The Alternative Market Project: A Sneak Preview

By Brandon Smith (aka Giordano Bruno)

If you want something done right, you might well have to do it yourself. We’ve heard the old adage before, but rarely do we ever seem to apply it to our economic environment. Instead, we have seen fit to allow “smarter” men to take the reigns, and take control, of our financial well being, all on misplaced faith in the supposed good intentions of government and corporate bodies. This cultural attitude of non-involvement in the economic decision making process has cost millions of Americans their jobs and now threatens the stability of our currency, our nation, not to mention our very future. Many of us have become entirely dependent on only a handful of men for our own livelihoods. It is time to take greater stock in ourselves, our ingenuity, and our ability to create and adapt. It is time to take responsibility for our own commerce, and breathe life back into local communities once again. It is time for an alternative…

The greatest threat to the U.S. economy today is forced globalization and the fiat central banking system. Many organizations are working to expose, audit, and even shut down the private Federal Reserve, which is responsible in large part for facilitating the mortgage and derivatives crisis as well as the continued devaluation of our dollar. This is a vital effort that requires the utmost support from all facets of the Liberty Movement. However, there is another matter that needs to be addressed in tandem with any endeavor to remove our destructive central banking system…

Much of the damage that can be inflicted on our economy has already been dealt. As neithercorp and many other websites devoted to honest financial analysis have shown time and again, our fiscal structure is teetering on the brink of oblivion, our so called “recovery” is a façade fed by skewed statistics and rivers of fiat money dumped into banks and stocks, and our purchasing power is being crushed by a deliberate campaign to slow-kill the greenback. Only now are greater signs of this disaster being revealed to the masses as real unemployment remains essentially static and prices of base goods skyrocket. Even with a successful initiative launched against the Federal Reserve, we would still be left with a faulty, crumbling, debt based architecture. We can pull the iceberg from our shattered ship, but the ship is still going to sink.

The key to our survival is not only to go after the culprits who have carpet bombed us, but to also build a better system to shield us from any financial shrapnel that might be hurled our way.

Ironically, the solution to this seemingly complex series of economic dominoes is one which we were supposed to be following from the very beginning. The alternative we seek against extreme centralization of markets is to develop truly free markets! That is to say, if we wish to fight back against the globalist feudalism thrust upon us, we must decentralize markets and rebuild local commerce and trade.

Centralization works by removing all options but those the establishment deems acceptable. To counter centralization, we must offer Americans a new option that supplies those necessities which the corrupt system denies them; including meaningful community, sound money, honest trade, independence, and privacy. With this philosophy in mind, neithercorp will be working with Oath Keepers, as well as other interested groups, to focus our energies on building new and flexible free markets from the ground up.

Here are the steps we will take to make this happen…

Launch A Dedicated Website: This step is already nearly finished and the launch will be announced shortly. The new website will be focused completely on promoting self generating barter and trade systems across the country. Our goal is not to control or to dictate to alternative markets. In fact, our goal is to make certain that no one organization or entity EVER centralizes these community based networks. Our single purpose is to help as best we can each community to grow to its full potential. Website functions will include…

- A social networking option (like Facebook, but useful). Barter networks will be able to set up local and state chapters, meet like minded people in order to expand, and advertise their own trading events. Small business owners can set up profiles, gain free advertising, and increase their customer base while providing liberty minded consumers with a place besides Wal-Mart to shop. (Note: by setting up a profile on the alternative market website, small business owners would be inferring that they are likely to accept gold, silver, or barter as payment).

- Informative articles and videos by experts in their field. We will seek out the best teachers in the movement to contribute articles and essays meant to show you how you can set up and maintain a successful trade network. At launching, we will have articles by Stewart Rhodes, Cassandra Anderson, myself, and a new interview with G. Edward Griffin. We will also be putting out the call to anyone who feels they have exceptional knowledge in a particular skill or trade to contribute their own instructional articles or videos on the subject. The most concise submissions will be published on the website and the experts may be invited to participate in alternative market workshops and conventions, to share their knowledge in a hands-on environment.

- News collation. We will dig out those mainstream news items that fly under the radar (or are deliberately buried), so that you stay up to date on all the economic developments that the MSM tries so desperately to hide.

Promote The American Skill Set: Our next step will be to greatly strengthen the skill sets of the average American. This means teachers from every state and city will be needed to share their knowledge or “free market trade” with others, giving each person at least one or two skills useful in a barter economy or a poor economic environment. Candle making, textiles, alternative energy, efficient gardening, gun repair, electronics repair, home security, and numerous other trades should be taught and cross-taught.

Strengthen Farmers Co-ops: Food production is vital, especially in an inflationary environment. Farms that seek independence away from the Monsanto dominated GMO model must be supported and protected. We will work with interested farmers groups who are willing to participate in a gold, silver, and barter based system. They provide free market participants with healthy fresh foods, and we provide them with an extensive new customer base. If methods are applied properly, everyone wins.

Nurture Integrity In Trade: The current standard of sales and trade in America is to “scam” others out of money. To “hustle” ones way to wealth. If one cannot produce a quality product, then one must lie about its quality in order to sell it. We hope to reverse this trend and promote a philosophy of quality, which in the long run will nurture legitimate trust and support a much healthier and more vibrant economy. The most successful barter groups will be those that have established trust in one another. Pre-existing organizations like church groups, farmer’s market groups, etc, will start out strong in the initial stages of their new barter economy, because they already know each other well.

Bring Back Gold And Silver As Currency: This has already begun in some areas. Gold and silver represent the only viable currency alternative to fiat paper. While they should not be the only option available (fiat will probably have to be included as a trading option until the dollar fully disintegrates), they should be brought back to prominence in the face of the declining dollar and inflation. This begins by encouraging small business and independent traders to use gold and silver as a standard preferable to dollars. Alternative market businesses could offer discounts on goods to those who wish to pay in gold and silver, or, even give their employees the option of being compensated in gold and silver. As barter markets grow, many businesses will likely adopt precious metals trade, whether they are aware of the alternative market movement or not, in order to remain competitive.

Support State Sovereignty And 10th Amendment Issues: The Alternative Market Project will wholeheartedly support any legislators who show an aptitude for free market ideas and who are aware of the dangers of globalism. This includes mobilizing trade networks to vote for strong anti-Federal Reserve, pro-States Rights candidates. We will strengthen public support for any state legislation that works towards sound money and freer citizens. We will also encourage participants to run for office themselves. As Alternative Market groups progress, our voting potential could be quite formidable at the local level, which is where all changes to government really begin.

Workshops And Conventions: As more revenues are accrued through donations, dynamic workshops will be held in every state. The goal here is to give barter network participants hands on experience in various skill sets as well as new ideas to further trade proficiency. But also, most importantly, to get people away from their computers, out of their homes, and interacting with each other in a constructive way. The internet is a fantastic communications tool, but not a very effective community building tool. Eventually, we must step outside in the sunlight, and start talking to one another face-to-face.



Obstacles Down The Road

There will be, of course, many obstacles to consider if the Alternative Market Project sees success, especially in the “mainstream”.

Globalist legislation will be enacted. Already, attacks have been made on private trade, including the recent food safety bill which could be interpreted by officials as a restriction on personal garden and small farm commerce, attacks on garage sales, attacks on gold and silver coining, and even attacks on the Amish! There will come a point when we will have to ask ourselves whether certain laws are ‘just’. Whether they are helpful, or harmful, to Americans. If they are not just, and not helpful, then they should be ignored. It’s as simple as that.

Co-option is another threat. With the proliferation of any grassroots movement, establishment proponents will seek to beat back the tide. When this fails, they will seek to take it over. The easiest way to discern if a movement is being co-opted is to examine where the control is being delegated. If decision making is left in the hands of individuals, and the leadership seeks to teach, not dominate, then the movement is probably sound. If decision making is being centralized into the hands of a few “members” of the movement, if their voice drowns out all others, and the leadership seeks the power to dictate and micro-manage the movement, then this is a sure sign of co-option. Funding from globalist sources like corporations or particular foundations is another warning signal.

How could this possibly happen in a barter economy? I have already seen organizations sprouting up in Europe, some funded by foundations like the World Wildlife Fund (globalist funded), which seek to enact barter economies based on “digital credits”. This is a perfect example of a centralization campaign, because it desires to force all trade through a middle-man who commands the flow of wealth (in this case, digital fiat). The middle-man is entirely unnecessary in any barter transaction, his only purpose is to monitor and control the rate and types of transactions taking place. I guarantee, globalist run barter networks similar to the European model I described will be railroaded into the mainstream in response to alternative market initiatives. The drive will be to use their vast resources and media clout to give the illusion of “respectability”, and to seduce Americans into yet another centralized system.

Another threat is that of pigeonholing. By labeling Alternative Market participants as “extremists”, “homegrown terrorists”, “kooks”, and any other multitude of false associations, the establishment will strive to discredit barter networks, silence their dissent, and dissuade new people from joining the movement. Examples might even be made. Arrests of regular people merely for private trade may occur in order to chill participation. These measures should be expected and treated in the way they should be treated; as distractions.

The consequences of NOT pursuing solid, decentralized trade are far more terrifying than anything our disingenuous bureaucracy can dish out. Not having a replacement system ready in the wake of a severe collapse would create mass panic. When people have nowhere to turn for safety, they allow fear to take over. When men are afraid, they WILL accept all kinds of atrocities, and they WILL hand over their freedoms to anyone who promises them relief.

To those who subscribe to the “virtue of selfishness” ideal, and believe that they only need take care of themselves while the rest of the world burns, all I can say is good luck. Without honorable systems in place to counter globalization, I’m not really sure what these people plan to live for. Weathering the storm only to be subject to the whims of tyrants afterwards is not true survival.

In Summary…

What has been presented here is not a new methodology. Independent trade networks have been used as a form of revolution and to offset the implosions of faulty financial systems for centuries. This means that they are tried and true. During the Great Depression, over 200 complex barter networks with 300,000 members were instituted in the state of California alone. In times of distress, people inevitably turn back to barter. The problem is that most often these networks are established after the fact, instead of before a calamity takes place. We seek to remedy this error. By constructing alternative markets before an event, we preempt the terror it creates, and make government interventions like Martial Law completely inapplicable. Without a frightened public, DHS does not have a reasonable excuse to activate Northcom (they may well do so anyway, but in that situation, their true intentions would be fully exposed, especially to military men and women who would only follow such orders if they thought the American people were in actual danger).

Preemption in barter markets also allows Americans to make a choice. By offering a better choice, we take participation away from the central banking system, and thus, we take away their power to influence our lives. Only good can come from cultivating independent commerce.

This has been a sneak peek into a project we have been developing for many months; one which we feel could be of great assistance to the Liberty Movement as a whole. Further details will be made available in the next two weeks including the official launch of the project website. I would like to thank Stewart Rhodes of Oath Keepers for persuading me to undertake this venture myself. I had always planned for more prominent figures in the movement to grab the idea and run with it, but this, in a sense, would be deferring certain responsibilities, which would make me a bit of a hypocrite. I can say that though I am not the most recognizable name or face in the movement, I am relentlessly and viciously stubborn, and absolutely nothing will deter me from making this project a reality. I would also like to thank the Liberty Movement itself, for changing my life and so many other lives for the better. I hope I can one day repay the favor…

Slick image and AMM Seal designed by Josh Ogden.

You can contact Giordano Bruno at: giordano@neithercorp.us

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