Shire Silver Solutions

Of course this won't get enough support, and it won't likely get a lot of media attention, but it can't hurt: http://www.house.gov/paul/congrec/congrec2007/cr121307h.htm

13 December 2007

Rep. Ron Paul, M.D.

Madame Speaker, I rise to introduce the Free Competition in Currency Act. This act would eliminate two sections of US Code that, although ostensibly intended to punish counterfeiters, have instead been used by the government to shut down private mints. As anti-counterfeiting measures, these sections are superfluous, as 18 USC 485, 490, and 491 already grant sufficient authority to punish counterfeiters.

The two sections this bill repeals, 18 USC 486 and 489, are so broadly written as to effectively restrict any form of private coinage from competing with the products of the United States Mint. Allowing such statutes to remain in force as a catch-all provision merely encourages prosecutorial abuse. One particular egregious recent example is that of the Liberty Dollar^{Emphasis Added}, in which federal agents seized millions of dollars worth of private currency held by a private mint on behalf of thousands of people across the country.

During World War 2, the British designed a machine gun that could be easily built by anyone with access to a basic metal shop. The result was the Sten gun, which was produced in relatively large numbers in occupied Europe. Similarly, the Liberator could be easily mass produced and was intended to be used by the people of occupied countries. Both of these products worked on a massively distributed basis.

We can use the same idea for producing a currency. By creating the design and allowing others to actually produce the currency, we can decentralize it so there is no "head" to cut off.

Apparently, a minting press can be constructed from small hydraulic devices like car jacks or wood splitters. Anyone with a die set and a hydraulic press can mint their own silver pieces.