Gennaro Brooks-Church

This movie gives a great overview of how the banking system works (works for the bankers, that is). The director is critical of the setup. The film also has some great quotes by top bankers and politicians that seriously indite the system.

The basic premise is that the system is defendant on people going into debt. If they are not in dept the system falls apart. If they stop paying the interest on the dept it also falls apart. But as long as people keep trying to pay off the dept (which by default can never go away entirely or else they whole sham doesn't work) then the process keeps working for the bankers. We, well, just have to keep working.

Of course there are exceptions. The second rung of people who are not the power brokers but who are high enough on the food chain to benefit from the same system can also do ok for themselves. But the vast majority of people will remain in a perpetual state of indeptness, forever working to pay it off. What do they get in return? The car, the house, the vacation? Perhaps. But at what cost to their peace of mind? At what cost to their lives?

Life is so short. Should even a second be spent participating in this sham?

I am not saying I have the answer. I am over $4 million in debt to finance the various properties I own around the world. As long as I pay the monthly payments everything works out just fine. I can't say yet if it is the smartest way to live. I will tell you in 30 years when the mortgages are paid off (at which point I will have refinanced them all anyway to leverage new purchases and put myself many times more in dept...).

I guess I am becoming the exception, high enough on the food chain of a system that benefits those at the top much more than those at the bottom. I am still not convinced the system is the best. Just because you benefit from a system does not mean the system is universally beneficial. I think any successful drug dealer would vouch for that.