Legion World Forums LEGION CLUBHOUSE The Legion of Super-Heroes Long Live the Legion! Living Money...

So, as much as I love the concept, it really doesn't make a whole lot of sense. I mean... what if there's some sort of massive Money Plague that wipes out all of the currency? Or what if all of your living money is kind of elderly? Do you need to spend it quickly before it dies of old age?

Don't forget all those shows like ST:TNG where an artificial life-form could claim full human rights. What happens when counterfeiters start doing the same under the guise of "concerned 'parents'"?

Does living money breed and cause inflation?

Money plagues could explain the regularity with which the U.P. economy collapses.

But at least you could say that money grows on trees.

This was the kind of thought that prompted this thread. Typically what you want in a currency is something of which there is either a stable supply or at least a controllable supply. Living organisms generally seem like they'd be bad at fulfilling that requirement.

What if the older your living money is, the MORE valuable it becomes, like antiques and stuff?

Could there be living money cryo units out there?

I would hope those crystal turtles that passed for currency somewhere had lifespans of 2 or 3 hundred years. I mean, they ate metal and caused short circuits and junk.

I imagine there would be breeding farms and strict population control.

Hey, just because it's living money doesn't mean it's free money.

Anything can be a means of exchange, fewer things a store of value. If the supply of living money were to be controlled, the stuff we see running around the galaxy would have to be sterilized, and there would be limited breeding facilities. Of course, fraud/illegal reproduction would be possible.

Now I'm wondering what it eats. It can be viewed as we view farm animals: bred for specific purposes (although anyone with land can breed and raise cattle), both a means of exchange and a store of value, questions regarding ethical treatment but only a small minority of people claiming we shouldn't have farm animals at all. There could be groups crying to Free Living Money.

Perhaps living money is kind of like bees, and its the workers that are used as currency?

We've seen several varieties of living money, from the crystal turtles rhino mentioned (who were metal eaters) to a couple of varieties of "walking money".

I can definitely see certain groups protesting the use of living money.

Free Living Money groups would probably be regarded with all the seriousness of Emily LaTella protesting Eagle Rights.

Well, at least economic downturns could be readily handled by some future version of Stuart Smalley.

C'mon, li'l ones! Just repeat after me: "I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and by golly-- people LIKE ME!"

Many goods nowadays are like living money, in that a net worth is placed on them, like livestock, pearl beds and seashell creatures, silkworms, beehives, orchards and forests, people (slaves/serfs), to name a few.
'Money' is really just a type of barter system.

As to the money 'aging and dying', our paper kind wears out, is collected and reissued, which isn't so difficult.

I should think that anything imaginable could be used for 'money' or reward.
I just read a story where molted gryffin feathers were given to a young lady for saving their baby. They were considered priceless and worth all sorts of wonderful things.

Anyway, I hope those comments added to the conversation.
sigh

There are so many possibilities, it's disappointing that the Legionverse adopted the notion of "credits" back in the 1980s(?) and that's been the norm ever since, except for a a couple of scenes with Venturan Walking Money. I'd like to see some of the Adventure-era money come back, or some new types, living or not.

(And I'd certainly trade something for gryffin feathers....)

what if living money like Venturan walking money is actually genetically designed for economic purposes? perhaps they are slightly telepathic, and require a deliberate mental command from the owner they are bonded to in order to be released to a new owner. It could be a crime to introduce free will into walking money or any other deliberately designed living currency.

Creatively designed living money can avert all sorts of economic issues.

Imagine a system where all circulating currency is female. Under normal economic conditions the Central Bank would breed and release a number of female monetary units equal to the attrition rate plus a stable secular growth rate.

However Should the Chair of the Galactic Reserve Bank face a sudden contraction of the money supply, a la the US last fall, they would only need to release the oversexed males from the Central Bank's vault. Coupled with some fertility drugs sprayed into bank vaults, we have instant increased supply, liquidity and bank lending.

Do you have change for a couple of "Cobies"?

I can think of a couple of replies, but I don't have any of them in my pocket.

TL knows money and economic systems, I don't.
But I have to ask, is infant money, in your female money system, worth anything and how long are they juvenile?
Would their worth go up or down with age and how would they 'bracket'(is that the right word) the curency?

Legion would never go into that kind of detail, probably.

Historically here, magic 'money' turns into drowse after 24 hours or in daylight.
But, magic articles and creatures do not change.
I could see on Zerox that all exchanges would have to be in artifacts or living beings for stability.

And like gold and diamonds, they'd have to naturally occur and not be part of a 'husbanding' process.

Artifacts are made, of course, but usually in some 'magical' way, so they would be different and fairly unique objects or beings.

Yes, but in the story what made them so valuable was one of the virtues of the gryffins themselves ~ no one could lie in their presence.

A feather, if held above the eyes, gave the holder or wearer, the ability to see through all illusions (handy on Orando) and anything hidden.

If they were used to feather an arrow, the arrow could fly through magic spells and could take down mages.
Something else else Mordru and Mysa would fear.

I would believe all money is equal (juvenile, old, adult) in denomination since they are living. The central bank could genetically engineer the money depending on the economic conditions. If they want people to spend money instead of hoarding it, they'd just create a batch that had an undesirable trait, like smelling bad.

But beware an economic attack by the Dominators, they could release a predator into the money pool.

You could breed different colors for different denominations.

Engineer it so the colour gene is on the X-Chromosone so the male parent does not contribute to the colour. Denomination of the offspring is determined by the matrilineal line alone.

That would work. It would also allow the rich to get richer in times of economic crisis. Because as males are released those with a lot of high denomination money suddenly have much more of it. This replicates the equivalent result in both the hard currency (gold) and current fiat currency system.

You'd need a special branch of SciPol to keep track of money that chose to dye itself into a larger or smaller denomination, though. I'm guessing this would help kill the legal market for at-home dyes, as well.

Wow! You folks are a creative and talented bunch...

I was just gonna post a crude reference to Cobie keeping his walking money in his briefs after agitating them...

I'm going to take the above to mean that I used those goods as currency in college in order to get by, in which case, you are correct, sir!

Er, to get back on track, I wonder if 31st Century <strike>geeks</strike> fans theorize the effect of flying money in *their* future?