There were once two neighbouring islands far away in the oceans. One was called Aya and the other Baya. A certain people called the Sukus lived on the island of Aya.
It was a fertile island with lush vegetation and tropical fruits. There were numerous waterfalls and rivers that provided the people with clean water and places for family retreats and recreation.
The surrounding seas were unpolluted, with abundant fish and other seafood. The island also had gold and the Sukus, particularly the womenfolk, loved gold, They used pieces of gold as money since everyone treasured gold. Their tribal leadership led by a man named Saka,
minted the gold coins. They lived a simple cooperative life and there were no interest charges for lending and borrowings among themselves.
Occasionally, some tidal waves and strong winds destroy some property, particularly homes, but the community would immediately help themselves to rebuild or repair the damaged property. Other than that, it was a peaceful community of people who went about their life gracefully.
The island of Baya , on the other hand, was inhabited by a people called the Tukus. Their leader was an elderly man named Taka. The island of Baya was fertile too and the Tukus were mostly farmers who worked rice fields or kept cows, sheep and poultry. Some of them were good at
handiwork and produced a variety of household items. They too lived a very peaceful and cooperative life, mutually helping each other for survival.
The Tukus were, however, not so sophisticated as the Sukus, in that they merely did barter trade. The Tukus realized that the Sukus were much wealthier, healthier and had towns that were much more sophisticated than their own. They had always thought that the Sukus were more gifted and superior beings than themselves. Even though they barter traded their goods occasionally with the Sukus they never got the idea of money. However, their women-folk too loved gold, particularly the gold jewellery that the Sukus made.
One day, two smartly dressed men arrived in a ship on the shores of the island of Aya . Their names were Gago and Sago. The Sukus being a very hospitable people welcomed their new guests. Gago and Sago impressed the Sukus with the stories of their extensive traveling. They showed them some gold coins from other parts of the world and also some printed papers that were apparently used by some far-away people as money.
The Sukus had never seen paper before. The paper money even had pictures of bananas on it – their favourite fruit. The two strangers also showed them a machine that prints such money. Wow! That got the Sukus' attention. There were awed because they had never seen anything like that before. The islanders loved Gago and Sago and invited both to live with them on the island.
Gago and Sago convinced the people that an institution called a bank would benefit the people immensely. They explained that a bank would provide a place for keeping their gold money safe while uplifting their economic conditions by making the savings available to others for
productive use, which otherwise would remain idle. The Sukus, being a people who loved to help others, thought that was a great idea. Gago and Sago then built a small building structure with a vault in it and started operating the first bank on the island of Aya .
They celebrated the occasion by giving the islanders a great feast along with a colourful festival of events. The people thronged to deposit their gold coins with the bank. Depositors were given a piece of printed paper for every gold coin they deposited, with the assurance that they could redeem a gold coin for every paper they turned in.
The people were excited with the paper "money" they got because it even had a picture of their leader Saka beside a banana tree. No doubt Saka was very pleased too!
The people deposited all their gold coins, a total of 100,000 pieces and hence an equivalent number of pieces of paper were given out. Now the people used the paper as money and found that it was much more convenient than the heavier gold coins that they used before. The paper
money printed by Gago and Sago, therefore, became the dominant currency of the island. Nobody used the fold coins anymore.
The people were pleased with the ease with which they were able go about doing their businesses. They trusted Gago and Sago very much because each time they brought in a piece of paper for redemption their request was indeed honoured. Gago and Sago became very respected and honoured in their society.
The Tukus who heard about the whole thing became excited and pleaded with Gago and Sago to help them out too. Gago and Sago smile to each other and told the Tukus that they would indeed be very pleased to do so. They then set up a similar building in Baya, and Sago was placed there as the manager.
The difference between Aya and Baya was that in Baya the Tukus had no gold coins to deposit. Sago told them that was alright. He would however, give 1,000 paper notes to each family to use as money. Since they were a hundred families in Baya, so 100,000 paper notes were given out.
However, Sago reminded them that at the end of the year each family must return 1,100 paper notes, the 10 per cent extra being a charge for the services he was providing. The Tukus found the paper money truly to be like magic. It made their business dealings so much easier compared to their previous barter trade. People spent much less time looking for counter parties to trade with.
Now they were able to specialize in jobs they were good at. Their economy began to grow rapidly. Now Gago and Sago decided that the time was ripe for them to do their "trick".
Gago noticed that in Aya, on average only 10 per cent of the fold deposits were redeemed by the Sukus at any particular time. The other 90 per cent remained in the vaults. Noticing that their printed papers were circulating as money, Gago printed an extra 900,000 certificates to be circulated as money too! Gago had calculated that with the extra papers, a total of 1,000,000 pieces of paper would be outstanding and if the people came to redeem their normal 10 per cent, then the 100,000 original deposit of gold coins would be readily available for redemption.
Gago loaned out this extra 900,000 paper money to some "needy" Sukus at an interest charge of 15 per cent. The Sukus suddenly found that the prices of things were rising. This baffled them and no one could figure out why.
Some of them who had borrowed money form Gago were not able to pay back their debt even though they worked very hard trying to earn that extra money.
Business became increasingly competitive and the society became less compassionate and less caring towards others than previously.
The Tukus too found similar things happening to them. Initially, they did not notice any price increase but they noticed some behavioural change in their people. They became very competitive in their attitude and less caring towards their fellows. Even with hard work and such competitive behaviour, some of the Tukus still defaulted on their loans. They were not able to acquire enough money to pay back their total debt.
Now Sago began to confiscate real wealth from the loan defaulters – like land, cows, sheep, etc. Their elderly leader Taka was among those who defaulted. But Sago gave him and some other Tukus additional paper notes as a rescheduling of their loans. This increased further their
indebtedness. Later Taka defaulted again and had his loan rescheduled again. Now Taka began to avoid meetings with Sago. He felt ashamed and found his former power, pride, courage and dignity falling.
On the contrary, he found that Sago was slowly becoming very wealthy by acquiring the people's assets. In fact, he found that the power, pride, courage and dignity that he lost were now enthroned on Sago.
After a number of years, Gago and Sago who once arrived on the shores of the island of Aya with only a printing machine, were now the owners of most of the land and property in both Aya and Baya. The people were reduced to mere workers, some of them now living in poverty. Many worked long hours just to make ends meet. They now had less time for family, friends or for religious activities. Social problems were widespread. People cared less for other. It goes without saying that with poverty, other social ills like crime, prostitution, etc. began to thrive.
Their cultures were gradually replaced because Gago and Sago introduce a new "superior" culture of a "superior" people to which they belonged. This was the end of the caring and loving people of the two islands Aya and Baya, who had earlier lived a peaceful yet graceful life before Gago and Sago arrived with a printing machine.
Gago and Sago did not stop there. They continued to spread their wings to other peoples and societies. Their ultimate dream is to become the Global Supreme Rulers by establishing a single global bank with single global money.
We postulate here that in the current global monetary system, developing nations would go through somewhat similar events as pictured above.
____________ _________ _________ _____
1. This is how money is created in the current banking system in aggregate. If the reserve requirements is 10 per cent, then for a deposit of 100,000 a total loan that can be created is given by 100,000/0.10 = 1,000,000
2. This is easy to see with the help of the equation of exchange, MV = PY. In this example, with the sudden increase in the money supply M, without a corresponding increase in real output of goods and services Y, the prices levels, i.e. P thus tend to increase ( the velocity of circulation, V, is assumed unchanged and constant).
3. The loan (principle plus interest) is not repayable in aggregate because the interest portion does not exist in the form of money. Notice that the interest of 15% on the 900,000 principal equals 135,000. Therefore the total amount repayable is 1,035,000 but nonetheless, only 1,000,000 exist in total as money in the whole system. Accordingly, some defaults on the loans are sure to take place.
4. Since interest charge do not exist in the form of money, competition for money therefore ensues, reflected in increase business competition.
5. Again, this is because there is not enough money in the system as a whole such that debt is not repayable in aggregate.
6. Imagine that you borrowed RM10,000 from a friend. Do you think your behaviour toward the friend would change, say when you meet the friend in the street? Particularly when the stipulated time for the return of the loan had expired?
Credit To Prof Ahamed Kameel Mydin Meera for his book "The Theft of Nations – Returning to Gold"
Saturday, 9 August 2008
The Theft of Nations – Returning to Gold
Posted by Helmis at 09:50 0 comments
Labels: Gold
Saturday, 28 June 2008
Stop Chasing Money To Get More Money.
This write-up from James Ray..
Contrary to popular opinion, creating unlimited financial wealth won't come from chasing more money.
Now don't get me wrong, I can help you make more money--plenty of it! And if the statement above seems counterintuitive to you, then that's exactly why you and I need to spend more time together. Check this out...
A recent Gallup poll posted in USA Today found that 55% of those surveyed state their families are worse off financially today than they were this same time last year. This is the highest number since 1976, and it's an eleven-point jump since February of this year.
Interestingly enough, in the very same survey, 26% say they're better off than they were a year ago. What gives?
How is it that in the same economy (with the same government officials, the same war, same gas prices, same housing market) that one group thinks their finances are doing poorly but another group actually believes things are better?
Now you might think that the 26% are just some of the more privileged few... maybe. But just suppose there's more to it than that. The answer to this question resides in a money paradox that a distinct few understand and most may never grasp. We'll get to that in a minute.
In my new book Harmonic Wealth: The Secret of Attracting the Life You Want, I share the little known truth that, while many people believe wealth is equated to vast sums of money, if you trace the root of the word wealth back to its origins, it literally translates as "well-being."
Now I know you might be thinking, "Well James, if I had more money, I'd have more true wealth and well-being!"
But studies show that this is not necessarily the case... In fact, most often it's not.
A recent survey posted by US Private Banks surveyed individuals with a net worth of $38 million or more. Of those surveyed, 65% stated that they felt "financially insecure." Now get this... These are people with a net worth of at least $38 million! So maybe it's not just the privileged few that are feeling better off than last year.
Think about it, if you have a net worth of $38M and wake up in the morning feeling financially insecure... with wealth being defined as well-being, are you truly wealthy? The obvious answer is a resounding "No!"
Many Americans believe that a new president is the answer to our situation. Many believe that dealing with the oil and gas companies will make things better. Even more think that if we get out of the war in Iraq, all will become harmonious. While all of these issues may have an impact, they are in no way the answer.
So what is the answer? What will bring more financial well-being into your life? The answer resides in the thoughts, feelings and actions of you as an individual.
First, shift your focus of attention.
Get your mind and continued thoughts off the economy and all the problems being pumped into your home by the mass media. As difficult as this may be, those who are truly wealthy--financially and otherwise--choose where they place their attention and stand guard like a watchdog at the gates of their mind.
Peter Lynch once stated, "I don't spend more than 15 minutes a year thinking about the economy." Lynch's results speak for themselves. Stop. Just stop for a moment and think rationally... There's no way in hell that any company's true worth can fluctuate as dramatically on any given day as the New York Stock Exchange would indicate. It's nothing but an opinion--and other people's opinions are only predictions if you allow them to be.
There's a principle in our universe which states: Energy flows where attention goes. So consider this: Where are you directing your energy and attention every single day? Regardless of what you answer, your current results will tell the truth... for your results are a reflection of you.
Second, stop chasing the money.
Science tells us that everything is vibration, including your thoughts, feelings and actions... And yes, even your money. Now think about this... If you're constantly thinking, feeling and acting (what I call going "3 for 3") as if you "need more, need more," what's the real message you're sending out energetically? You guessed correctly if you said the message is, "You don't have it."
The universe hears the real message at the level of vibration and states, "Your wish is my command!" As a result, you'll end up living your life always wanting but never having. You'll never get financially wealthy with that strategy.
Third, be grateful for all the good that currently exists in your life.
If all things are an energetic vibration (which they are) and energy flows where attention goes (which it does), then to place your consistent attention upon the things for which you're grateful is one of the most powerful things you can do. Unlike the message of "I don't have it," when you place your attention with gratitude on all the goodness that currently exists, it's like stating, "Thank you for this. Send me more." When you get grateful, the universe sends you more to be grateful for.
Finally, consistently focus on providing more value and service to the world.
Take the attention off of "What can I get?" and place it upon "What can I give?" If you want to have more, give more. Winners always give ten times more value than they ask for in return.
Doubt me? Look around. I challenge you to find a millionaire who's not surrounded by six-figure income earners. Likewise, find any billionaire and they'll be surrounded by multimillionaires. Why? Because you only profit handsomely in life by providing service and value to others. In other words, you'll only get your big dreams by helping others get theirs.
I recently shared the stage with billionaire Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Records and Virgin Airlines. There were two things Richard stated that really reinforced what I knew to be true. First, he stated, "I've never done anything in my life to make money. I just always ask, 'Is it going to be fun?'"
Next, Richard stated, "Money is just a convenient way of keeping score." If you truly understand this principle, you'll realize that in a capitalistic society, the amount of money you have (or don't have) is directly correlated to the depth and span of the value you provide.
So here's the money paradox I mentioned earlier:
The greatest way to attract and create more money (or anything for that matter) is to not need it.
Now think it through again... If you need something, the real message you're sending out is, "I don't have it." Your neediness is like a raging bonfire, and you're throwing another log on it day after day, hoping it'll go out. The only way to squelch the fire of your lack of financial abundance is to not feed it.
Just continually focus on providing tremendous value and service. Henry Ford so wisely put it years ago, "Money will never be achieved when sought after directly. It only comes as the by-product of providing a useful service."
Truth is timeless.
Get your attention off the economy and your problems, stop chasing the money, become continually grateful for all the goodness you currently have and consistently think, feel and act (going "3 for 3") on what you can give versus what you can get. You'll have true wealth and well-being in every area: relational, mental, physical, spiritual and yes, financial. And just like Branson and so many others who have figured it out, you'll have a lot of fun doing it.
Posted by Helmis at 00:40 0 comments
Labels: Self Help, Wealth Creation
Friday, 29 February 2008
Finding Your Inner Peace
Inner peace may sound like an oxymoron, but rest assured it is quite attainable.
“Peace is always available here and now because it is what everyone has at their core,” says Hale Dwoskin, CEO and director of training of Sedona Training Associates. “Peace is one of the attributes of resting as that presence of awareness that you are.”
In other words, inner peace is what’s left after all of the distractions, worries, to-do’s, and what ifs have been quieted. Inner peace is the human equivalent of extra icing on your favorite cake -- it’s your life, but better; it’s gravy.
How can you get to a place of inner peace, and join the ranks of those happy and disarmingly “together” few? Try out these simple tips -- they’re an easy way to get more inner peace in your life, right now.
1. Notice the silence that’s here right now.
“The simplest way to recognize inner peace and experience this peace that you are is to simply stop and notice the peace or silence that is here now -- before, during and after every thought and experience. It is what experiences appear in or on,” Dwoskin says. “Then simply let go of anything that appears to be disturbing that peace.”
So the moment that you start to get boggled down with anything not peaceful, take a step back and realize that, right now, everything is fine, everything is peaceful. If, when you take this step back, your mind is flooded with racing thoughts, it’s time to let go of these thoughts, quickly, by using The Sedona Method.
2. Take a deep breath.
Now take another. And another. Breathing is a natural way of relaxing your body and letting go of stress. Once you start to incorporate deep breaths into your day, you will likely start to realize just how often you’ve been holding yours.
3. Turn off the TV.
You may think you can’t live without next season’s “Dancing With the Stars,” but turning off the television -- and tuning out of all of its advertisements, violence, and negative current events -- will give your mind a much-needed break.
4. Excuse yourself from negative conversations (and people).
There’s no law that says you have to stick around to hear your co-workers go on about how awful their jobs are, or be your highly critical aunt’s “special project.” As much as possible, surround yourself with positive people, and avoid the negative ones.
5. Practice forgiveness.
This one may not sound “quick,” but it actually can be. Why are you still holding on to anger over any past argument or situation? It is only hurting YOU. You can decide, in this instant, to let go of your grudge (use The Sedona Method to help you), and experience how much more free and peaceful you feel.
6. Don’t take it personally.
Though it may sometimes seem that there is a conspiracy to make all things in your life go wrong, rest assured that the universe is not out to get you. In fact, it can actually work FOR you, if you let it. The more you let the bad things roll off your back, and let the good things fill you with joy, the more positive, and peaceful, your life will become. Honest.
7. Name five things you’re thankful for.
Now make this a habit you do every day. If you want, expand the list to 10, 20, or 100 things. Expressing gratitude in this way, as simple as it sounds, will help you to get a whole lot more out of life.
8. Stop being envious.
You’re not envious, you say? You don’t secretly wish you had a bigger house? A better body? A more perfect marriage?
“Most of us feel envious -- at least to some extent -- all the time without even being aware of it,” Dwoskin says.
Yet, feeling envious http://www.sedona.com/lp-envy.aspx keeps you in a constant state of noticing what you don’t have. Which, of course, draws more lack into your life. When you consciously decide to no longer be envious, you become free and open to anything you desire, including inner peace.
9. Do something good for yourself, and something good for someone else, everyday.
Just a small something to remind yourself that there’s always time for a treat, and to treat others. Some suggestions: pick up coffee on the way to work for your office-mate, buy yourself that new book you’ve been wanting, go for a long walk after you wake up, surprise your spouse with a love note.
10. Smile and, even better, laugh.
Smiling, even if you don’t really feel like it, will eventually help you to feel better. Laughing, as often as you can, is also great for your mind (if you REALLY can’t find a reason to laugh or smile right now, then use The Sedona Method -- it produces the same effects as genuine laughter).
Source: Sedona.com
Posted by Helmis at 11:04 1 comments
Thursday, 31 January 2008
This I Believe
I believe in myself.
I believe that all people have the equal right to become all they are willing and able to become.
I believe that I am as good as anyone in the world. Although I may never be on the cover of Time or People magazine – I still have time to be one of the people who makes a really positive difference in the world.
I believe that although I may not be the best looking in the group, I'll always be looking my best in every group!
I believe in this and the next generation, and believe we'll build a better nation.
I believe that good health means more than wealth.
I believe in caring and sharing, rather than comparing.
I believe of all the people I see, still I'd rather be me!
(This excerpt was taken from Denis Waitley's The Seeds of Greatness Treasury)
Posted by Helmis at 03:12 0 comments
Friday, 25 January 2008
Einstein Idea - Six Dollar Haircuts
This is a true story about a third generation barber in a small community in the Mid-west. The shop had been handed down from his grandfather and developed not just a hair salon but more of a community center where the farmers and families would come in not only to get their hair done, but enjoy the coffee and donut bar and spend time with their neighbors sharing the news of their farms and families. This shop had grown to include 10 stylists who cut all the men's hair and all the women's hair in the community.
The owner's son came home from graduate school over spring break, to find his father depressed and reclusive. Finally getting his father to share what the problem was, the father confided that there was a new, national chain that had been moving across the country, bringing in cheap hair salons into all of the different communities and driving everyone out of business. And so, even though the community had loved all of the work that he had done, the perms and the haircuts and the styles over the years, right down the street opened up this new shop. It offered six dollar haircuts. Person after person had left to go to the new low cost shop.
The father told his son, "There is absolutely NO way I can compete with $6.00 haircuts. So much of my clientele has now gone to the new shop that I have no choice but to close our shop. After three generations, we are going bankrupt. I can't pay the stylists or the overhead anymore," he despondently said with his hands covering his face so his son would not see the tears rolling out of his eyes.
The son said, "You know, this last semester I took a "science of success" program that was offered for extra credit in my marketing class. One thing I learned was something that Einstein said. He said that "The significant problems we face can never be solved at the level of thinking of the problem." So, Dad, we have to find another way to think about this. We've got to find another way to see this. Another one of the strategies I learned may help us."
So the son left the room and brought back a notebook and a pen. He told the Dad about "Masterminding", a strategy introduced in the 1930's by Napoleon Hill who had been commissioned by Andrew Carnegie to study the patterns of extremely successful people.
"Here's what we do. We let ourselves think of any idea that comes to mind and we write it down. No editing. We get a flow of ideas for 15-20 minutes and try to get as many as possible. No idea is off limits. Let's go."
The father said, "Well, the only idea I've got is..close the shop!" The son said, "Well, you're right that IS an idea." He wrote it down. Then the son said, "Ok, let's keep going." Before long the son and the father started getting a flow of ideas and writing down every one of them, even every crazy thing that came to mind. When they finished, one of the ideas absolutely jumped off the page and they looked at each other in astonishment and said, "This just might work!" The son left the next day to go back to college.
The father implemented the idea. Within 6 weeks, not only had his drop in clientele completely returned, but the number of customers was now 11% higher than ever in the history of the shop. Do you know what the idea was that turned sure failure into a new course of increasing success?
The idea was, "Place a BIG sign on top of the shop that read,
"WE FIX SIX DOLLAR HAIRCUTS!!"
This story has meant a great deal to me particularly when I am tempted to think that the problem is "out there" in the land of circumstances. Any time I think the problem is "out there", THAT THOUGHT is the problem. As Einstein said, "The significant problems we face can not be solved at the level of the problem." Learning to think in a new way brings Freedom and Power.
By Mary Manin Morrissey from Bob Proctor Insight of the Day
Posted by Helmis at 09:39 0 comments
Labels: Thought