Report on the San Francisco End the Fed Rally held April 25, 2009

Throughout the country, rallies were held in various cities to challenge the Federal Reserve, educate the public, and lobby for H.R. 1207, which calls for an audit of the Federal Reserve. An ad hoc group of about a hundred people gathered at the Ferry Building in San Francisco with signs, “End the Fed” T shirts, many handouts, the traditional blowhorns, cameras, and video equipment to do direct outreach to the public, document and disseminate the action. The group marched down Market Street, past the Federal Reserve to Union Square, and back to the Federal Reserve Building for a final rally, speeches, and conversation.

We were a diverse group of people, united by four points of agreement:

1. Economy: Abolish the Federal Reserve. Begin using gold, silver, or local community currency for commerce.
2. Foreign Policy: End the occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan. Initiate return of US soldiers from around the world.
3. Civil Liberties: Protect the privacy and civil liberties of all persons under US jurisdiction.
4. Corporations: End corporate bailouts, welfare and subsidies.

Organizers Jun Dam, John Dennis, and Libertarian Anthony Gregory were the first speakers, followed by Stephen Walsh, a researcher with the American Monetary Institute, currently working on a book on colonial script at the time of the American Revolution.

At the first End the Fed rally, on November 22, 2008, the crowd was larger, and the logistics were more challenging for me (I brought a banner, the sound system, table, resource materials, and two volunteers). This time, I relaxed a bit, and arrived earlier. I had a great time passing out materials to the public and conversing with many of the people in the march, exchanging leaflets and DVDs. I wore a suit and passed out Billion Deception Dollar notes and flyers, saying “It is better to give than to steal.” At the final rally, I had a hard time hearing all of the speeches, because people wanted to question and interview me. I hadn’t had time to prepare a speech, and spoke directly from my heart, appreciating the presence of those who were there.

“In the 90’s my main issue was monetary reform. I actually gave away all my money to change the system. Ironically, I failed in my attempts to start a community currency in Palo Alto. There people have way too much money and not enough time. Local currencies thrive when people have no money and too much time. My only success in creating a community currency was when I started publishing the Deception Dollars in 2002, which help fund the Truth Movement. I see some strong parallels between both issues. War is based upon deception and so is money. Our financial system is criminally fraudulent.

“Recently, Ed Griffin, author of a great book on the Federal Reserve (The Creature from Jekyll Island) was on an End the Fed conference call and debating on whether it would be better to abolish the Fed or audit it. He was in favor of abolishing it. I can understand strategically why an audit wouldn’t work. Who would do it? What would they report? Like appointing Henry Kissinger to head the 9/11 Commission, the report might just obscure and perpetuate the crime. I still think the best idea that I’ve heard to end the Fed is going after them through RICO.

“In the months however, since November, things have changed enormously. The G-20 have met, and are trying to do an end run and construct a supranational “financial solution” to the global crisis – through the World Bank, a new central bank utterly unaccountable to anyone, with the ability to create a global currency and override the sovereignty of any nation. Michel Chossudovsky gave an excellent lecture in February, pointing out how in the 80’s the World Bank, the IMF forced enormous loans onto Third World countries, indebting them, and then imposed draconian “Structural Adjustment Programs” upon them, effectively looting their resources, slashing their health and educational systems. There are about five major institutions that work together as part of “the World Bank Group,” including one called the International Finance Corporation. It actually teaches how to privatize public assets for profit.

“Like the controlled demolition of World Trade Center 7, we are witnessing the controlled demolition of the global economy. It has happened before, in different parts of the world- Mexico, Asia, Russia, devastating millions and allowing, accelerating the looting, corruption, concentration of power.

“The very architects and engineers of the current crisis are the ones who dismantled the Glass Steagall Act in the 90s, deregulated oversight of the exotic instruments, derivatives. They are five giant banks who have 96% of the toxic liabilities on their books, they are the ones who exported them and infected the global financial system. They are the ones getting the bailout money and using it to buy up other banks and assets. It’s the biggest financial heist in history. They want the public to pay, become indebted, and the bankers will dictate financial policy.

"If they have their way, all nations will be subservient to an unelected, unaccountable, enormously powerful central bank. Unfortunately, the global elite have more loyalty towards one another than to individual countries. In order to stay in power, they will try to keep the game going.

“We need to educate ourselves and one another. Last November, I met Stephen Walsh at the rally and I got a copy of Stephen Zarlenga’s book The Lost Science of Money – The Mythology of Money – The History of Power. It’s one of the best books I’ve read on money, and contained many things that I didn’t know. Zarlenga has also been holding excellent conferences on monetary reform for years and will be coming to the Bay Area next weekend, so it is a great opportunity for all of us to learn more.

We do know that they use war, terror, money, fear, lies and deception to try to control people. We also know that the information, the facts, the truth that we want to share with people is often very frightening to them. I remember it took me six months to process “the shattering of my worldview” when I first started doing my own research. So I would advise people to be compassionate and gentle, respectful of other people. We want to encourage them, not scare them away.

Our struggle also affects, educates, and inspires the struggles of those in other countries.

Remember money is basically an agreement and the majority of us can agree to change it from a secret, fraudulent, criminal looting and destruction of people and planet to an honest, accountable, transparent one which serves life.

(P.S. Stephen Zarlenga recently spoke in New York and Washington DC. He will be speaking soon in the Bay Area and Southern California. More details posted at http://www.communitycurrency.org and www.monetary.org . Text from flyer:

Money- next to military force is the most powerful tool of empire

Meet Stephen Zarlenga, author of The Lost Science of Money, & founder of the American Monetary Institute.

Saturday, May 2, 2009, 7:30 pm
World Centric Community Space
2121 Staunton Court, Palo Alto

Sunday, May 3, 2009, 2:00 p.m.
The Red Victorian
1665 Haight Street, San Francisco [(415) 864-1978]

Monday, May 4, 2009, 6:30 p.m.
Fairfax Regional Marin Library
2097 Sir Francis Drake Blvd., Fairfax [(415) 453-8151]

Stephen Zarlenga will address:
* America's Monetary Power has been usurped and privatized, leading to collapse and ultimately unemployment and warfare!

* How and why the money power must be restored to society where it can be used to promote the general welfare, instead of corrupt private agendas.

* How the money power became privatized, and is kept in place by false theory.

* A three step program that restores it to society.

* Why we should nationalize the Money System (the Federal Reserve) NOT the banking system. (banking isn't a proper function of government, but the money supply is a government prerogative)

* Why inflation need not be a problem.

* How the facts demonstrate that counter to prevailing prejudice, governmental control of money has a far superior record than private control.

* Why it is crucial that the power to create any part of our money supply be completely removed from banks, for any reform to work.

Excellent Resources on Understanding Money:

Books-
The Lost Science of Money by Stephen Zarlenga
Fighting for G.O.D. by Jeremy Begin
The Web of Debt by Ellen Brown
We Hold These Truths by Richard Cook
The Globalization of Poverty by Michel Chossudovsky
Life, Money & Illusion by Mike Nickerson

Websites-
http://www.globalresearch.ca http://www.monetary.org http://www.schumachersociety.org/ http://www.communitycurrency.org http://www.maxkeiser.com

Local Groups organizing events and meetings:
World Centric- http://www.worldcentric.org
Bay Area Community Exchange- http://bayareacommunityexchange.ning.com
Collective Autonomy Network- www.collectiveautonomy.net
The Blossom Institute- http://blossom-institute.wikidot.com/