How America Can Spend Its Way Back to Greatness: A Guide to Monetary Reform

Commendation Quotes: "Striner makes the case for recapturing the nation's sovereign right to issue its money and benefit from the gain thereof--a starting point for important new developments in monetary and public policy."Commendation Quotes: "Richard Striner's thought-provoking book on Pure Money reminds us that the federal government can rebuild our nation's declining infrastructure and restore broad-based and sustainable prosperity, but first it must reclaim the sovereign power to issue its own currency."Biographical Note: Richard Striner, PhD, is professor of history at Washington College, Chestertown, MD. Marc Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index. Publisher Marketing: Written in a crisp, fast-paced style, this groundbreaking work presents an in-depth account of monetary theory and practice as the basis for its suggestion of a new system of money creation. First, the economic history of the United States is explored, with special emphasis on the years from the Civil War to the Great Depression. The proposal that follows, based on a long-lost method of money creation, is related to that context, as well as to America's current situation, both economic and political. Readers will learn how banks have created most of America's money supply since the nation's founding, but also about experiments with an alternative system in which the government plays that role. The crux of the book is an examination of the way in which the two systems could be harmonized to pay for public necessities without increasing taxes or national debt. The proposed new system of money creation would incorporate two complementary money streams--the existing banking system run by the Federal Reserve and a new stream of money created by Congress. By integrating the "Greenback" method with the fiscal and monetary status quo, the author argues, the United States could spend its way back to greatness.

Contributor Bio:  Striner, Richard Richard Striner is Professor of History at Washington College and is a Senior Writer with the Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission. He has written for numerous publications, including The Washington Post, The Smithsonian Institution Press, and William & Mary Quarterly.