Zimbabwe Inflation (update)

On Thu, 24 Apr 2008 22:15:31 -0700 (PDT), "Blair (TC)"
wrote:

Our Harare correspondent Tagu Mukwenyani said the cash crisis
has come back to haunt the country because of the massive
inflation, despite the Reserve Bank introducing a Z$50 million
denomination note in February.

In the last week, the price for a loaf of bread has jumped from
Z$65 to Z$100 million, while one egg now costs Z$20 million.

How can anyone keep up with it? There's no equivalent pay scale going
on, the poor surely are out of the picture and it looks like it won't
stop soon.

OUCH!

If anyone here ever thought they had it bad, this is the start of some
serious hurting.

On Fri, 25 Apr 2008 16:40:49 +0000, Tracy_Barber wrote:

On Thu, 24 Apr 2008 22:15:31 -0700 (PDT), "Blair (TC)"
wrote:

Our Harare correspondent Tagu Mukwenyani said the cash crisis has come
back to haunt the country because of the massive inflation, despite the
Reserve Bank introducing a Z$50 million denomination note in February.

In the last week, the price for a loaf of bread has jumped from Z$65 to
Z$100 million, while one egg now costs Z$20 million.

How can anyone keep up with it? There's no equivalent pay scale going
on, the poor surely are out of the picture and it looks like it won't
stop soon.

OUCH!

If anyone here ever thought they had it bad, this is the start of some
serious hurting.

What you do to keep up with it is, of course, as quickly as possible,
convert all cash into anything with value that the government cannot
destroy by printing more notes: land, precious metals, jewels, artwork,
antiques, and yes, even postage stamps! (The earlier poster was only half
-- maybe two-thirds -- wrong in talking about the postmaster buying up
sheets of stamps.) Gold, diamonds, and rare stamps are especially great
(as opposed to a Van Gogh or a ranch, for instance), because they are
easily hidden and/or smuggled. After the dust settles, or after you
emigrate to your new land, you can resell these items for cash necessary
to pay your bills, buy bread, etc., barring, say, a post-nuclear
holocaust world in which no one can afford luxuries (then you are better
stockpiling ammunition, drill bits, and bottles of clean water, say.)

Paper money is the reification of an abstracted barter system. You own a
cow. I own a ton of potatoes. I want some beef, you want some
potatoes. It doesn't make sense to either of us to trade *all* our
holdings for the other's, because we'd just switch sides of the hunger
dilemma. Paper money is a way that a value can be put on the whole cow,
and the value subdivided without the cow being subdivided. Expanding: in
the time before refrigerators, I have a small herd of cows. Every time I
want a potato, do I butcher a cow and trade you hamburger for it? Of
course not. I sell one cow to a butcher for this abstract carrier of
worth -- paper money -- and then spend 1/1000th of what I receive for my
cow to buy my my potato -- and that guy spends some portion of what he
sells on a box of matches -- and the guy selling the matches gathers up
the last little bit of "money" he needs and buys himself a boat!
Thoreau's "Walden" has a great discussion along these lines.

Every online "swap" site, whether it's swapping stamps, books, CDs, DVDs,
what have you, that has a concept of "credits", has just reinvented the
wheel called "money".

So, at any given time, the amount of money circulating in an economy is
-- by definition (with a few simplifying assumptions) -- exactly equal to
the value that is collectively placed on all the goods and labor in that
economy. By accepting government notes in pay, you are trusting that
that government will not subvert the "deal" that it made with the
citizenry. If X dollars is equal to one hour of my skilled labor time
today, and the government increases the amount of money in circulation by
a factor of ten, the same X dollars will be equal to the value of six
minutes of my skilled labor time tomorrow! But -- and here's the key --
if they do it *fast* enough, they can spend the notes before the market
adjusts to the 1000% government-caused inflation.

*As* *always*, it is the poor who are disproportionately hurt. The
wealthy would have other assets already, would probably have advance
warning, but the widow of the postal worker whose monthly pension cannot
buy a single match from a box of matches? She's up a creek.

--
Joshua McGee ‹(•¿•)›
APS, ATA, ISWSC, AFDCS, MBPC, MCC, BPS
Pasadena, California, USA
http://www.mcgees.org/stamp-offers/

On Fri, 25 Apr 2008 23:31:41 GMT, Joshua McGee
wrote:

On Fri, 25 Apr 2008 16:40:49 +0000, Tracy_Barber wrote:

On Thu, 24 Apr 2008 22:15:31 -0700 (PDT), "Blair (TC)"
wrote:

Our Harare correspondent Tagu Mukwenyani said the cash crisis has come
back to haunt the country because of the massive inflation, despite the
Reserve Bank introducing a Z$50 million denomination note in February.

In the last week, the price for a loaf of bread has jumped from Z$65 to
Z$100 million, while one egg now costs Z$20 million.

How can anyone keep up with it? There's no equivalent pay scale going
on, the poor surely are out of the picture and it looks like it won't
stop soon.

OUCH!

If anyone here ever thought they had it bad, this is the start of some
serious hurting.

What you do to keep up with it is, of course, as quickly as possible,
convert all cash into anything with value that the government cannot
destroy by printing more notes: land, precious metals, jewels, artwork,
antiques, and yes, even postage stamps! (The earlier poster was only half
-- maybe two-thirds -- wrong in talking about the postmaster buying up
sheets of stamps.) Gold, diamonds, and rare stamps are especially great
(as opposed to a Van Gogh or a ranch, for instance), because they are
easily hidden and/or smuggled. After the dust settles, or after you
emigrate to your new land, you can resell these items for cash necessary
to pay your bills, buy bread, etc., barring, say, a post-nuclear
holocaust world in which no one can afford luxuries (then you are better
stockpiling ammunition, drill bits, and bottles of clean water, say.)

Paper money is the reification of an abstracted barter system. You own a
cow. I own a ton of potatoes. I want some beef, you want some
potatoes. It doesn't make sense to either of us to trade *all* our
holdings for the other's, because we'd just switch sides of the hunger
dilemma. Paper money is a way that a value can be put on the whole cow,
and the value subdivided without the cow being subdivided. Expanding: in
the time before refrigerators, I have a small herd of cows. Every time I
want a potato, do I butcher a cow and trade you hamburger for it? Of
course not. I sell one cow to a butcher for this abstract carrier of
worth -- paper money -- and then spend 1/1000th of what I receive for my
cow to buy my my potato -- and that guy spends some portion of what he
sells on a box of matches -- and the guy selling the matches gathers up
the last little bit of "money" he needs and buys himself a boat!
Thoreau's "Walden" has a great discussion along these lines.

Every online "swap" site, whether it's swapping stamps, books, CDs, DVDs,
what have you, that has a concept of "credits", has just reinvented the
wheel called "money".

So, at any given time, the amount of money circulating in an economy is
-- by definition (with a few simplifying assumptions) -- exactly equal to
the value that is collectively placed on all the goods and labor in that
economy. By accepting government notes in pay, you are trusting that
that government will not subvert the "deal" that it made with the
citizenry. If X dollars is equal to one hour of my skilled labor time
today, and the government increases the amount of money in circulation by
a factor of ten, the same X dollars will be equal to the value of six
minutes of my skilled labor time tomorrow! But -- and here's the key --
if they do it *fast* enough, they can spend the notes before the market
adjusts to the 1000% government-caused inflation.

*As* *always*, it is the poor who are disproportionately hurt. The
wealthy would have other assets already, would probably have advance
warning, but the widow of the postal worker whose monthly pension cannot
buy a single match from a box of matches? She's up a creek.

Yes - time to cash in on some of those "blood diamonds". There may
even be a much worse scenario in the future, for a country just north
and west of Zim. If the concessionaires have their way, the Congo
River may be supplying hydroelectric power for a good portion of
Africa and southern Europe, by all accounts. Will the locals see
anything from this? I doubt it. Will the desert creep south? Let's
hope not, for the entire world's sake.

What was once an area of mystery, intrigue and almost "magic", through
my collecting stamps, has become the latrine of the world and everyone
seems to want to flush the wealth away... the world is that way, but
it shouldn't have to be.

On Sat, 26 Apr 2008 04:44:12 +0000, Tracy_Barber wrote:

*As* *always*, it is the poor who are disproportionately hurt. The
wealthy would have other assets already, would probably have advance
warning, but the widow of the postal worker whose monthly pension cannot
buy a single match from a box of matches? She's up a creek.

What was once an area of mystery, intrigue and almost "magic", through
my collecting stamps, has become the latrine of the world and everyone
seems to want to flush the wealth away... the world is that way, but it
shouldn't have to be.

If there is an atheist/rationalist equivalent to "Amen", allow me to now
utter it....

--
Joshua McGee ‹(•¿•)›
APS, ATA, ISWSC, AFDCS, MBPC, MCC, BPS
Pasadena, California, USA
http://www.mcgees.org/stamp-offers/

On Sat, 26 Apr 2008 05:36:41 GMT, Joshua McGee
wrote:

On Sat, 26 Apr 2008 04:44:12 +0000, Tracy_Barber wrote:

*As* *always*, it is the poor who are disproportionately hurt. The
wealthy would have other assets already, would probably have advance
warning, but the widow of the postal worker whose monthly pension cannot
buy a single match from a box of matches? She's up a creek.

What was once an area of mystery, intrigue and almost "magic", through
my collecting stamps, has become the latrine of the world and everyone
seems to want to flush the wealth away... the world is that way, but it
shouldn't have to be.

If there is an atheist/rationalist equivalent to "Amen", allow me to now
utter it....

All politics aside (moi - jamais!), I wonder sometimes why we like
what we collect - these small pieces of paper, history and the
personal touch somewhere "over there".

Since I started collecting stamps, the world has gotten extremely
smaller and globalization is here. Getting a letter from abroad (not
a broad) wasn't as it is today. It surely seemed to have more
"mystery" to it. Just like video killed the radio star...

I remember almost to the moment when I started to collect stamps again
after putting them down for years. 'Twas looking over some stuff in
the attic and found a box with some in it. Many were French colonials
and some British Commonwealth, along with an older Gibbons catalog
that I still have today.

The images on these stamps caught my eye and tempted me back into the
realm. I have lived through de-colonization, albeit only a few years
old, straight through the computer revolution. These older stamps had
the thrill of wildlife, foreign treasure and idle beaches where one
can dream.

Although much of that has long past, there is still an hint of
mystique, but more of an academic role instead of the child's dreams.
Some day I may get to visit some of these places, but will I enjoy it
as much as the travels I've had with my stamps.

I dunno...

On Apr 27, 1:10 am, wrote:

Since I started collecting stamps, the world has gotten extremely
smaller and globalization is here. Getting a letter from abroad (not
a broad) wasn't as it is today. It surely seemed to have more
"mystery" to it. Just like video killed the radio star...

I remember almost to the moment when I started to collect stamps again
after putting them down for years. 'Twas looking over some stuff in
the attic and found a box with some in it. Many were French colonials
and some British Commonwealth, along with an older Gibbons catalog
that I still have today.

The images on these stamps caught my eye and tempted me back into the
realm. I have lived through de-colonization, albeit only a few years
old, straight through the computer revolution. These older stamps had
the thrill of wildlife, foreign treasure and idle beaches where one
can dream.

Although much of that has long past, there is still an hint of
mystique, but more of an academic role instead of the child's dreams.
Some day I may get to visit some of these places, but will I enjoy it
as much as the travels I've had with my stamps.

I dunno...

Takes me back to my childhood, when I sent a modest International
Money Order to the postmaster at St Kitts, and asked for a selection
of stamps. Many weeks later the envelope arrived, with a lovely array
of the 1954 set. I was lost in wonder at this extraordinary object
from the other side of the world. Sad that that the children of today
can't experience anything like that any more.

Tony of the Antipodes

On Sun, 27 Apr 2008 05:07:09 -0700 (PDT), Asia-translation
wrote:

On Apr 27, 1:10 am, wrote:

Since I started collecting stamps, the world has gotten extremely
smaller and globalization is here. Getting a letter from abroad (not
a broad) wasn't as it is today. It surely seemed to have more
"mystery" to it. Just like video killed the radio star...

I remember almost to the moment when I started to collect stamps again
after putting them down for years. 'Twas looking over some stuff in
the attic and found a box with some in it. Many were French colonials
and some British Commonwealth, along with an older Gibbons catalog
that I still have today.

The images on these stamps caught my eye and tempted me back into the
realm. I have lived through de-colonization, albeit only a few years
old, straight through the computer revolution. These older stamps had
the thrill of wildlife, foreign treasure and idle beaches where one
can dream.

Although much of that has long past, there is still an hint of
mystique, but more of an academic role instead of the child's dreams.
Some day I may get to visit some of these places, but will I enjoy it
as much as the travels I've had with my stamps.

I dunno...

Takes me back to my childhood, when I sent a modest International
Money Order to the postmaster at St Kitts, and asked for a selection
of stamps. Many weeks later the envelope arrived, with a lovely array
of the 1954 set. I was lost in wonder at this extraordinary object
from the other side of the world. Sad that that the children of today
can't experience anything like that any more.

Nice... that's what I'm talking about here. Although bland and oft
overlooked, I remember when I was about 10 or so and went to the post
office to try to buy some Postage Dues stamps. The Postmaster sold me
a few of the lower values, MNH. I have never done that since and even
if they had them, probably wouldn't release them.

One of the reasons I still do the Freebie Stamp Project is to get mail
from all over the world. Not for the stamps, because I still have
99.9% of the covers that were sent - the rest destroyed in the mail.
Rather, however, this was for that hint of what you mentioned above
and beyond my sending stamps back at no cost. The letters cheered me
up during a bad time and they were given something for little or
nothing - postage. A solid, no strings attached arrangement. It
still amazes me when I receive a request from a new country, or one I
haven't seen in a while.

I receive photos, postcards, long letters and just about everything
that "Dear Abby" would get, without all the nasty situations. :^)
I'll be that none of the people know that is one of the reasons I
started it. The smallest things can do wonders for us. When we get
better, he usually pass along much more than what we could when ill.

That's where I stand at the moment. I await the letters, cards, or
pieces of bamboo. :^)

On Sun, 27 Apr 2008 07:35:02 -0700, Sir F. A. Rien
wrote:

Asia-translation found these unused
words:

On Apr 27, 1:10 am, wrote:

Since I started collecting stamps, the world has gotten extremely
smaller and globalization is here. Getting a letter from abroad (not
a broad) wasn't as it is today. It surely seemed to have more
"mystery" to it. Just like video killed the radio star...

I remember almost to the moment when I started to collect stamps again
after putting them down for years. 'Twas looking over some stuff in
the attic and found a box with some in it. Many were French colonials
and some British Commonwealth, along with an older Gibbons catalog
that I still have today.

The images on these stamps caught my eye and tempted me back into the
realm. I have lived through de-colonization, albeit only a few years
old, straight through the computer revolution. These older stamps had
the thrill of wildlife, foreign treasure and idle beaches where one
can dream.

Although much of that has long past, there is still an hint of
mystique, but more of an academic role instead of the child's dreams.
Some day I may get to visit some of these places, but will I enjoy it
as much as the travels I've had with my stamps.

I dunno...

Takes me back to my childhood, when I sent a modest International
Money Order to the postmaster at St Kitts, and asked for a selection
of stamps. Many weeks later the envelope arrived, with a lovely array
of the 1954 set. I was lost in wonder at this extraordinary object
from the other side of the world. Sad that that the children of today
can't experience anything like that any more.

Tony of the Antipodes

They can, if guided by their parents. The 'sad' part is that the parents are
still behaving as children and let their children be 'entertained' by
outside factors.

Many of us ha parents who would, if we shouwed an interest in something as
you've mentioned, make efforts to encourage, work with and support us in
learning.

Today, it's mostly "Here's $50 - go buy an X-box game and leave me alone!"

That may be more prevalent here in the states, but is it so in other
countries? There are plenty of places without X-Boxes, TVs and other
comforts of society as we have them, but would welcome a letter from
an "over there" place.

Does anyone have that experience and can tell us about it? Or, is it
simply that the hobby is dying and why worry? :^| I don't see the
hobby dying, because the embers are still pretty strong. I see this
especially in some parents who have been requesting stamps for their
children - with whom they will attempt to get actively involved in
collecting stamps. I must have at least 500 letters with that theme
in it. That's not many, in the grand scheme of things, but it surely
tells me that stamp collecting is still talked about in the littlest
places, as well as the auction houses and bourses.

.... like the mother who sent photos of her 2 sons, from Finland... The
Indian student... Chilean artwork made from damaged stamps... A
class using BobStamps and my "framework" for a class in China and
artwork received from that class... I'm still amazed at times what
will show up next.

All we can do is be powers of example. We can't shame them, bribe
them, twist their arm in any way. When the lure of history, far-off
places and sticky pieces of paper catches on, it's hard to stop.

On Sun, 27 Apr 2008 13:35:42 -0700, Sir F. A. Rien
wrote:

found these unused words:

On Sun, 27 Apr 2008 07:35:02 -0700, Sir F. A. Rien
wrote:

Asia-translation found these unused
words:

On Apr 27, 1:10 am, wrote:

Since I started collecting stamps, the world has gotten extremely
smaller and globalization is here. Getting a letter from abroad (not
a broad) wasn't as it is today. It surely seemed to have more
"mystery" to it. Just like video killed the radio star...

I remember almost to the moment when I started to collect stamps again
after putting them down for years. 'Twas looking over some stuff in
the attic and found a box with some in it. Many were French colonials
and some British Commonwealth, along with an older Gibbons catalog
that I still have today.

The images on these stamps caught my eye and tempted me back into the
realm. I have lived through de-colonization, albeit only a few years
old, straight through the computer revolution. These older stamps had
the thrill of wildlife, foreign treasure and idle beaches where one
can dream.

Although much of that has long past, there is still an hint of
mystique, but more of an academic role instead of the child's dreams.
Some day I may get to visit some of these places, but will I enjoy it
as much as the travels I've had with my stamps.

I dunno...

Takes me back to my childhood, when I sent a modest International
Money Order to the postmaster at St Kitts, and asked for a selection
of stamps. Many weeks later the envelope arrived, with a lovely array
of the 1954 set. I was lost in wonder at this extraordinary object
from the other side of the world. Sad that that the children of today
can't experience anything like that any more.

Tony of the Antipodes

They can, if guided by their parents. The 'sad' part is that the parents are
still behaving as children and let their children be 'entertained' by
outside factors.

Many of us ha parents who would, if we shouwed an interest in something as
you've mentioned, make efforts to encourage, work with and support us in
learning.

Today, it's mostly "Here's $50 - go buy an X-box game and leave me alone!"

That may be more prevalent here in the states, but is it so in other
countries? There are plenty of places without X-Boxes, TVs and other
comforts of society as we have them, but would welcome a letter from
an "over there" place.

Does anyone have that experience and can tell us about it? Or, is it
simply that the hobby is dying and why worry? :^| I don't see the
hobby dying, because the embers are still pretty strong. I see this
especially in some parents who have been requesting stamps for their
children - with whom they will attempt to get actively involved in
collecting stamps. I must have at least 500 letters with that theme
in it. That's not many, in the grand scheme of things, but it surely
tells me that stamp collecting is still talked about in the littlest
places, as well as the auction houses and bourses.

... like the mother who sent photos of her 2 sons, from Finland... The
Indian student... Chilean artwork made from damaged stamps... A
class using BobStamps and my "framework" for a class in China and
artwork received from that class... I'm still amazed at times what
will show up next.

All we can do is be powers of example. We can't shame them, bribe
them, twist their arm in any way. When the lure of history, far-off
places and sticky pieces of paper catches on, it's hard to stop.

As you know, I've supported your effort with my clippings from mail that
still used stamps.

Yes, indeedy. What I wrote was not meant to point fingers, unlike the
old chap who challenged me into "doing something" about 7 years ago or
so. It's amazing how much time has passed.

However, where I grew up, the small suburb of Boston I live in had 3 stamp
clubs, members would come into the grammar schools and talk about a far away
place, its history and show their stamps.

Any who showed personal interest were given a telephone number for their
-=parents=- to contact and an invitation to a meeting.

My father showed me some of the Austrian "harem" stamps of the 1950s.

We had stamp stores! Many stamp stores!

We had none, but a 5 & dime that sold Harris bags and a local, hidden
dealer or 2.

In my last metropolis of residence - there is ONE. That despite a population
nearing 2 Million. There are NONE within a 100 mile radius of my current location.

Probably the same for me as well. Montreal or Albany.

I've asked our postmistress [small community of under 300] if any youngsters
are interested in collecting. None are and it seems that whatever geography
is taught, doesn't link in the stamps and how the mails helped countries
develop.

Do they still "teach" it or are they using Google Earth? :^)

Yes, collecting is still alive, as evidence the prices. BUT ... not to the
extent that is was, especially for the younger groups. I mostly suspect two
causes outside lack of school/parent involvement: Less stamps used on mail
arriving at the home to intrigue and the proliferation of issues which would
drain allowances, if bought through the postal cave or equivalent. [Not
every issue is available at every PO!]

Heh! We have a small village, but my Postmaster would probably get
them delivered if I asked. They usually carry several of the newer
issues. I wonder how many stamp collectors there are in town? When I
was younger, there were quite a few.

JM02¢W

Almost looks like Woolworth's!

On Sun, 27 Apr 2008 07:35:02 -0700, Sir F. A. Rien wrote:

Sad that that the children of today can't
experience anything like that any more.

They can, if guided by their parents. The 'sad' part is that the parents
are still behaving as children and let their children be 'entertained'
by outside factors.

I am likely one of the younger, if not the youngest, member of this
newsgroup. I have a four year old son -- and not from a third marriage!

I have always striven to use philately as part of my son's education. He
has a stamp "album" of his own (really an unused paper approvals book
found in a job lot -- dating from perhaps the 1940s and certainly not on
archival paper -- horizontally formatted, nice red cover, and each leaf
divided into eight squares on each side.) Stamps are used as a reward
for good behavior, and there is a great ritual of putting the stamp into
the album. Every time a stamp is put into the album, we will flip
through the other leaves and remember times when we put the other stamps
in.

This preschool philately also follows him with topical interests: when he
was fascinated with alligators and crocodiles, proper thematic stamps
went in the book. Now it's trains, and likewise, the book is becoming
populated with engines from around the world. He can define terms most
adults would have difficulty with: perforation, selvedge, and so forth --
plus so many locomotive-related words that even I don't know!

When he hears about a country, it's not only to wikipedia.org that we go,
but to the worldwide stamp albums (or glassines) to find any old,
engraved stamps. A distant waterfall and a giraffe on the foreground of
a colonial African stamp is more enticing to him than a "helicopter shot"
of a current African state.

He is moved to true emotion at times. We got onto the subject of North
Korea, and I tried to explain dictatorship in terms he would understand:
"In North Korea, the kids can't go on the Internet. They can't go to the
"Thomas the Tank Engine" sites, and they can't go to Starfall.com. You
know all the books you love to read? They aren't allowed to read these
books. There is one man, who says he is the most important man in the
world, and he decides what every grown-up and every child is allowed to
read."

I had to stop the description, because his eyes brimmed over with tears.

Just to let the older folks know: we're out there, responsible parents.
We're out there, parents who use philately to teach our children. Don't
trust the evening news -- at least in the United States, and probably not
in most other countries. They are quick to criticize, and talk about
neglect, abuse, mistreatment, violence -- but in my circle of young
parents, we have houses with true values, even though we may be deviant
in the eyes of some older bigots (atheists, secular humanists, and non-
homophobes claiming that they have "values" is enough to drive many a
Christian to actual violence! But I will stand up and say, "Yes, we have
values, and in being more open-minded, are doing an *even* *better* job
raising children than our forebears.")

I don't want to divert the rants too much, but please take this as a
sample point. It's not all X-Boxes and latchkey kids. Many of us do
care.

--
Joshua McGee ‹(•¿•)›
APS, ATA, ISWSC, AFDCS, MBPC, MCC, BPS
Pasadena, California, USA
http://www.mcgees.org/stamp-offers/