“COSTLESS CREDIT”

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22986, 15 September 1936, Page 12

“COSTLESS CREDIT”

ro CHE EDITOR Sir,—Captain Berkeley says In his letter of September 6 that the Welfare League, dare not deny that “ the banks create money out of nothing.” We do deny this as emphatically as possible. Neither the banks nor anyone else can create money out, of nothing. We do not wish'to “hide the fact,” nor do we hold a brief for any interest; our views are based on reality and fact. We do not, however, see our way to enter into an endless round-the-circle argument which has no finality. Captain Berkeley evidently uses the words “vested interests” as comprising only large and wealthy interests. He is not correct. A vested interest may be very small, and there are many millions who have these small vested interests and who are in the aggregate far greater than he realises. His optimism that we could all “ live like mililonaires ” if his ideas were accepted is certainly to be envied, but it is curious that no one in the world has yet found out how! . . > ■ As to Socialism, this has been tried several times and has not "led to Utopia,” as he says it will. Utopia depends more on human nature than any legislation. Socialism has never yet given man “ all he wants ” because of this same “human nature.”—We are, etc., N.Z. Welfare League. September 12.