ceiling. Behold:
Well, what about a magic trillion-dollar coin, wrought from platinum? Would that help?
Actually, in an interview with Capital New York’s Reid Pilifant, Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) suggests that it is possible to mint just such a coin, stick it in the Treasury, and stick a fork in the coming debt ceiling crisis before it begins. “I’m being absolutely serious,” Nadler told Pilifant, adding, “It sounds silly but it’s absolutely legal. And it would normally not be proper to consider such a thing, except when you’re faced with blackmail to destroy the country’s economy, you have to consider things.”
Yes, it would be good to have some “things” you can do to save the planet from the debt ceiling psychopaths.
Of course the platinum in the coin wouldn’t be worth a trillion dollars. It would simply have a face value of a trillion dollars. For that reason, it doesn’t matter if it was platinum; it could be made out of silver or copper. In fact, it could be made out of wood; or written on the back of a napkin. Actually, there is no reason to mint a coin at all. Just declare the money in existence and use this newly created money to pay off Treasury Bond Holders. I am sure they won’t mind being paid with dollars conjured up out of thin air. That would teach the “debt ceiling psychopaths” in Congress! I mean, who the hell do they think they are trying to have a voice in fiscal and monetary policy?
It gets better. A petition has been launched at WhiteHouse.gov to get people to demand that Obama take this step. On Twitter, supporters are using the hashtag #mintthecoin.
Direct the United States Mint to make a single platinum trillion dollar coin! wh.gov/UpcC #mintthecoin
— Tony Boyles (@AABoyles) January 4, 2013
I like the idea. But why only make 1? #mintthecoin
— Will Williams (@ww1249) January 4, 2013
Also, unlike the debt ceiling, It doesn’t violate the US Constitution.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fourteent… #mintthecoin
— Brian Jenkins (@bonkydog) January 4, 2013
#mintthecoin I agree to this approach, rather than continually bowing to extortion demands from Congress over the debt ceiling.
— Kevin Broom (@KevinDBroom) January 4, 2013
The beauty of #MintTheCoin is its simplicity. It’s easy for average folks to grasp.
— Hesiod Theogeny (@Hesiod2k11) January 4, 2013
#mintthecoin is silly. Defaulting on our debt is even sillier.
— Kal (@Kalbelgarion) January 4, 2013
No Kal, the coin is just another way to default.
Of course the reality is that quantitative easing is exactly the same as minting the coin, just not as blatant. It also does not bypass the power of Congress to control the federal budget. I know, just details.
Hello Zimbabwe!
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These people plumb new depths in the well of stupidity every time I look away for 2 seconds.
Here is a crazy idea: Rather than minting a platinum coin worth a trillion dollars, how about if the treasury mints some gold coins that are worth their weight in gold?
Ha! Nobody would buy $28,000 1 oz gold coin!
preezy said he is not going to debate the debt limit, ain’t happening, he is just gonna keep spending regardless what congress says about any limits on borrowing.
How can any one possibly believe that continually borrowing more money while already enslaving your grand children to pay what you already owe is s recipe for sucess.
Just get your monopoly games out and use that money for cash. See if anyone argues with the walmart cashier that it’s real money. Just how far do you think you’ll get? It’ll probably work easier than the EBT card. Bwa ha ha! Right! Now I’ve heard it all. Well, maybe not just yet. It just keeps getting better.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seigniorage
http://jonathanturley.org/2011/07/29/coin-seigniorage-legal-response-to-debt-ceiling-crisis/
When Congress inevitably raises the debt ceiling, it will be doing the same thing as minting this coin, just without the coin. The thing about the coin, however, is that it would make manifest to the world just what a banana republic the United States has become.
We have been doing the equivalent of minting these coins for decades. Lying it out in this manner, however, allows people to see what is really being done.
I’m thinking about paying off my mortgage in rocks. Or better yet, pay my income taxes in rocks. I have a shitload of them around my house as a decorative moat. I figure each rock is worth between $50-$100 but I’m not really sure, though. I know what you’re thinking; sending the IRS several pounds of rocks would be an expensive postage, but, I would just pay for the postage in rocks. That would solve any fiscal problems one might have.
If they would mint a paltry 120 of these coins, the Treasury could issue a check for a million dollars to every household in America. Then we would all be millionaires! Yaaaay!
Bman, government don’t work that way.
Although the 1920′s Weimar Republic was printing boxcars each day of paper currency in marks to be legal tender for everyone else, it was not legal tender for taxes. Those had to be paid in gold marks.
The trillion dollar coin of platinum would weigh 2083 ton.
My guess is that this is a larger quantity than exist in the world.
It is a thousand times larger than all the platinum in the world but they are just talking about making a face value coin. They could make it out of tin. It is fiat currency.
This coin could be marked QE4
Nope, sorry Tony. QE4 is already taken!
You know, in a twisted way of thinking, I support the coin for the very reason that RD mentions:
It’s a little like why I somewhat supported going over the cliff. Let the people feel the pain they’ve wrought upon themselves… maybe we’ll convert a few to a small government mindset yet.
Nah… they’d probably just blame it all on the free market and TEA partiers and Bush or something.
That, and come 2016 the dems would promise everyone an Obama coin.
Weapons-grade awesome, right here, folks!
TN has is absolutely RIGHT. If we’re already at the point of proposing trillion dollar faux-currency to the treasury to “solve” our debt problems, how scarily close must we be to proposing that each citizen is awarded one?
“NBC News is proud to report that the recent ‘Trillion Dollars For Everyone’ bill signed into law by President Obama has yielded a 2037% GDP increase, the largest in US history. Suck it, GOP.”
notice the faces to reoresent our Country
This coin creates wealth the same way as Jesse Jackson Jr.
Remember this Revo Classic?
Jesse Jackson’s “Wealth in America” from RD Walker on Vimeo.
I hadn’t seen that before. Epic.
I didn’t know it was possible to be that dumb.
Argentina has already passed the deadline on a host of its national and international economic and financial obligations. Currently, its government officials are seeking to forestall a court decision declaring Argentina’s defaulting on its obligations…which of course would cause another “mexican style” international financial markets meltdown. As of 1/3/2013, there were more Argentinian citizens crossing Brazil’s southern-most border cities (in droves) seeking asylum for their assets than ever before in the history of that nation. Something to think about!!! Where will americans migrate to??? Worry, worry, worry. Pray. Amen.