Valley Journal • December 11 - 17, 2008 7
OPINION
Slow economy
Fed comes full circle
For What It’s Worth
back to
prompting VJ repeating same old mistakes
to make some
tough decisions
An open, and honest letter to Valley Journal readers:
As most of you well know, the economic downturn
has forced a lot of businesses both locally and national-
ly to cut back. And so we feel obligated to inform you of
some changes affecting your hometown newspaper.
There have been a lot of rumors floating around Car-
bondale of late about the fate of The Valley Journal, so
we want to set the record straight.
Like a lot of businesses, The Valley Journal and our
parent company, Colorado Mountain News Media, face
some tough choices as we look ahead to what all signs
indicate will be an extended period of economic recov-
ery.
Short of some miracle that has yet to present itself —
like perhaps free rent — we are preparing to close our
storefront in downtown Carbondale to help sustain the
vitality of The Valley Journal.
We are under lease here for a period of time, so the
move does hinge on sub-leasing the space in the interim.
See the ad in the classifieds section for more informa-
tion, or call our publisher, Andrea Porter, at 384-9100
for details.
This decision, of course, raises the question: How can
a hometown newspaper continue to serve the communi-
ty without a home?
The reality is our little office has for some time only
served as a local newsroom; a place for us reporter/edi-
tor types to hang out and do our work when we’re not
out in the community. True, it is a convenient location to
receive visitors who may be passing along an important
news tip or letter to the editor, or to refer advertising
customers to the proper sales representative.
That valuable function will be missed, no question
about it. But those services are also still just a phone call
or e-mail away, as much of our business is conducted in
that manner already.
From a journalism standpoint, there’s a key phrase here
that’s important to remember — out in the community.
“Community journalism” is one buzzword in our indus-
try today. Another is “mobile journalists,” or “mojos,” who
spend as little time as possible in an office and are instead
out in the community gathering the news and seeking out
stories about fun and interesting people and events.
It’s a method of journalism that we have been moving
more and more toward as technology has forced us into
new ways of thinking and operating. And it’s one that The
Valley Journal will be employing as we change and evolve.
As editor, office or no office, one of my goals is to
publicize and keep regular “community office hours” at
some of the key gathering places around town, such as
The Lift or Dos Gringos/Café Olé coffee shops, or per-
haps the new Gathering Center, or the Partnering for
Success Center.
Weekly production of The Valley Journal will contin-
ue to be done out of the Glenwood Springs Post Inde-
pendent office in cooperation with our extended staff
there, as it has for the past several years. This will mean
a fair amount of our time will be spent in Glenwood do-
ing the necessary nitty gritty work of getting the paper
out each week. Our goal is to limit that time away from
our community as much as possible.
That said, we are committed to our community, and to
covering the news, events and people of Carbondale and
the broader Crystal River and middle Roaring Fork valleys.
In that spirit, we also welcome your thoughts about
these tough decisions during these difficult times.
Please call me at 384-9160 or Andrea at 384-9100, write
a letter to the editor, or stop by while we’re still here at
467 Main St. and let us know what you think. We value
your opinion and would love to hear your ideas.
Thank you, and good luck to everyone as we all look
for new and unique ways to weather this economic
storm.
— John Stroud, editor & general manager
I have been looking at the situation
regarding the bailouts with interest,
and while researching, discovered a
number of fascinating things about the
history of our own Federal Reserve
System that I thought may be of inter-
est. So then, a little bit about the Fed-
eral Reserve Bank if I may, our Central
Bank.
This bank produces the currency for
our entire nation. Additionally, it con-
trols our interest rates, and by control-
ling the money supply, also controls
inflation. One thing that is very im-
portant to note is simply that not only
does the Central Bank produce the
money supply, it loans it at interest.
Also, by being able to dictate the
amount of money in circulation at any
one time, it thereby regulates its very
value.
It is imperative to understand that
the entirety of this particular setup
produces only one thing — debt. This
is a self-generating debt. This is also
something that the founding fathers of
this country were well aware of.
“I believe banks are more danger-
ous than free-standing armies. … If
the American people ever allow pri-
vate banks to control the issue of
currency, banks and corporations
that grow up around them will de-
prive the people of their property un-
til their children wake up homeless
on the continent their fathers con-
quered.”
— Thomas Jefferson
In 1907, JP Morgan, who was
considered a financial genius, ex-
ploited this popularity by publish-
ing rumors that a large bank was in-
solvent at the time. This caused pan-
ic and hysteria affecting other
banks, as well; they began making
mass withdrawals in fear of losing
their deposits. As a result of this,
the banks were forced to call in
their loans, causing the recipients
thereof to sell off their property, in
turn leading to a swarm of bank-
ruptcies and repossessions all over
the country.
The investigation of this incident
was headed by a person closely con-
nected to the Morgan and Rockefeller
banking families (later becoming a
Rockefeller by marriage) who recom-
Thanks for supporting Shop local,
local businesses support town services
Dear Editor:
I wanted to thank The Valley Journal
in general, and Charles Stannard in
particular, for the recent advertisement
sponsored by the Journal in support of
local Carbondale businesses.
It shows great community support
that our local paper went out of its way
to help locally owned and operated
businesses. I hope The Valley Journal
has a prosperous year ahead, and we
look forward to seeing you all at the
shop!
Vince Naccarati
general manager
The Lift Coffee Saloon and Eatery
Carbondale
A Side of
Blather
By
Christopher
Mullally
mended the implementation of a Cen-
tral Bank so this could never happen
again.
In 1910, the Federal Reserve Act
was written in secret, by bankers, not
lawmakers. After this was crafted, it
was turfed back to Nelson Aldrich, the
same man who recommended the
Central Bank, so that he could present
this to Congress. Shortly after
Woodrow Wilson was elected and
whose campaign was heavily support-
ed by bankers, he signed it into law,
and wrote about that later in regret.
The public was told that the creation
of the Fed was an economic stabilizer,
and that economic crisis was some-
thing we would no longer have to wor-
ry about.
Of course, in 1920 there was a sim-
ilar incident to the one in 1907,
which only served to make the group
of bankers even smaller. After this,
the supply of money was increased
just as it was after the incident in
1907. At this point there was also
something in the Roaring Twenties
called the “margin loan.” This was
stock that could be controlled for es-
sentially 10 percent down, and was
quite popular. The catch to this was a
“margin call” which meant that the
stockholder could get a call at any
time and have 24 hours to come in
and pay the loan. This generally re-
sulted in the selling of the stock. In
late 1929, Rockefeller and other in-
siders exited the market without a
word, and on Oct. 24 that year the
banks that furnished the margin loans
began calling them in en masse.
Rather than expanding the money
supply to fix the crash, the Fed actu-
ally contracted it, fueling the Great
Depression.
A few things are important to under-
stand about the Federal Reserve. Most
importantly, this is a privately held
corporation, not a governmental entity.
The Fed makes its own rules and is un-
LETTERS
Dear Editor:
We all hear about shopping locally
especially during the holidays, but
have you ever wondered if it really
does make a difference?
By shopping locally, you support
your town services like street mainte-
nance, police, fire, etc., through the
sales tax that is collected at each sale;
you can help save the planet by driving
less or even walking or biking to do
your holiday shopping; you can en-
gage with your neighbors and find tru-
ly unique gifts; and you help keep
those special shops in business and
keep the vibrancy of our business dis-
tricts alive.
In 1910, the Federal
Reserve Act was
written in secret, by
bankers, not
lawmakers. Shortly
after Woodrow Wilson
was elected and
whose campaign was
heavily supported by
bankers, he signed it
into law, and wrote
about that later in
regret.
der nearly no oversight or regulation
by the U.S. government. All money it
loans to the government is loaned at
interest. This, as I recall, was the main
reason for the Revolutionary War. In-
terestingly, only 150 years after our
country was founded, freeing them-
selves from debt and the British
pound, we are back in precisely the
same place.
Of course, the creation of the Fed
does not explain everything, but I
think I am understanding this gargan-
tuan bailout now and why the bankers
are benefiting. It’s the cyclicality of
the history, but more importantly, the
bankers pulling the strings yet again of
our great nation.
“This great industrial nation is con-
trolled by its system of credit. The
growth of our nation, therefore … are
in the hands of a few men … who nec-
essarily chill and check and destroy
genuine economic freedom. We have
come to be one of the worst ruled, one
of the most completely controlled and
dominated governments of the civi-
lized world … no longer a government
by conviction and the vote of the ma-
jority, but a government by the opinion
and the duress of small groups of dom-
inant men.”
— Woodrow Wilson
(Christopher Mullally writes month-
ly for The Valley Journal. He welcomes
reader comments at christophermul-
lally@gmail.com.)
Shopping locally really doesn’t cost
much more than driving down valley
to a big box store when you consider
everything that goes into that trip —
gas, public improvement fees (PIF),
time and stress.
The bottom line is that if you’re
going to spend that money anyway, it
just makes sense to keep it local.
Consider those few extra dollars you
may spend by shopping small, local-
ly owned businesses as an investment
in something intangible but priceless:
a thriving, healthy and diverse com-
munity and less stressful holiday sea-
son!
Sincerely,
Heather Smith
executive director
Basalt Chamber of Commerce