Yes, Aesthetically I can find attractiveness in such item, independently from owning it.

Without wanting to discredit such potential,

I also realize that it may not be exaggerated to say that sadly a lot of the bright golden color may likely be tainted by blood ( judging by history ).

Unfortunately, it is so too with any tool of power, including current fiat currency.

Hence, if I could choose some "ideal", without taking into consideration many other aspects, I guess I'd prefer remaining within gift economics,

and better still, some forms of gift economics that do not stay attached to material value, with the awareness of supporting a holistic process, supporting commons.

I am not specifically primitivist, and like to use technological solutions,

yet I also feel attracted by certain cultures, including certain nomadic cultures,

and remember an excerpt from a movie called

"here is a thing that could not be shared..."

Anyway, back to (alternative?) currencies,

there is a proposal of a commodity backed basket currency, called "Terra"

I can imagine a world where each of such approaches can have its usage,

while also hoping people will reduce their usage of the ones that concentrate power into the hands of a minority.

On Fri, Nov 11, 2011 at 10:03 PM, Mark Janssen <dreamingforward@gmail.com> wrote:

On Fri, Nov 11, 2011 at 4:48 AM, Dante-Gabryell Monson
<dante.monson@gmail.com> wrote:
> As for gold, I am personally ok with gold backed currencies for certain
> complementary currencies for those who choose to use them,
> but on a large scale, I do not wish to go back to a gold standard,
> because there is a very limited amount of gold in the world,
> and this makes it easier to centralize control,
> hence easy to control a monetary system backed by gold,
> by buying ( or taking by force ) gold reserves.

Hmmm, personally I like the idea of a currency tied to the Earth -- it
makes the system less abstract, and perhaps even self-organizing.
Being able to reproduce currency easy doesn't necessarily make it
better (that's one of the grives of the #occupy movement against the
Fed). It's limitedness is what gives it value. As for the idea that
its limitedness making it easier to control, I don't think in the
history of the world that there has ever been a gold "resevoir" that
made such a danger likely. As far as I know, most gold is extracted
piecemeal from thousands of sources, probably because the way it
originates from stars and gets distributed widely. But, to be sure,
it does "stack the deck" in favor of those who find it, but it takes
work -- there are few "gold tycoons".

I would love to see gold coins in standardized weights used for a
world currency, with each nation printing their unique traits on their
own versions. How awesome would that be -- to be handed a gold coin
from Namibia when you get your change from the laundromat and have it
be perfectly legal tender?

marcos