Charlie Fleetham drafted this sample letter, which can be modified to suit –
Dear Elected Official,
I would like to take this opportunity to present an idea for your consideration – creating a state bank in _________. This proposal has been fleshed out in an article by Ellen Brown, noted author and expert on banking and the causes of our nation’s financial collapse, available here –
“Cash-starved States Need to Play the Banking Game: North Dakota Leads the Way”
http://www.webofdebt.com/articles/state_bank_option.php
The reason for a state owned bank is simple – we have lost control of our finances. Our municipalities are burdened with legacy debt and aging infrastructure and the only way to fix the infrastructure is to bond through Wall Street. We can’t take any more taxes, but indebting us to Wall Street has cost us dearly and the costs will only increase as the national credit crunch continues to squeeze us at home and in our neighborhoods.
Our businesses are also suffering from the credit crunch. National banks are canceling lines of credit for businesses with excellent credit ratings. Shopping centers are emptying out, and it seems like another friend loses his or her job every week. As for the future – it’s bleak. Credit is all but drying up as scare resources get diverted to bail out Wall Street.
A state bank, capitalized by our own taxpayers, would allow us to fund commercial development, mortgages, municipal debt, mortgages and student loans. Fortunately, we have a model. North Dakota has had a state bank since 1919 and this year the state has a $1 billion plus surplus!
I urge you to support legislation to create a state bank today.
Sincerely,
[...] Sample Letter to Congressmen: Forming a State-owned Bank [...]
The problem here is ofcourse both Britain, and America are obssessed with having banks remain in private hands. Even if nationalisation occured it would only be temporary.
But banking like the police,and army should be regarded as a public service. This is something which needs to be fully appreciated by those in power who have become obssessed with the need for purely private banks…
There is no reason in the world why a state bank could be successful. It all depends on the degree of good planning. Often, mainstream economists hold their hands up in horror at the very notion, and remind the unsuspecting of the old Soviet banks …whose lack of success was REALLY in the main due to the existence of the old command economy as ofcourse they did not a capitalist economy
I believe many if not all banks in India are state owned. The same I believe is the case in China. It would be interesting to see these, and other examples properly explored to see how good, or good they are in relation to private banks.
It appears notably in the case of China that their problem is not due to banks as such but rather to a fall in their export market.
To return mo the existence of certain state banks in the world this maybe something which EB would like to properly examine as this seems to be a sticking point in the recovery of many of the economies of the world (notably the US, and the UK).
I sent a copy to my state representative here in Michigan
I would offer the slightly edited version below as a substitute. The word “mortgages” was duplicated and a I added some infrastructure incentives while still keeping it brief.
Dear Elected Official,
I would like to take this opportunity to present an idea for your consideration – creating a state bank in _________. This proposal has been fleshed out in an article by Ellen Brown, noted author and expert on banking and the causes of our nation’s financial collapse, available here: “Cash-starved States Need to Play the Banking Game: North Dakota Leads the Way” – http://www.webofdebt.com/articles/state_bank_option.php
The reason for a state owned bank is simple – we have lost control of our finances. Our municipalities are burdened with legacy debt and aging infrastructure and the only current way to fix the infrastructure is to bond through Wall Street. We can’t take any more taxes, but indebting us to Wall Street has cost us dearly and the costs will only increase as the national credit crunch continues to squeeze us at home and in our neighborhoods.
Our businesses are also suffering from the credit crunch. National banks are canceling lines of credit for businesses with excellent credit ratings. Shopping centers are emptying out, and it seems like another friend loses his or her job every week. As for the future – it’s bleak. Credit is all but drying up as scare resources get diverted to bail out Wall Street.
A publicly-owned state bank, capitalized by our own taxpayers, would allow us to fund roads, bridges, schools, and other statewide infrastructure, commercial development, mortgages, municipal debt, and student loans.
Fortunately, we have a successful model. North Dakota has had a state bank since 1919 and this year the state has a $1 billion plus surplus!
I urge you to enact or support legislation to create a state bank today.
Sincerely,
Name
Address and zip+4
Website, if any
[...] http://webofdebt.wordpress.com/sample-letter-to-congressmen-forming-a-state-owned-bank/ [...]
[...] other states don’t? The answer seems to be: its own bank. Read more here. If you like this idea, here is a sample letter to send to your congresspeople, prepared by Charlie Fleetham [...]
Can you point me to an example of the legislation that was used to create the North Dakota Bank? It would make it easier if my lazy legislators didn’t have to work to make the bill the right way because I’ve tried contacting them and I think they just throw my concerns out of the window.
Hi, I agree and I looked at the ND legislation. It’s not exactly suited to our needs though. For one thing it’s quite old. If/when I get the time, I thought I might try to draft something myself, but it’s not my normal line of work. I’m just a litigator, now retired. I understand that if you have a Political Action Committee, you can get government employees to help you draft legislation. Perhaps that’s where we should try to start.
Dear Mrs. Brown and Bloggers,
Here in Illinois, our state ranks last in the nation when it comes to assisting persons with mild to moderate disabilities to find meaningful work after 21 years of age. These persons are facing a greater than 75% unemployment rate. Illinois is now more than broke. After reading Web of Debt and your website articles, I am convinced that the ONLY solution will be a state bank of Illinois to fund programs to assist these people.
Illinois Bloggers: How do I learn about starting or getting involved in Political Action Committees (per Mrs. Brown’s reply to Scott) for Illinois? Also, Is the “Bank for the Common Good” making any headway in Illinois?
Paul.
[...] http://webofdebt.wordpress.com/sample-letter-to-congressmen-forming-a-state-owned-bank/ [...]