Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2018/09/30/2008-in-100s.html
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Aren’t Mercury dimes supposed to be the go-to, currency-wise, when prepping for the apocalypse?
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The bills are also being hoarded because the U.S. hundred is what William Gibson called “the international currency of bad shit.”
It’s indicative of the intelligence of the typical prepper that their favoured post-apocalyptic currency is numismatic gold. Glenn Beck and others made a killing selling it to them, presumably on the assumption that Immortan Joe and hungry cannibals are obsessive coin collectors.
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I’m always amused by the gold salesmen who continually tell me about how the Illuminati are destroying America through our worthless federal reserve notes. but at the close of their pitch can’t wait to give me bags of their Precious in return for my greenbacks.
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$100 bills are also the chosen medium of exchange in the off-the-books economy.
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I remember a teacher telling us to save gold, so when it all goes down the Bemis, one can simply trade gold for food. Presumably agriculture and truck transportation will remain unaffected.
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As I understand it, a great number of $100 is also in foreign countries, as it is seen as a more stable currency to save. IIRC Russia was the biggest owner in private hands outside the US, but that may have changed as China has exploded since I recall learning this info.
Foreign banks also keep a shit ton in their vaults.
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The chart in the article is fascinating. I’ve always wondered why stores always give two $5 notes in change rather than a $10 note. It seems there are hardly any tens out there.
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That will be convenient when due to hyperinflation briefcases full of Benjamins become the standard form of payment.
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I’m mildly surprised that the number of bills in circulation is increasing. Shouldn’t there be less cash in circulation given the increasing popularity of contactless payments/online shopping?
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No shortage though.
North Korea does a wonderful reproduction…just in case you should get sentimental.
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Yes, because they fit neatly in the barrel a 12 gauge shotgun. Making them useful against vampires and werewolves.
(not so much against Billy the Kid)
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Even Rod Serling called bullcrap on that
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The growth in circulation is due mostly to quantitative easing and the resulting reserve requirements placed on banks (iirc)
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I doubt that even half of them are inside the borders of the USA. It’s the most popular bill for illegal transactions worldwide.
The government has some free real money out of their support for crime, basically: crooks around the world trade the USA money that CAN be used for real investment and payments for printing a bunch of 5-cent pieces of paper.
The paper then stays in permanent circulation around the world of crime, providing them with their kind of liquidity, the ability to turn any valuable product or service into any other, and the US government gets to keep the Euros or Rubles or Yuan they handed over for it.
The 500 Euro note has a similar usefulness, embedding seven times the value in the same 5-cent bit of paper, but the Benjamin remains hugely popular.
I’ve never been told another really interesting use for Bitcoin, myself, but it’s still not that big a thing for bribes, kickbacks and industrial-sized drug and human trafficking deals.
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I have said before now that ammunition and fertiliser are made from the same things, and that if you expect civilisation to fall you should be stockpiling that. The gold will come to you when the time comes.
Of course, governments tend to get a bit jumpy when people start stockpiling nitrates.
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Bottle caps.
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I’ve made a tradition of lighting my cigar with one.
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It’s about time the U.S. once again issued United States Notes in denominations of $500, $1000, $5,000, and $10,000.
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Explosives and fertilizer are made from the same things. Small arms propellant is made from nitric acid and cellulose, so not really the same thing as fertilizer.
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