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Money: Difference between revisions
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It is misunderstood by tech people ([[bitcoin]] isn’t [[cash]]; it’s a fraudulent asset); by people who ask for [[client money]] protection from a [[bank]], and by those who aspire to take [[Security interest|security]] over it. | It is misunderstood by tech people ([[bitcoin]] isn’t [[cash]]; it’s a fraudulent asset); by people who ask for [[client money]] protection from a [[bank]], and by those who aspire to take [[Security interest|security]] over it. | ||
===A token of abstract value=== | ===A token of abstract value=== | ||
''Cash is not an [[asset]]. It is not [[property]].'' Cash is is a ''token of abstract value''. It is a will ’o’ the wisp, a woodland sprite, an ephemerality which floats freely of the mortal chains of commerce. It is [[derivative]] of ''nothing'', beyond the common opinion of merchants in the town square. It is like Sandy Denny, or one of those free-spirited hippie types that dances round toadstools: It cannot be owned, only ''held''<ref>{{ford fairlane bonus plan}}</ref> — which is another way of saying ''whoever holds it [[Ownership| | ''Cash is not an [[asset]]. It is not [[property]].'' Cash is is a ''token of abstract value''. It is a will ’o’ the wisp, a woodland sprite, an ephemerality which floats freely of the mortal chains of commerce. It is [[derivative]] of ''nothing'', beyond the common opinion of merchants in the town square. It is like Sandy Denny, or one of those free-spirited hippie types that dances round toadstools: It cannot be owned, only ''held''<ref>{{ford fairlane bonus plan}}</ref> — which is another way of saying ''whoever holds it [[Ownership|holds]] it, outright, against all the world''. | ||
No-one has a better claim over a unit of money that the one who, [[for the time being]] holds it. | |||
[[Cash]] requires your total commitment, or nothing: you can’t futz around with it, you can’t declare a [[trust]] over it<ref>You can declare a trust over an account that holds cash, of course: a subtly, but significantly, different thing.</ref>, [[pledge]] it, or hold it for anyone other than yourself. If you could, this would undermine the practical value of money ''as'' money: a £5 note, to be meaningful, must be a token worth exactly £5. A bank note has no intrinsic value — it’s a scruffy bit of paper. If a bank note’s notional value is £5 but you fear that the person giving it to you may not own it — there is a risk that some random may snatch it from your hands after you have given up your goods in exchange for it, alleging some prior ownership right — ''then it does not have a value of £5 any more''. | [[Cash]] requires your total commitment, or nothing: you can’t futz around with it, you can’t declare a [[trust]] over it<ref>You can declare a trust over an account that holds cash, of course: a subtly, but significantly, different thing.</ref>, [[pledge]] it, or hold it for anyone other than yourself. If you could, this would undermine the practical value of money ''as'' money: a £5 note, to be meaningful, must be a token worth exactly £5. A bank note has no intrinsic value — it’s a scruffy bit of paper. If a bank note’s notional value is £5 but you fear that the person giving it to you may not own it — there is a risk that some random may snatch it from your hands after you have given up your goods in exchange for it, alleging some prior ownership right — ''then it does not have a value of £5 any more''. | ||