https://meaninginhistory.substack.com/p/on-the-verge-of-totalitarianism
On The Verge Of Totalitarianism
Who's Raising The Alarm?
Yesterday, to not much fanfare in the MSM, the WH published a press release from its Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP):
Technical Possibilities for a U.S. Central Bank Digital Currency
Science and Technology!—who doesn’t want the US to stay on the cutting edge of science and technology? Do you want us to fall behind China, or Russia? We need to be first!
We worship at the altar of science and technology, because we no longer believe in God or human nature. And what could go wrong—just look at the successes of our mass campaign of experimental genetic medication injections!
Hiding the report on a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) under the heading of science and technology—rather than under, say, an Office of Totalitarian Implementation—is meant to lull the populace into accepting total state control over their lives. The press release, while framing work done so far as an effort to understand what it would all be about, gives the game away when it shifts to the word “urgent”. Note how the “variety of risks” is presented as if those risks are basically something like the risks involved in the use of credit cards or online banking—no more:
A United States central bank digital currency (CBDC) would be a digital form of the U.S. dollar. While the U.S. has not yet decided whether it will pursue a CBDC, the U.S. has been closely examining the implications of, and options for, issuing a CBDC. If the U.S. pursued a CBDC, there could be many possible benefits, such as facilitating efficient and low-cost transactions, fostering greater access to the financial system, boosting economic growth, and supporting the continued centrality of the U.S. within the international financial system. However, a U.S. CBDC could also introduce a variety of risks, as it might affect everything ranging from the stability of the financial system to the protection of sensitive data.
Notably, these benefits and risks might vary significantly based on how the CBDC system is designed and deployed. That is why Executive Order 14067, Ensuring Responsible Development of Digital Assets, placed the highest urgency on research and development efforts into the potential design and deployment options of a U.S. CBDC. The Executive Order directed the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), in consultation with other Federal departments and agencies, to submit to the President a technical evaluation for a potential U.S. CBDC system.
Count on it—it’s not a matter of if but of when. Consider. Rep. Elise Stefanik and others are currently questioning the major credit card companies because those companies have agreed to track purchases of guns and ammo—a way to arrive at an illegal registry by other means than strictly government action. Very similar to censorship through Big Tech and Media companies—in fact, the concept is identical. It’s the Corporate State of classical Fascism, with corporations working hand in glove with the government to control the populace and keep them in line. Land of the free? Not so much. Who thinks that information would never find its way to our national security agencies and domestic terrorism agents?
Think of CBDC as doing away with the need for such subterfuges and workarounds. For a good survey of all the ins and outs—wholesale CBDC v. retail CBDC, and so forth—consult this very good article at Forbes. The title tells you what you really need to know:
Central Bank Digital Currencies Are About Control – They Should Be Stopped
As the author observes:
No version of reality exists without political pressure …
… the political pressure will always be to expand the pool of people using the CBDC. While CBDC proponents currently speak of helping only the “unbanked” and the “underserved,” there is absolutely no chance that those groups won’t soon be more broadly defined.
…
The problem is that there is no limit to the level of control that the government could exert over people if money is purely electronic and provided directly by the government. A CBDC would give federal officials full control over the money going into–and coming out of–every person’s account.
This level of government control is not compatible with economic or political freedom.
Do not trust anyone who tries to suggest that CBDC is not leading in a direct line—is not the short road—to Totalitarianism.
Rod Dreher expresses this reality well, in more urgent terms:
A CBDC would mean that the US Government controlled all transactions in this country, digitally. The press release goes on to say that the government would still try to preserve a role for cash. Don’t you believe it. The government understands perfectly well that if it has the power to control every financial transaction in this country, that it can require all who wish to buy or sell to conform, or be cast out of the economy. This is how we are going to get an American version of China’s social credit system. If the US Government decides that you are a “threat to democracy” because of your political views, your religious beliefs, or anything at all, all it will take is the push of one button, and you will be a non-person, unable to buy or sell.
This is not paranoia. This is the truth. We already see a version of this at work in China.
From a different US Government document outlining policy objectives of the CBDC:
The CBDC system should support payments to and from the public sector and equity-advancing initiatives, such as the administration of social safety net programs. However, use of the CBDC system should not be mandated. Offline capability should be incorporated, and the role of cash should be preserved.
Again, don’t believe for a second that they will preserve the role of cash. The temptation to power and control is too great.
Actually Dreher has a lot more to say. I urge you to read it. Really.
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