Mastodawn

I'll just be satisfied that I didn't waste too much life energy trying to persuade a bunch of nincumpoop legislative apparatus that ....

there is no 'democracy' without

#RankedChoiceVoting and #ProportionalRepresentation and
#PublicBanking

It's not like they haven't been told already by voices more authoritative than mine.

#FuckThisShit

Gemma Seymour Mar 15

Recent conversations I've had regarding #PublicBanking, #ModernMonetaryTheory #MMT, and #LandValueTaxation #LVT in #Vermont #VT have again shown how little knowledge and understanding there is among the electorate of not only these particular concepts, but of how economies actually function.

People approach these subjects with deep skepticism, because they run counterintuitive to received "wisdom".

I often feel like Galileo attempting to prove the fact that the Earth revolves around the Sun.

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Gemma Seymour Mar 13

Taxes categorically do not "pay for" government, at least, not on the level of the government that issues the currency. #ModernMonetaryTheory #MMT demonstrates this ably. The federal government *must* first spend the currency into existence, in order for taxes to be paid.

However, for the state and municipal governments in the US, since they cannot spend more currency into existence, they are forced to tax first, then spend.

#PublicBanking would allow them to get around that limitation.

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Gemma Seymour Mar 13

#Currency is created in two ways in modern economies: by spending it into existence by the central government; and by lending it into existence through fractional #banking.

That gives us power that most people don't even realize we have, because while the law prevents states and cities from printing #money, it does not and cannot prevent them from owning and operating banks that could lend new money into existence.

#PublicBanking is key to reviving #Vermont's economy. #VTpol #VTpoli

whoosh Mar 11

RE: https://phpc.social/@Crell/116211306059340696

"It's #JustPlainStupid that we still use this broken plurality system."

Indeed. Please support #ProportionalRepresentation and #PublicBanking

Gemma Seymour Mar 10

I am cautiously optimistic about Amanda Janoo running for #VTGovernor, but as I've already said, I want to see concrete policy proposals, not vague ideations.

#VTDems need to wake up to the new realities of our nation and the challenges we actually face as a state in it.

#GunControl is a non-starter, so ban it from your vocabulary. We need #LandValueTax and #PublicBanking, first and foremost. We need #urbanism and #redevelopment.

#Vermont #VT #VTpol #VTpoli

https://www.sevendaysvt.com/news/amanda-janoo-announces-bid-for-vermont-governor/

Amanda Janoo Announces Bid for Vermont Governor

She is the first Democrat to step forward to challenge Gov. Phil Scott this year.

Seven Days

Muir Mar 5

Reclaiming the Public Interest: Cities Should Sell Municipal Bonds to Their Own Public Banks
#publicbanking #municipalism #socialism
https://mronline.org/2026/03/04/reclaiming-the-public-interest-cities-should-sell-municipal-bonds-to-their-own-public-banks/

Reclaiming the Public Interest: Cities Should Sell Municipal Bonds to Their Own Public Banks - MR Online

What chance do local governments have in fighting authoritarian austerity, especially when they are left to rely on feckless legislators at the state and federal levels who refuse to push back? Right now, we see austerity budgets appearing across every institution and major employer in the U.S. If the federal government continues to sabotage municipalities,

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Gemma Seymour Feb 12

But there is a loophole to this, and that loophole is the fact that in our society, much of our currency is not actually created by the government, it's created by fractional banking. It's created by bank lending.

And that's why we need #PublicBanking. Municipally-owned and state-owned banks can lend money into their own economies that is tied to location, to ensure that the wealth they create stays local. This is most obviously done by mortgage and construction lending.