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Is Money the Root of All Evil?

[The Following post is by TDV Correspondent Justin O'Connell]

We've all heard the phrase, money is the root of all evil like it is a constant of the universe... especially if you have some Marxists or even mild socialists (everybody today) on your Facebook friends. But is this an accurate statement? Is money the root of all evil? Can modern man even know what he is talking about in this regard or does his lack of experience with real money weigh too heavy on the way he sees the world? Mark Twain said that the lack of money is the root of all evil, and the more I’ve pondered this, the more I’ve wondered: is it, in fact, the lack of money in modern civilization that is actually the root of all evil?

First of all, we must get our definition for money sorted out. Money is a circulating medium of exchange in any given society. Today, the nations of the world use fiat currency as their official medium of exchange. But, is fiat currency truly money?

The argument against fiat currency as money is simple. Its compulsory nature does not make it a good candidate for the medium of circulation in a harmonious society. We as individuals are required to use it by law (force), as decreed by behemoths (thugs) of officialdom. This is an unnatural state of money, as a medium of exchange is most effective when it is voluntary. To be forced into a way of life does not constitute money, but, instead control. It is perhaps more accurate to call the US Dollar, for example, a medium of control than a medium of exchange.

Money is the lifeblood of a civilization, and this civilization’s lifeblood is deplete of nutrition and circulates weakly. There is no strong heartbeat here. Just like the human body must through its blood circulate nutrition, so too must civilization through money circulate the needed goods and services which give rise to its functional character, but this civilization has been hooked on empty preservatives for millennia and so its character is lethargic and prone to outbursts of angers resulting in, as you know, genocidal episodes. The psychopathy of civilization is the result of a terrible monetary diet which is the impetus of misery at all strata of society. We are undoubtedly enslaved through the medium which is supposed to help us be free.

There is a pronounced difference between money and fiat money. Whereas money comes into existence through trial-and-error and remains because of its practicality, fiat money can come into existence only via government force. There is no other way by which fiat money could come into use in a culture. It is simply too impractical. Who wants to be forced into anything? Take away the indoctrination which starts young – it must start young so that it can truly take in an individual throughout his or her life – and nobody would want much to do with fiat currency. We just have to have it in order to pay indulgences to the state or receive a good or service from a rigid corporation whose decision-makers probably have the day off. "State"-forbid one of us decide to introduce our own sort of money into our communities, as then we might become the victim of one of those aforementioned “anger outbursts.”

In a sane culture, the onus would be on us to choose what sort of money to use. In a free society, many competing currencies would be available on the marketplace, and any individual or company would have the freedom to begin circulating their own money. The next question is, ‘what’s the demand for this new money which has been introduced onto the marketplace?’

Free Market Money?Through trial-and-error, the individual would learn which type of money available best suits the lifestyle they wish to embark upon. As a young child, one might be determined to use, I don’t know, say, beanie babies as their money of choice. (Remember the craze which sent grown adults to McDonalds for their investment in a free beanie baby toy?)

Now, what the child will have to learn is that there is no demand for beanie babies as there is no practical reason to use them as money. After a good sobering up after the sheer disappointment of having a preferred medium of exchange rejected by the humbug of commerce, the child will learn what he or she can use for money, and make an educated decision.

So, it dawned on me: A major problem of civilization – which is a problem on its own – is its lack of money. There is no such thing as money in the world today – only control. What we currently refer to as money – fiat currency- is not money at all, but, rather, a decreed condition of man. It is a medium of control and little more. Just because it smells like money, looks like money and tastes like money (not that the Federal Reserve Note resembles anything like this once the indoctrination is broken) does not mean it is money. Don’t be deceived, as Twain was right: in our civilization today, the lack of money – and the fiat deception marauding as such – is the root of all evil. I’d go as far to say that this lack of money is the fulcrum of control for the ruling class.

Justin O'Connell studied History and German Language at Linfield College in McMinnville, Oregon, where, in his spare time, he researched current events and their relationship to history. In his studies he has found that societies have been managed by philosophically-kindred ruling classes seeking persistently a singular, total order across the planet. Justin does not believe in government as a medium for human relationships, preferring instead the race of human ideas stemming from a diverse, vibrant culture. Currently, he is a proponent of physical silver as a means of wealth preservation and disobedience to the financial system, and lives in southern California. He writes at the Dollar Vigilante inspired site, Silver Vigilante.

Comments (10)

chette (not verified) - 1 year 1 week ago

actually the verse reads,For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. 1Timothy 6:10and it is a constant in this world

Bevin Chu (not verified) - 1 year 6 days ago

Actually it was the result of a gross clerical error. The scribes charged with copying the manuscript got it wrong. The original wording was "The love of other peoples' money is the root of all evil." Bevin

Mark Matthews (not verified) - 51 weeks 6 days ago

`Where does money come from? Most people say government. Actually, government steals money

mava (not verified) - 1 year 1 week ago

I want to add this example of exact mechanic of fiat making you evil:Say, you have been forced to make a choice: you will murder a child or you will be murdered. While I have no doubt that the honorable members of this forum will choose to die, they still lose. Their life had been taken away by force and for no reason, as the situation was made to be.If you chose to murder a child, then you will buy your life and happiness with a price of being evil. You sell your soul.This is exactly what the government is doing to you with fiat. They force the choice: always have your labor stolen through the back door, or, as a price for keeping your own, you must steal from others. There is NO THIRD CHOICE. You loose both times. You either live like a slave, and there you have it, the fiat made the world into evil for you, or you sell your soul and have a nice life, but at a horrible price.

Rich (not verified) - 1 year 1 week ago

Although I truely appreciate the information you are submitting, I feel obligated to correct a common misconception. The actual doctrine is stated as, 'the LOVE of money is the root of all evil.' And of course this LOVE of money (in any format) is actually a heart condition which puts wealth over and above relationship. When relationship between people takes a back seat to wealth (again, in any form) this leads man to attempt to manipulate and control his surroundings, including his relationships, as a way to gain and prosper. This of course, as you see in the world today, leads man to many paths of evil. However, when man realizes that the byproduct of healthy relationships actually is wealth (on many levels), then that will be a victorious day!

CalWest (not verified) - 1 year 1 week ago

I believe the phrase is "the LOVE of money is the root of all evil."You left out the most important word LOVE>

mava (not verified) - 1 year 1 week ago

I'd like to support the author, against the comments above. May-be the bible says so, so what? Who cares? Who said the bible is the source of truth?Instead of taking bible words blindly, let's throw away any credentials that the bible may hold, and just examine the point in question.Love. Can this be true that if we just kept love above money, then our problems would be solved?No. Quite the opposite, love inappropriately applied bri ngs only sorrows and murder. Every socialist movement attempted to make this principle their core, - the love for each other, relation above money.proponents of socialism will always use same excuse: all those previous attempts were actually despotic, while this new attempt at socialism will actually be based on love.The truth is, all those attempts were based on love, but love must invariably degenerate into murder, and that is why all those previous socialism attempts were murderous. This means that *absolutely all* attempts at socialism will always end up with murder, some sooner that the others.Love, can only be applied to those within your immediate surrounding. One can not love his people. Any man saying so lies, and it could easily be proven - just give him the power. His actions will speak the truth, no matter what nonsense his lips may utter.Money, is in my opinion not a medium of exchange. Money is not a store of value. Money is simply an accounting system. As such, it provides as it consequences the ability to conduct exchange, and to store purchasing power (value can not be stored anywhere but in ones perception).I understand Mark Twain in exact same way the author of this article understands him: - The fact that true money is not allowed to exist is the root of all evil, - meaning that what we call money is not money. The evil authorities are simply playing with your mind, and it is a shame that so many do not see that. The authorities always repeat the mantra: "money is root of evil". But, since you have been potty-trained to think of fiat as of money (more advanced ones allow that fiat money is ANOTHER KIND of money), and you are given the fiat, you agree! Because fiat in fact is one of the roots of evil. This is being used against you, for when you are giving a consideration to real money, you won't be able to make the correct choice, since you don't know the distinction in the first place, and you true feeling about (fiat) money being evil are mixed up into any kind of money you can be shown.This is it. This is how you make the trap. This is how you make a slave out of a free born. You poison his mind!Now, some of you who are more concentrated may have noticed that I did not explain why fiat is the root of evil. Well, this is because the fiat is being forced in our use as the accounting system. However, the whole reason the fiat exists is because it has a back door. When functioning as the accounting system, those in control can access the accounting and "redistribute", i.e. invariably, steal. This is why it is the root of evil, because for as long as you work for fiat, there is always someone's hand in your pocket. You will not be able to please those few that you LOVE, unless you too, commit theft (take stolen labor and attempt to use it to help your love), and therefore you in fact will sell you soul.

Usul (not verified) - 1 year 1 week ago

Mr. Justin O'Connell makes the same mistake 99% of educated people make who also have not read the Bible. 1Timothy 6:10 says: "For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows." It's not the lack or even the abundance of money that is the cause of evil - but rather the greed that loves the money. The only reason capitalism can fail is because of greed. Just like a Republic cannot exist when the population is morally corrupt, neither can an economy based upon a free market of capitalism exist when the people who control the money supply are greedy bastards, er banksters, er bankers. I would like to see an article about the character of the modern day money changers who are trying to own the world and examine their possible motivations.

wasaka (not verified) - 1 year 1 week ago

If money were bound by a standard (say gold) there would be limits on the mischief but as it stands now there are none. Without honest money, how can we expect honest government? The problem in our society is that we do not esteem wisdom. As the American Indians observed (as we were eager to commit genocide against them), the "white man" (Western culture) is infected with madness of greed. In the past this was disputed and many said that greed was good. Well take a look today. Who can deny that the 1% money junkies have taken over and our society is quite literally insane? We deceive ourselves with our madness, we breed that madness, and we reward that madness. Then we say government is needed to control our madness, which is only more madness! The Constitution and Bills of Rights were drafted with the express purpose of limiting the size and scope of government; they did this order to chain down the mischief of man. They sought to establish a Republic (and not a democracy) in which the rights of the individual were protected by the rule of law. They recognized that legitimate authority resides in the individual; therefore legitimate government must protect individual rights. The fact is, our society is mad. The people who rise to the top of any hierarchical structure are conditioned not only to accept this madness, but to reinforce it, and to profit from that insanity. The cycle perpetuates itself and in this way we have created an Artificial Intelligence (dishonest money) that people call "the Machine" (or the Matrix) and it is this Artificial Intelligence that rules our world. If you link of a corporation as an Organism (a living thing) and then consider that on the global scale thousands of corporations make up one Super Organism, then a new picture starts to emerge in which the individual person has become meaningless. The Super Organism, or Artificial Intelligence, does care about the human rights of the individual, it only cares about what it was programed to care about--money. The Greed Machine has taken on a life of it's own, and it is busy doing what our collective ego programed it to do--survive at any cost using the insane model we gave it. The question is how do we reprogram the Machine with a new thought system? I'm not so sure that is possible, but what we could do is return to a standard of sound money--and if we did that, at least the Machine would be keep in a box.