16.11.2009 von Guido.

Worgl was the site of the “Miracle of Worgl” during the Great Depression. It was started on the 31st of July 1932 with the issuing of “Certified Compensation Bills”, a form of currency commonly known as Stamp Scrip, or Freigeld. This was an application of the monetary theories of the economist Silvio Gesell by the town’s then mayor, Michael Unterguggenberger.

The experiment resulted in a growth in employment and meant that local government projects such as new houses, a reservoir , a ski jump and a bridge could all be completed, seeming to defy the depression in the rest of the country. Inflation and deflation are also reputed to have been non-existent for the duration of the experiment.^[2]

Despite attracting great interest at the time, including from French Premier Edouard Daladier and the economist Irving Fisher^[3], the “experiment” was terminated by the Austrian National Bank on the 1st September 1933 on the basis of the “Certified Compensation Bills” being a threat to the Bank’s monopoly on printing money.^[4][5][6][7]

In 2006 milestones were placed, beginning from the railroad station through the downtown, to show this history, on top of questioning the authenticity of never-ending exponential growth triggered by the compound interest.

Silvio Gesell

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Silvio Gesell (March 17, 1862 in Sankt Vith (now Belgium) – March 11, 1930 in Oranienburg) was a German merchant, theoretical economist, social activist, anarchist and founder of Freiwirtschaft.

Opinions

He considered himself a world citizen and believed Earth should belong to all people, regardless of race, gender, class, wealth, religion and age and that borders should be made obsolete.

Gesell founded his economic thoughts on the self-interest of people as a natural, healthy motive to act, which allows the individual to follow the satisfaction of his/her needs and to be productive. The economic system must do justice to this pre-condition, otherwise this system would undoubtedly fail. This is why, Gesell called his proposed economic system “natural”. This stance put him in a clear opposition to Karl Marx, who called for a change in the social conditions.

Taking selfishness into account, Gesell called for free, fair business competition with equal chances for all. This included the removal of all legal and inherited privileges. Everyone should rely only on his personal abilities in order to make a living. In the “natural economic order”, which he aimed for, the most talented people would have the highest income, without distortion by interest and rent charge. The economic status of the less talented would also improve, because they wouldn’t be forced to pay interest and rent charge. According to Gesell, this would lead to an equalization between the poor and the rich. Further, there would be more means available to help the poor, because the higher average income would mean that everyone would have enough money to spare what is necessary to help

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