From: Gerald_A_Levy@MSN.COM
Date: Sat Dec 04 2004 - 12:00:03 EST
> The essence > of your argument is that gold is not money because it does not circulate > as money. Claus, No, the essence of my argument is that I see no convincing evidence or arguments that gold remains the money commodity. This is not, from my perspective, a question of what Marx wrote or even how and/or if a non-commodity theory of money can be made compatible with Marx's theory. I view those questions as interesting and important but entirely secondary. What arguments are there that gold remains the money commodity? That central banks still hold gold reserves? So what? That proves nothing. Nothing. The US also holds "strategic oil reserves" but that doesn't make oil the money commodity. Nations also have reserves of food, but that doesn't make food a money commodity. I agree also with Michael H that the argument that there has been a flight to gold during periods of economic crisis is not a convincing argument for gold being the money commodity. In times of economic and social crisis there is also a flight to religion and the Church. Like religion, the faith in the supposed power of gold is a deep-seated cultural belief in many social formations. It is a relic from the past (and a romanticisation of the past by some), an example of commodity fetishism, and often reflects deep-seated superstitions and irrational suspicions -- especially concerning the state (for these reasons, it is not surprising that the biggest advocates of the importance of gold in the world economy are right-wing libertarians such as the followers of the late Ludwig von Mises). Furthermore, _even if_ there was a return to a gold standard (_highly_ unlikely from my perspective, but a _theoretical_ possibility) this would not be a proof for your claim that a money commodity is somehow essential for the operation of capitalism. And, as I have suggested before, a belief that gold is somehow essential to the operation of capitalism has important and unacceptable political implications (see the 12/1 post "gold and the struggle against US and European imperialism"). In solidarity, Jerry
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