THE FUTURE OF MONEY Bernard A. Lietaer - library.uniteddiversity ...

as a monetary problem in the late 1980s swiftly became intolerance
towards the 'others', whom some ethnic leaders used as scapegoats to
redirect anger away from themselves, and to reassert their power in
the process. Therefore 'ethnic cleansing' is a direct consequence of the
IMF readjustment programme of the late 1980s, which provided the
socio-political context for extreme nationalist leaders to take over.
The 1998 monetary problem in Indonesia, within days, triggered mob
violence, plundering and rapes directed against Chinese minorities.
Similarly, in Russia, discrimination against minorities has been
exacerbated by the financial collapse. Almost nobody among the
intelligentsia in any of these countries would have believed these
events plausible even a Few months before the mayhem started.
Neither are such events unprecedented. For example, the Jewish
minority became the scapegoat for the consequences of the monetary
collapse of the 1920s in Germany. Monetary crashes leave people in
fear, despair, and anger. This is an explosive social mix that
irresponsible demagogues can exploit. The rise to power of Milosevic
in Serbia after the Yugoslav monetary crisis of the late 1980s is only
the latest demonstration that the recipe is still operational. Similarly,
it is predictable that the Russian Ruble meltdown will bring to power
more violently nationalistic and militaristic figures.
In Careful Communities, control over local currencies can be used
to lock people into a safety cocoon. Like everything else in this world,
local currencies can be used either positively or negatively, and in
this scenario their restrictive potential is revealed. Later, in Chapters
5 and 6, you will learn that when designed to complement the
national currency, the impact of community currencies is strongly
constructive. You will also learn why and how these currencies have
spread to over a dozen countries around the world.
If the official global money system goes into a meltdown, such local
systems could very well become by default the best safety net
around. Under the shock, people are likely to scurry for