War on terror has become an convenient excuse for governments to start a war on cash.
Naturally, cash can be used by terrorists. But it will not mainly be terrorists who suffer from tighter control. It will be ordinary people.
One of the real reasons behind tighter cash regulations are convenient is quite obvious: taxation.
If you want support for this theory, take a look at the EU directive against money laundering. Where implemented strictly (like in Sweden) it makes handling of any substantial amount of cash almost impossible.
The latest is the French tightening the regulations on cash. From Mises.org…
“These measures, which will be implemented in September 2015, include prohibiting French residents from making cash payments of more than 1,000 euros, down from the current limit of 3,000 euros. Given the parlous state of the stagnating French economy the limit for foreign tourists on currency payments will remain higher, at 10,000 euros down from the current limit of 15,000 euros. The threshold below which a French resident is free to convert euros into other currencies without having to show an identity card will be slashed from the current level of 8,000 euros to 1,000 euros. In addition any cash deposit or withdrawal of more than 10,000 euros during a single month will be reported to the French anti-fraud and money laundering agency Tracfin. French authorities will also have to be notified of any freight transfers within the EU exceeding 10,000 euros, including checks, pre-paid cards, or gold.”
The whole idea is based on the presumption that people are up to something suspicious. This seems to be the new default mode, replacing the presumption of innocence (that happens to be one of the fundaments of rule of law).
But this is not just about distrusting citizens with their own money. The common European currency, the Euro, is in a precarious state. Cash regulations can (and will) be used to stop people from rescuing their own money when the shit hits the fan. Just see what happened when the Euro-crisis overwhelmed Cyprus. The government confiscated money directly from peoples bank accounts — and most people had no possibility to rescue their savings.
“Coincidentally” mass surveillance is an excellent tool for governments to enforce financial regulations aimed at the general public…
Is this the moment when people finally will have to turn to free digital currencies in a big way? Is this the tipping point?
/ HAX
Underground cryptocurrencies are a ruse. The only use for them would be if people received black market pay checks directly in cryptocurrencies, and that will not be possible with a ban on encryption and stricter surveillance (i.e. you will be required to have an internet connected anti terror video camera in every room of your house, and it will be difficult and illegal to turn them off).
How will you purchase your cryptocurrency without cash? You could possibly pay for them in drugs by growing your own marijuana or something like that, but that will be taken care of by legalization, and other products will be impossible to produce with ubiquitous surveillance.
If governments withdraw the law of gravity, it still exist. Nothing is impossible because they write some shit on a paper. Stop thinking like a statist.
In the times of negative interest rates, isn’t it handy that cash is made illegal?
So there is no other alternative than having a bank-account the day when the banks start charging a %-fee on our savings.