Michael Rowbotham is a political and economic writer and commentator based in the UK who is primarily known for his two books, ''The Grip of Death: A Study of Modern Money, Debt Slavery, and Destructive Economics'' (1998) and ''Goodbye America'' (2000).
''The Grip of Death''
''The Grip of Death: A Study of Modern Money, Debt Slavery, and Destructive Economics'' focuses on what he believes to be inequities in the practice of
fractional-reserve banking
Fractional-reserve banking is the system of banking operating in almost all countries worldwide, under which banks that take deposits from the public are required to hold a proportion of their deposit liabilities in liquid assets as a reserve, ...
(which he equates with
counterfeit
To counterfeit means to imitate something authentic, with the intent to steal, destroy, or replace the original, for use in illegal transactions, or otherwise to deceive individuals into believing that the fake is of equal or greater value tha ...
ing) and the economic distortions he believes to be inherent in the so-called
debt-based monetary system
Credit theories of money, also called debt theories of money, are monetary economic theories concerning the relationship between credit and money. Proponents of these theories, such as Alfred Mitchell-Innes, sometimes emphasize that money and cr ...
which almost all nations use in the modern age. In ''Goodbye America'', Rowbotham argues that Third World debt is immoral, invalid, and inherently unrepayable.
See also
*
Criticism of fractional-reserve banking
Fractional-reserve banking is the system of banking operating in almost all countries worldwide, under which banks that take deposits from the public are required to hold a proportion of their deposit liabilities in liquid assets as a reserve, ...
*
List of monetary reformers
This is a list of monetary reformers from the past to the present according to several schools of thought.
Monetary reformers primarily belong to the following groups:
*Supporters of publicly issued money who oppose charging interest on issuance ...
*
Monetary reform
Monetary reform is any movement or theory that proposes a system of supplying money and financing the economy that is different from the current system.
Monetary reformers may advocate any of the following, among other proposals:
* A return t ...
*
Soft currency
In macroeconomics, hard currency, safe-haven currency, or strong currency is any globally traded currency that serves as a reliable and stable store of value. Factors contributing to a currency's ''hard'' status might include the stability and r ...
References
English economists
Monetary economics
Monetary reformers
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
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