Beware the Fed Money Monitoring System

September 30, 2010 01:00 PM - Meanwhile, zombies are on the march. Literally.

We got a news item from Europe. “Thousands of protestors took to the streets in dozens of European cities,” it told us.

What’s their problem? They don’t like cutbacks in government spending.

And now Bloomberg tells us that the feds want to keep track of all money transfers into and out of the US:

Financial institutions have long been required to report all cash transactions, whether domestic or overseas, exceeding $10,000 as well as transactions that they deem to be suspicious. The proposed regulations would expand the requirements so that banks would have to report all cross-border transfers of any size, whether or not cash is involved. (For money-transfer businesses, the threshold would be $1,000 as opposed to that at banks, which would report all amounts.)

If you send $500 to your daughter in London, what business is it of the feds?

Why do you ask, do you have something to hide?

The feds say they are preventing terrorism and money laundering. What they are really doing is gaining power. It can’t be too much longer before you need permission to send money overseas. And then, the “rich” will be fitted with the equivalent of an electronic ankle bracelet…to monitor their financial movements and prevent them from getting away with anything.

But wait. Are we becoming paranoid? Are we having a bad dream? Are we “losing it”?

Maybe. But soon, finances could be a matter of US national security. And transferring money out of the country, unauthorized, could be a crime.

The zombies are counting on your money. They won’t give it up without a fight.

Regards,

Bill Bonner
for The Daily Reckoning

Beware the Fed Money Monitoring System originally appeared in the Daily Reckoning. The Daily Reckoning, offers a uniquely refreshing, perspective on the global economy, investing, gold, stocks and today's markets. Its been called "the most entertaining read of the day."