Stone Money – darnell18

Money truly is a crazy concept when you break it down. In its most common form, it is simply just a piece of paper. Yet, these pieces of paper run the world and all of those who inhabit it. They can make or break the quality of my life. All of the power around the world is derived from it. It is such a simple thing that serves a far more versatile and important purpose.

In the past couple of days my viewpoint on this concept has been swayed. I never really looked into it or broke down the whole idea of money prior to last week. Now, I understand that a dollar is only worth what you can receive in exchange for it. It is a simple way of breaking down what seems to be such a complex thing, but it is true.

Large stones quarried and shaped on a distant island were used as money on the island of Yap (Friedman 2). In relation to their giant stone currency, I found an interesting quote to be “You don’t need to have the stone, to own the stone” (NPR). It is funny to think about because it just seems like a more barbaric, yet identical, way of banking. My money can be loaned out to others from a bank, but if I ever had to withdraw everything, it would all be available to me. It is the same concept as not having to be in possession of the stone, for it to still be my property.

Seeing as how Brazil’s inflation came to an end with fake money (Joffe-Walt), I do not see how the public can have faith in the value of currency. It also leads me to think the same thing about our government here in America. Money can be printed out to easily on a daily basis, so how much is a dollar really worth? Public faith in the value of money is so important for many different reasons. A main reason would be that order in society is ensured by the fact that the cost and value of money is understood by everyone. So if that understanding and trusting of the government is taken away then the value of money can be interpreted as anything. Order would be lost if a society could not maintain that faith.

Now, a concept like Bitcoin shows how far we have truly come. It is a completely digital currency that certain places of business accept as a form of payment (Reeves). This brings me back around to the idea of the stone, because just like stone currency, I don’t need to be in physical possession of these Bitcoins to own them. Yet another way of the same thing taking different form.

Between cash, coins, credit cards, checks, or any other type of electronic currency, money comes in many different forms. Whether it is a hundred dollar bill or a penny, it all has worth. And no matter how significant the worth, it should never be taken for granted, because I know that money makes the world go round.
Friedman, Milton. “The Island of Stone Money”. Hoover Institution. February 1991. Web.

Planet Money, By. “The Invention of Money.” This American Life. NPR., 7 Jan. 11.

Joffe-Walt, Chana. “How Fake Money Saved Brazil.” NPR, 10 Oct. 2010. Web. 13 Sept. 2016.

Reeves, Jeff. “Bitcoin Has No Place in Your – or Any – Portfolio.” MarketWatch. MarketWatch, 31 Jan. 2015. Web. 10 Sept. 2016.