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May 13, 2005

Voting with Your Wallet: Private Money and Private Lives

I try to help with financial contributions to groups, websites, and causes I believe in. It was impressed upon me as a child during my religious and moral education that it is not enough to flap your lips about injustice. If you can redress the wrongs of this world, you should try to. Failing that, you should at least provide material support if you are able.

Unfortunately though, the FBI has used the money laundering and aiding terrorism angle as a way to snoop, harass, and arrest Muslims, Arabs, and essentially anyone they want. They do this because they can. I mean except for the Amish, is there anyone who doesn’t use money?

I have found that it annoys (and even pisses off!), some people that when I send them contributions they are money orders or cash sent by FedEx or by mail. Not enough to refuse it mind you, but annoyed all the same.

Well folks, read the linked story for a clearer understanding of what is behind my motivation for making my contributions this way. The feds bust a huge amount of us for being “money launders” and “funders of terrorism” and other such crap. Cash is untraceable and liquid. Best of all though, it leaves no trail for the feds to figure out who is giving what to whom. Cool eh? I think so.

Hawaladars are an established tradition in Arab culture and have been for many years. The feds don’t like the idea of people being able to vote with their wallets. Cash is anonymous and relatively untraceable and so is largely unable to be scrutinized.

That alone should be enough to recommend it.

Posted by Ali Massoud at May 13, 2005 08:56 AM

Comments

Just another sign of the complete lack of principles and deference for nationalism and politics as religion.

You would think free trade and religious minded charity would appeal to conservatives, but no, not in the endless age of an endless war on terror.

Posted by: Dain Fitzgerald [TypeKey Profile Page] at May 13, 2005 08:20 PM

The Feds are definitely cracking down on Hawaladars because it will help them crack down on money launderers and terrorists. They aren't doing it because these small and politically unconnected businesses undercut the big politically connected Banks for foreign exchange and money transfer functions. Remember listening to such rumours is treason. The computer is your friend.

Posted by: Livemike [TypeKey Profile Page] at May 15, 2005 01:51 PM

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