Every time I check the news, I get bombarded with analysts that are terrified about the economy.  There are one thousand Chicken Littles running around sparking fear.  Let’s get them back into the hen house.

For starters, no one is certain about what will happen to the economy, and that is scary. Change and the unknown are very scary, and that is why suspense movies make you jump out of your seat. Currently, we are in one of these movies without a script.

Why should we not be afraid? The economy moves in natural cycles. The “Roaring Twenties” was capitalizing on the stock market. People were making fortunes off of their portfolios. Then the market crashed, and all those that were over-leveraged were left with nothing. The ripple effect carried throughout the masses, and the panic further hurt those doing well and businesses collapsed. This in turn resulted in lost jobs and ultimately the Great Depression.

Then the US auto and steel industry was insanely powerful. Millions of jobs and vast economic booms were experienced. Foreign competitors kicked our complacent butts and that industry collapsed again crushing the populace. Now there is something similar happening with oil prices and the housing industry which were booming in the recent past.

Again we got over-leveraged. Greedy companies were passing out credit as if it were in the “take-a-penny” tray. We were greedy and took the credit and bought useless things that we could not afford. Mortgage companies gave us loans that forced us way out of our means. The companies experienced a boom in sales. The GDP was up and everyone was officially winning.

Until…the rise in oil prices. Now, our paycheck to paycheck strategy was collapsing. The banks started suffering and wanted their money to pay for their expenses. Interest rates were raised on the adjustable rate loans, and people began losing their homes.  They got over-leveraged.

Why shouldn’t we be afraid? Every single financial crisis in our history has been overcome, and each time we have come back even stronger.

What are you doing to protect your fiancial futures? What advice can you give our readers?

When Saddam Hussein was ousted in 2003, there were a lot of speculations about the Iraqi currency. A lot of political, social, and economic changes have occurred since then, but what will this mean to an investor like you? The new Iraqi monetary system encourages foreign investments; in fact, the central bank is giving out licenses so foreign businessmen can open businesses legally. Of course, what most investors are counting on is the potential of Iraqi oil. Iraq is one of the biggest oil producers in the world, second only to Saudi Arabia.

These characteristics make the Iraqi dinar seem like an attractive investment on the surface. However, it is important to remember that whenever a country undergoes government changes, the new government can repudiate the old money; your investment can become essentially worthless. Another risk is that the new Iraqi government has the capability to inflate the dinar out of circulation. Finally, there is no guarantee that you will recover your investments on the dinar, even if the country does stabilize.

Investing in the Iraqi dinar seems like a good investment opportunity, but in actuality, purchasing this currency right now can be likened to buying a lottery ticket. Yes, there is a potential that the Iraqi government will stabilize eventually and the economy might improve. But as things stand right now, the risks are simply too high.

So, is buying Iraqi dinars a good investment option? Well, if you don’t know what to do with a bunch of money, there is little harm in buying a few Iraqi dinars. Right now, around 824 American dollars will buy you about a million’s worth of dinars. But if you don’t feel like buying a lottery ticket right now, better not buy Iraqi dinars as well.

On Tuesday, May 20th, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit determined that the paper currency currently issued by the US Treasury Department discriminates against the blind. As all bills are the same size and have the same feel, it is impossible for a person without vision to determine the value of a bill.

Additionally, the Treasury Department did not prove it was too burdensome for them to make changes to the bills. Therefore, the Treasury Department will need to decide what it will do next. (Hopefully, the whole decision making process won’t cost more than the actual change.)

In the meanwhile, the editors at Random Stock pondered options for new paper currency. Perhaps bills could have their denominations printed in Braille? Maybe bills could be sized differently based on value? On a more frivolous note, perhaps scratch and sniff money? How would you redesign the paper currency?

n