My new podcast episode is out

Micol Lucchi — This is how Switzerland’s direct democracy works

Swiss democracy by referendum is quite different from so-called liberal democracies that are democratic republics. Here is a short summary of how it works.

World Economic Forum
This is how Switzerland’s direct democracy works

Micol Lucchi | Swiss Public Affairs Specialist, World Economic Forum

Economy Watch — Switzerland Joins Chinese Alternative to World Bank

Advantages of being an early adopter.

Economy Watch
Switzerland Joins Chinese Alternative to World Bank

Leonid Bershidsky — What If Banks Didn't Create Money?

What passes for analysis at Bloomberg View.

Bloomberg View
What If Banks Didn't Create Money?
Leonid Bershidsky

Sober Look — Swiss Deflation

Sober Look
Swiss Deflation

Reuters — Swiss to vote on 2,500 franc basic income for every adult

Switzerland will hold a vote on whether to introduce a basic income for all adults, in a further sign of growing public activism over pay inequality since the financial crisis.
A grassroots committee is calling for all adults in Switzerland to receive an unconditional income of 2,500 Swiss francs ($2,800) per month from the state, with the aim of providing a financial safety net for the population.

Organizers submitted more than the 100,000 signatures needed to call a referendum on Friday and tipped a truckload of 8 million five-rappen coins outside the parliament building in Berne, one for each person living in Switzerland.

Reuters
Swiss to vote on 2,500 franc basic income for every adult
(h/t JK via email)

Al Jazeera — Switzerland restricts EU immigration

Switzerland has announced that it will extend immigration limits to all European Union countries amid pressure from the political far-right.

Switzerland, which is not an EU member, already has a quota in place for eight Eastern European members that joined the bloc in 2004, as well as special, stricter regulations for the newest members Bulgaria and Romania, which joined in 2007.

The justice and police ministry said on Wednewsday that it would now limit resident permits to a maximum of 53,700 annually for citizens from the remaining 17 EU countries.

Under an agreement with the European Union, Switzerland can invoke this so-called safeguard clause if immigration rises above a certain level.

Al Jazeera
Switzerland restricts EU immigration

Daniel H. Neilson — When will Switzerland exit the euro?

By fixing the exchange rate, Switzerland has, in a way, unilaterally joined the euro. As a haven destination, Switzerland faces problems not unlike Germany's. Just as the Bundesbank's claims on TARGET2 swell, so too are the SNB's euro-denominated assets....

Read it at INET | The Money View

When will Switzerland exit the euro?

by Daniel H. Neilson

(Dr. Neilson earned his B.A. from Bard College of Simon's Rock in 2001 and his Ph.D. from Columbia University in 2009. In addition to his work for INET, he teaches economics at Simon's Rock.)

(h/t Perry Mehrling at The Money View)

Ponzicrats: What you Get When You Cross Gold + Melamine + Plutocrats

China Purchases A Record 100 Tons Of Gold In April From Hong Kong

Good luck with that. May be getting desperate, as they run out of ideas?

Gold may be seen as a good personal hoarding strategy for some, but only for local reasons that are always bad for the aggregate. It's basically giving into to private paranoia that further coordination won't be possible.  For aggregates, it's better - by far - to hoard coordination capabilities.

Aka, Chinese economy in the final stages of the largest Ponzi scheme ever devised

Conclusion? There's evidence that it's been 3.5 billion years since life appeared upon planet Earth, and "2 steps forward, 1 step back" is still the reality.

China will be fine, eventually, but ONLY after all the Benedict Arnold Plutocrats run off to Switzerland with all the gold. Then the serfs can get on with organizing on a larger scale.

My email exchange with Jim Rogers

So I emailed Jim Rogers this morning to ask him about the comment he made on CNBC regarding the Swiss National Bank pegging the Swiss franc to the euro.

This is what he said on CNBC:

"The move 'will work for a while, but the market will have more money in the end than the SNB,' Rogers, who was the co-founder of the Quantum Fund with George Soros, told CNBC.com."

I emailed him this:

Me: "Really, Jim? The Swiss will run out of Swiss francs?"

This was his reply:

"I guess you still do not understand currencies. As the article said, they can run the presses without stopping which would make the currency lose huge value which would destroy S as a financial center. They might never run out of francs, but that would destroy S1itzerland's main business. Please have someone read the article for you and explain it to you. If you have a blog, please post my answer to you. Thanks." -Jim Rogers

(Note the sarcasm.)

I responded with this:

Me: "So a 1.20 EUR/CHF exchange rate will destroy Switzerland's financial sector? Why didn't that happen when EUR/CHF was 1.68 a few years ago?"

Me: "And why is it so important for a nation of 7 million people to have a huge financial sector that comprises such a big percent of GDP?"

Me: Waiting for a response.