What is money?
Bouvier's 1856: "MONEY. Gold, silver, and some other less precious metals, in the progress of civilization and commerce, have become the common standards of value; in order to avoid the delay and inconvenience of regulating their weight and quality whenever passed, the governments of the civilized world have caused them to be manufactured in certain portions, and marked with a Stamp which attests their value; this is called money."
Webster's New World Dictionary Second College Edition, 1980, says: "mon*ey 1. a) standard pieces of gold, silver, copper, nickel, etc., stamped by government authority and used as a medium of exchange and measure of value; coin or coins: also called hard money b) any paper note issued by a government or an authorized bank and used in the same way; bank notes; bills; also called paper money. 2. any substance or article used as money."
Black's Law Dictionary, Sixth Edition, 1990: "Money. In usual and ordinary acceptation it means coins and paper currency used as circulating medium of exchange, and does not embrace notes, bonds, evidences of debt, or other personal or real estate. Lane v. Railey, 280 Ky. 319, 133 S.W. 2D 74, 79, 81.
According to the Uniform Commercial Code, 2001, Article 1 § 1-201 (24) "money means a medium of exchange authorized or adopted by a domestic or foreign government and includes a monetary unit of account established by an intergovernmental organization or by agreement between two or more nations."
That's simple enough, right?
So, what is money? Money is anything that two people, involved in an exchange, want it to be. If you will accept my IOU for your goods or services, then my IOU is money. If you will accept a kitten in exchange for your goods or services, then a kitten is money. The caveat here is, it must be agreed upon by both parties.
What is a U.S. Dollar?
I have a two volume set of books called Pieces of Eight by Edwin Vieira, Jr. On their website they describe it as Encyclopaedic. "The two volumes–a 15 page table of contents- 1,666 pages of text–6,601 footnotes documenting and supporting the author's analysis in every particular–a 54-page index of citations to constitutional provisions, statutes, legislative records, judicial decisions, treatises, reference works, and other authorities–9 illustrations." It is probably the most comprehensive and authoritative analysis of the U.S. Dollar available. I guarantee you, it is not easy reading. But, if you want to know everything there is to know about the U.S. Dollar, these are the books.
For those of you who want the thumb nail sketch of what is a U.S. Dollar: A United States Dollar is a silver coin containing 371 ¼ grains of fine (pure) silver.
What is lawful money?
You mean there is lawful and unlawful money? You betcha.
Congress knows what is and isn't lawful. In the beginning, around 1913, when the Federal Reserve Act was passed by Congress, Federal Reserve Notes were redeemable in lawful money. You could actually go to the bank and exchange FRN for gold or silver coin. When Congress passed the law making Federal Reserve Notes (FRN's) legal tender they included two clauses: "unless objected to" and "redeemable in lawful money." These clauses are still on the books today.
What is lawful money? Gold and silver coin.
Read your Constitution. Article I, Section 8, "To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures;" You will notice the absence of the ability to "print money." Which is important. There is a maxim of law: "Inclusio unius est exclusio alterius: The inclusion of one is the exclusion of another."
Which means: "The certain designation of one person is an absolute exclusion of all others" Burgin v. Forbes, 293 Ky. 456, 169 S.W. 2D 321, 325. "This doctrine decrees that where law expressly describes particular situations to which it shall apply, an irrefutable inference must be drawn that what is omitted or excluded was intended to be omitted or excluded." Kevin McC v. Mary A. 123 Misc. 2d 148, 473 N.Y.S. 2D 116, 118.
In other words, coining money is mentioned, printing money is not. Coining is permitted, printing is not.
Go to Article I, Section 10, " No State shall... coin Money, emit Bills of Credit; make any Thing but gold and silver Coin a Tender in Payment of Debts;" Has your State ever demanded FRN's in payment of debt (taxes)? Ask a state judge, when he fines you for a traffic ticket, what do you demand in payment? He/she will tell you, we "accept" federal reserve notes. They won't demand them, but they will accept them. If you don't offer them, they will punish you. Illegal? Of course. Do they care? Of course not.
Bottom line. Gold and Silver coin are lawful money in these united States.
What are Federal Reserve Notes?
To fully understand what FRN's are; or, more accurately, what FRN's are suppose to be, you need to know what a "note" is.
Webster's New World Dictionary Second College Edition, 1980, defines it as: "7. a) any of certain commercial papers, some of which are negotiable, relating to the owing of debts or payment of money [a promissory note]"
Black's Law Dictionary, 6th. Edition: "An instrument containing an express and absolute promise of signer (i.e. Maker) to pay to a specified person or order, or bearer, a definite sum of money at a specified time. An instrument that is a promise to pay other than a certificate of deposit. U.C.C. § 3-104(2)(d).
So, a note is a promise to pay money. As we said earlier, FRN's were originally redeemable in gold and silver coin. You could take your Federal Reserve Note to the bank and they would pay you in gold or silver coin. What happened?
If you remember any of your history you will remember a time long ago called the Roaring 20's. This was a boom time. The economy was growing like gang busters. People were getting rich over night. People were having fun.
Most of these nouveau rich got that way via the stock market. They used a method called buying on margin. When you buy on margin you only have to put up a small amount of the actual cost of the stock. The brokerage firm supplies the rest, via a loan? Any way. Once the banksters saw all these "average" people getting rich, they just couldn't stand it. They had to do something. So, they made a margin call. In other words, they called the loans.
Now imagine. Thousands and thousands of people are buying stock. The prices are going up. Suddenly, all these people have their loans called and must sell. Now, instead of thousands and thousands of buyers, you have thousands and thousands of sellers. The prices drop, drop like an anchor. People can't sell their stock for enough to cover their loans. They are wiped out.
Of course, the banksters are buying the stock on the way down. Selling short and making millions. As did the old bootlegger, Joseph Kennedy. That's how he gained respectability. Oh, how easy it would be to make money if you could manipulate the stock market.
But, this is not the end of the tale. During this same period the banks were issuing more FRN's than they had gold and silver to back. In case you're wondering, this is called fraud. So, when the people started demanding gold and silver in exchange for the FRN's, the banks got desperate, called the loans and crashed the market.
Unfortunately, this did not stop the problem. So, a few years later, this country's greatest traitor since A. Lincoln, declared a bank holiday. When the banks opened, FRN's were no longer redeemable in gold or silver. To save the banks, FDR screwed the People. And, as if that wasn't enough, the unAmerican pig made it illegal for the People to own gold or silver.
You must admit, with friends like FDR, the People really didn't need any enemies.
What are Negotiable Instruments?
Again, let's go to the dictionaries.
Bouvier's 1856: NEGOTIABLE. That which is capable of being transferred by assignment; a thing, the title to which may be transferred by a sale and indorsement or delivery.
2. A chose in action was not assignable at common law, and therefore contracts or agreements could not be negotiated. But exceptions have been allowed to this rule in relation to simple contracts, and others have been introduced by legislative acts. So that, now, bills of exchange, promissory notes, bills of lading, bank notes, payable to order, or to bearer, and, in some states, bonds and other specialties, may be transferred by assignment, indorsement, or by delivery, when the instrument is payable to bearer.
3. When a claim is assigned which is not negotiable at law, such, for example, as a book debt, the title to it remains at law in the assigner, but the assignee is entitled to it in equity, and he may therefore recover it in the assignor's name. See, generally, Hare & Wall. Sel. Dec. 158 to 194 Negotiable paper.
NEGOTIABLE PAPER, contracts. This term is applied to bills of exchange and promissory notes, which are assignable by indorsement or delivery.
2. The statute of 3 & 4 Anne (the principles of which have been generally adopted in this country, either formally, or in effect,) made promissory notes payable to a person, or to his order, or bearer, negotiable like inland bills, according to the custom of merchants.
3. This negotiable quality transfers the debt from the party to whom it was originally owing, to the holder, when the instrument is properly indorsed, so as to enable the latter to sue in his own name, both the maker of a promissory note, or the acceptor of a bill of exchange, and the other parties to such instruments, such as the drawer of a bill, and the indorser of a bill or note, unless the holder has been guilty of laches in giving the required notice of non-acceptance or non-payment. But in order to make paper negotiable, it is essential that it be payable in money only, at all events, and not out of a particular fund. 1 Cowen, 691; 6 Cowen, 108; 2 Whart. 233; 1 Bibb, 490, 503; 1 Ham. 272; 3 J. J. Marsh, 174, 542; 3 Halst. 262; 4 Blackf. 47; 6 J. J. Marsh, 170; 4 Mont. 124. See 1 W. C. C. R. 512; 1 Miles, 294; 6 Munf. 3; 10 S. & R. 94; 4 Watts, 400; 4 Whart. R. 252; 9 John. 120; 9 John. 144; 11 Vern. 268; 21 Pick. 140. Vide Promissory note. Vide 3 Kent. Com. Lecture 44; Com. Dig. Merchant, F 15, 16; 2 Hill, R. 59; 13 East, 509; 3 B. & C. 47; 7 Bing. 284; 5 T. R. 683; 7 Taunt. 265, 278; 3 Burr. 1516 6 Cowen, 151.
4. To render a bill or note negotiable, it must be payable to order, or to bearer. When it is payable "to A B only," it cannot be negotiated so as to give the indorsee a claim against any one but his indorser. Dougl. 615. An indorsement to A B, without adding "or order," is not restrictive to A B alone, he may, therefore, assign it to another; Str. 557; or he may indorse it in blank, when any attempt, afterwards, to restrain its negotiability will be unavailing. Esp. N. P. Cas. 180; 1 Bl. Rep. 295. Vide Blank Indorsement; Indorsement.
Webster's New World Dictionary Second College Edition, 1980, says: "a) legally transferable to another by endorsement or by proper delivery: said of promissory notes, checks, etc."
Uniform Commercial Code: §3-104 Negotiable Instrument:
(a) Except as provided in subsection (c) and (d), "negotiable instrument" means an unconditional promise or order to pay a fixed amount of money, with or without interest or other charges described in the promise or order, if it:
(1) is payable to bearer or to order at the time it is issued or first comes into possession of a holder.
(2) is payable on demand or at a definite time; and
(3) does not state any other undertaking or instruction by the person promising or ordering payment to do any act in addition to the payment of money, but the promise or order may contain (i) an undertaking or power to give, maintain, or protect collateral to secure payment, (ii) an authorization or power to the holder to confess judgment or realize on or dispose of collateral, or (iii) a waiver of the benefit of any law intended for the advantage or protection of an obligor.
(b) "Instrument" means a negotiable instrument.
(c) An order that meets all the requirements of subsection (a), except paragraph (1), and otherwise falls within the definition of "check" in subsection (f) is a negotiable instrument and a check.
(d) A promise or order other than a check is not an instrument if, at the time it is issued or first comes into possession of a holder, it contains a conspicuous statement, however expressed, to the effect that the promise or order is not negotiable or is not an instrument governed by this Article.
(e) An instrument is a "note" if it is a promise and is a "draft" if it is an order. If an instrument falls within the definition of both "note" and "draft," a person entitled to enforce the instrument may treat it as either.
(f) "Check" means (i) a draft, other than a documentary draft, payable on demand and drawn on a bank or (ii) a cashier's check or teller's check. An instrument may be a check even though it is described on its face by another term, such as "money order."
(g) "Cashier's check" means a draft with respect to which the drawer and drawee are the same bank or branches of the same bank.
(h) "Teller's check" means a draft drawn by a bank (i) on another bank, or (ii) payable at or through a bank.
(i) "Traveler's check" means an instrument that (i) is payable on demand, (ii) is drawn on or payable at or through a bank, (iii) is designated by the term "traveler's check" or by a substantially similar term, and (iv) requires, as a condition of payment, a countersignature by a person whose specimen signature appears on the instrument.
(j) "Certificate of deposit" means an instrument containing an acknowledgment by a bank that a sum of money has been received by the bank and a promise by the bank to repay the sum of money. A certificate of deposit is a note of the bank.
So, what's the point of all this? Understanding what is going on around you. When banks or business' talk about money they mean anything that can be exchanged for goods and/or services. When the government talks about money, they must, by limitation of the Constitution, talk only of gold and silver coin. Even in the laws they write.