Telematic currency and market strategy (mtemuk.pdf). - Centre d ...

B Towards a rational monetary system.
Chapter 5. Premises for a rational monetary instrument.
1. This chapter's goals.
2. Documentary metric systems.
3. Measuring units.
4. The measuring proceedings.
5. The measuring documents.
6. Conclusions.
1. This chapter's goals.
In this chapter we will take an approach to the smallest indispensable bases to have a rational system, starting
from the idea that it is a metric system.
The principles will be later applied to the set-up of a new monetary instrument, in a position to clear the
monetary relations and to give new strength to the market.
2. Documentary metric systems.
As we have already seen in the previous chapter, the defining character of money systems is that of building
up an abstract measuring system to measure the exchange value of the goods in a given market.
Therefore, we could talk about a rational money system as long as we have an authentic metric system, that is
a system which gives faithful images, isolated from reality.
The minimal necessary elements for an effective metric system are the following three:
1. A measuring unit rigorously defined, of a radically conventional-abstract nature.
2. A measuring process to allow in practice the act of measuring: that is to allot a given and exact
number of money units to every elemental real phenomenon.
3. A measuring document to record every elemental measuring act, in order that every qualified person
can repeat this operation, control its correctness and at the same time to allow an analytical-statistical
treatment at a later date of the total measurements effected.
In the case of the money system, it is necessary to have together the three mentioned elements. We will now
examine them one at a time, with respect to money systems.
3. Measuring units.
The measuring units invented to measure the dimensions of any phenomenon, are completely abstract ideas
and their creation is absolutely arbitrary. The only condition to be fulfilled is that the definition of units must
be very exact and rigorous.
The length unit, for example, is the meter. At the beginning it was defined as «the distance of the ten
millionth part of the quadrant of the earth meridian». But at present, as we advance towards a greater
accuracy and abstraction of units, there is a preference to define a meter as «the length of the journey made in
empty space by flat electro-magnetic waves in 1/299,792,458 seconds».
In the market science, the dimension or value which must mainly be measured is the exchange value of real
goods. The unit for measuring this value is the money unit, which, because every State produces its own, has
different names in different states. Let us remember that, in ancient times, every country used to define also
its own units of length, weight, volume... However, money units are very special measuring units, because
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