4th Annual
AMI 2008 MONETARY REFORM CONFERENCE At Roosevelt University In Chicago, Sept. 25-28
A registration form is at the bottom of this page http://www.monetary.org/2008schedule.html
Some scholarships should become available for bona-fide students. Apply now,
describing your situation.
NOTE: The 2005, 2006 and 2007 Conferences were professionally Video Taped and are available on DVDs for $375 for each conference. (order form below)
The 2006 Conference Was professionally Audio taped and the CD's of that conference are available for $75. Use the order form below.
2008 Conference Schedule:
(speaking times and positions are subject to change)
Wednesday evening - 6 PM - 9 PM, registration on the 2nd floor at
Roosevelt University
Thursday 25th September, 2008
9:00 AM Registration continues at Roosevelt University until noon, 2nd floor.
1:00 PM Stephen Zarlenga, opens the Conference: AMI's Purpose, Objectives and
Methodology
 Stephen Zarlenga
(early photo) |
Director and co-founder of the American Monetary Institute; author of The Lost Science of Money book; and the Refutation of Menger's Theory of the Origin of Money; and Greening the Dollar a free CD a free CD of his presentation at the Green Party's July 07 National Convention; plus various articles and speeches, presents the background; objectives; challenges and methodology of the AMI and the Conference agenda and goals. An overview of what the AMI has accomplished since its founding in 1996, and recently and our challenges and plans for the future.
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1:45 PM Robert Poteat, Long term student of the history of money systems Militarism: Keynes' "solution" for the Great Depression
 Robert Poteat
| Robert Poteat is one of America's most knowledgeable, reality based experts on our money system. A long term and meticulous monetary researcher, certainly among the top half dozen in America in awareness of monetary systems, and the leader of AMI's Northwest Chapters. Robert will discuss how John Maynard Keynes proposals during the "Great Depression" led to the promotion of militarism as the way out of the tragedy created by the Federal Reserve System and were not a fundamental solution to that monetary crisis. Deficit spending, not only protected the credit money banking system and provided a subsidy to bankers; but also has been used to advance militarism.. |
2:30 PM David Hershey, CFA, Chief Investment Officer, Managing Director,
Lotsoff Capital Management Speaks on: The Irving Fisher Story
David
Hershey | Irving Fisher was one of America's great economists. If schedules allow, David Hershey, leading pension fund theorist and strategist in Chicago and internationally, focuses on Fisher's promotion of what became known as the "Chicago Plan." That was the monetary reform program that came out of the University of Chicago economics department in its better days, during the Great Depression before the advent of the "Chicago Boys" and their market worship. It was expected to be enacted, but got sidetracked politically.The American Monetary Act promoted by the AMI is in large part based on that Chicago Plan, so what we can learn from this presentation is especially important to our conference. |
3:15 PM Coffee/Refreshment Break
3:45 PM Richard Distelhorst, monetary reformer and political activist:
What Will the American Monetary Act Mean in Your locality?
Richard
Distelhorst
| Richard Distelhorst, a well known monetary reformer and political activist; a WWII veteran (Ist Marine Division, Guadalcanal); long term monetary researcher (another of the top monetary leaders in America) recipient of the AMI Lifetime Achievement Award, and leader of the AMI Chapter in Burlington, Iowa speaks on How A Real Constitutionally Based Monetary System Would Operate in America.
Dick discusses how the American Monetary Act addresses injustices of the Federal Reserve System, and what it would mean to local communities.
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4:30 PM Ken Bohnsack, Founder of the Sovereignty Proposal describes
 Ken Bohnsack
| Ken Bohnsack created the "Sovereignty" movement in America for the Federal Government to provide interest free loans in the form of U.S. notes to all governmental bodies from School boards to cities and States, based on per capita rules. Over 3300 governmental bodies including two states signed Ken's petition supporting this program. It continues now as an integral part of the American Monetary Act. Ken describes how to convince local elected officials to join us in demanding that our federal government, under checks and balances, issue our money, instead of the private banking system. Ken is an advisor to the American Monetary Institute, and a recipient of the Institutes Lifetime Achievement Award. |
5:15 PM Panel of Thursday's speakers
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Speakers summarize and
field more questions
on their subjects.
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6:15 PM or so, Break before Reception
6:30 - 9:00 PM Get Acquainted Reception,
at the Spertis Lounge, second floor
Good wine and juices, great cold cuts and cheeses and some tasty "rabbit food" as
well. A few acknowledgement comments, perhaps some entertainment!
Dress: your choice from informal to fancy.
Friday 26th September 8:00 AM Coffee, tea, breads and jams availilable at meeting room.
9:00 AM To Be Announced
9:40AM Prof. Bob Blain speaks on
What Economic Democracy Means in the Monetary Sphere
 Prof Bob Blain | Ph.D., Emeritus Professor of Sociology at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. Author of The Most Wealth for the Least Work Through Cooperation; and Weaving Golden Threads of Sociological Theory. Bob was one of the creative thinkers around the the Ithaca Local Money movement. He will speak on how every economic action, whether of money creation, investment, production, or purchase, is a vote that determines how we live. Today we have far more economic plutocracy than democracy. Bob gives his prescription on reversing this direction. |
10:20 AM Charles Walters founder of Acres USA, environmental farming magazine
on The Agricultural Parity Program And The Money System
(subject will be updated)
Charles Walters
| The founder of Acres USA environmental farming magazine is well known among the farming community as one of the "grand proponents" for justice toward American farmers. We experienced his reach first hand, when we made new contacts with farm operators within actual eyesight of our upstate NY headquarters, only after Charles reviewed The Lost Science of Money book in Acres. He describes and discusses the importance of the Parity system to farming and to the economy, and how raw materials production can serve as a key indicator for determining how much money should be put into circulation (which is the subject of his book "Unforgiven.") Charles is an advisor to the American Monetary Institute.
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10:50 AM ALTERNATIVE SOLUTIONS SESSIONS
Dan Sullivan, Director of Pittsburgh's Saving Our Cities discusses
Some Possibilities and Limitations of Local Currencies
Dan Sullivan | Dan Sullivan, director of "Saving Communities,"
is widely recognized as a brilliant and combative expert
on Henry George's Land Taxation concepts.
He exposes the core defects of most theoretical
"LETS" based currency systems, yet argues that there could be an important,
if limited role for alternative currencies,
during periods of contracting credit and shows how a local currency,
issued by a consortium of landlords,
might provide local relief while demonstrating
a better structure for a proper national currency. |
11:30 To be Announced
12:00 PM LUNCH BREAK
1:00 PM Alistair McConnachie will discuss
The Monetary Reform Situation in Great Britain
 Alistair McConnachie
| Premier Brit monetary reformer, Alistair McConnachie, a monetary "warrior" and brilliant legal mind, is expected to become a member of the Brit Parliament in due course. Editor of Prosperity Newsletter and organizer with James Gib Stuart of the acclaimed annual Bromsgrove Monetary Conferences in Birmingham, UK, for the past 11 years. Alistair will bring us up to date on monetary reform developments in the UK, emphasizing what's working there, and who the main players are. Alistair is the only monetary researcher we know (besides myself) to figure out that the many Lincoln quotes supporting the Greenbacks were just made up. |
1:40 PM Jamie Walton from New Zealand will speak on
New Zealand Monetary Reform Solutions That Worked
 Jamie Walton
| Jamie Walton, a money reformer from New Zealand describes some of New Zealand's experience with partial money reforms which were actually put into practice for nearly 50 years there and were working well! He'll discuss how they were implemented and how they were undone by Hayek's idealogues, with consequent wreckage, that continues today. Very timely for America since Hayek's so called "competitive currencies" scheme is being promoted here. Jamie, a world traveller studying money reform in various countries, has attended the Chicago AMI conferences in 2005 and 2007, and is helping to organize this 2008 conference. |
2:20 PM ALTERNATIVE SOLUTIONS SESSION  Byron Dale
Yves Jacques
Alain Pilote
Subir Grewall |
Byron Dale is well known as a monetary and political activist and researcher with many years of research, study and communication on the monetary system and its effect on people. For several years he has promoted Money Reform at the State Level in Minnesota and has had hearings there in both the Minnesota House and Senate. He will describe these proposals to the conference.
Yves Jacques and Alain Pilote of The Pilgrims of St. Michael, describe their Social Unity Coupons Compared to Other Local Exchange Systems, and how the pilgrims relate it to the Church's social doctrine. Yves is a senior member of the Louis Even Institute for Social Justice (Rougemont, Quebec) and a contributing writer for the Institutes "Michael" Journal. He and his family are very active in volunteer work for the Pilgrims of St. Michael, residing with his wife of 25 years and seven children in Massachusetts where he owns an advertising agency.
Alain Pilote is also a senior member of the Louis Even Institute and a Full Time Missionary for the Pilgrims of St. Michael for 30 years. He is editor for the "Michael" Journal; and international speaker on monetary reform; authoring 2 books on the Social Credit reform.
The Pilgrim's "Unity" Project, though quite counterintuitive can raise consciousness regarding methods of co-operative living. They hosted me (Stephen Zarlenga) in a well recieved talk I gave on "Usury - A Destroyer of Nations" to the international gathering of about 500 of their members in Montreal a few weeks ago.
Subir Grewal is a researcher of monetary history and policy and an activist for monetary reform beginning while he was an undergraduate economics student at New York University. His work background related to money and banking involves asset management, investment banking, corporate finance, and commodity trading of physical commodities and futures contracts. He was an active leader in the recent grassroots presidential campaign of Congressman Ron Paul, the only candidate who openly called for serious reform of the Federal Reserve System. Subir will report on the monetary viewpoint of the recent Ron Paul convention in Minneapolis, which he attended. |
3:20 PM Ben Kjelsus of the Progressive party of Missouri discusses
America's Green Party and Mainstream Monetary Reform
Ben Kjelsus
| Ben Kjelsus, a key founder of the Progressive Party of Missouri, describes his decades of experience with the progressive movement in America, and the potential for the Green Party to support real monetary reform. The Green Party's Platform Committee has approved (July 11th) a momentous and history making monetary plank, focused on the three reform elements that the AMI advocates. Ben will tell us whats next in order for the whole party to take this truly historic step. For until now, no major party has ever embraced all the real elements needed to reform the monetary system. The Greens are about to do that!
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COFFEE BREAK
3:45 PM Prof. Michael Hudson, Dr. Norman Ehrentreich, and Robert Meier
Two expert views on the current financial markets - Whats Next?
Dr. Norman
Ehrentreich
Prof. Michael
Hudson | Dr. Norman Ehrentreich, a quantitative investment analyst in the fixed income department of RiverSource Investments of Minneapolis, responsible for forecasting interest rate decisions of the Federal Reserve's Federal Open Market Committee; and two other market pros will discuss and analyze the current situation of the markets and where they might be going.
Prof. Michael Hudson, author of "Super Imperialism," who predicted the Housing Crisis exactly correctly in a Harpers Magazine Cover Story two years before it happenned gives his views of the future developments and what's in store for the financial markets. |
4:30 PM Carl Herman speaks on Thomas Paine
(subject desription to be updated)
Carl Herman
| Carl Herman teaches economics at La Canada High School.
He has an Ed.M from Harvard's Graduate School of Education,
is a National Board Certified Teacher and been honored
by two Los Angeles mayors and U.S.C. as one of the city's best teachers.
He has taught monetary reform consistent with AMI's proposals since 1996.
Carl's expertise is on how to communicate monetary reform in a concise
and engaging way that rivets the attention of that most challenging
of audiences: teenagers. |
5:00 PM Dr. Edward Chambers President of the Industrial Areas Foundation
(the IAF) discusses: Organizing for Power, Action and Justice
Dr. Edward
Chambers
| Ed Chambers is a Philosopher, political organizer, and Author of "Roots for Radicals," Organizing for Power, Action and Justice; the advanced source book for achieving progressive goals. Dr. Chambers discusses principles of organization that can apply to monetary reform. The IAF, founded by the late Saul Alinsky has an exceptionally strong record in getting movements started and into self financing positions of strength. Ed Chambers trained Barack Obama in street organizing when he moved from the Harvard Law Review to Chicago's South Side; and in the difference between what is, and what should be! |
Saturday September 27 8:00 AM Coffee, tea, breads and jams available 9:00 AM Nicolaus Tideman, Professor of Economics at Virginia Tech speaks on
Integrating the Reforms Needed for Stable Money and Stable Banking
 Prof. Nic Tideman | Prof. Tideman received his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago (where he took classes under Milton Friedman among others), taught at Harvard and served as Senior Staff Economist at the President's Council of Economic Advisors before moving to Virginia Tech in 1973. He has been Professor of Economics there since 1985. While his research has focused primarily on urban economics, public finance, voting rules and social justice, in 1975 he collaborated with Nobel Laureate James Buchanan in writing on "Gold, Money and the Law." Nic has previously engaged our participants on such topics as the virtues of defining money in terms of house bricks. His topic this year is "Integrating the Reforms Needed for Stable Money and Stable Banking." Nic is an advisor to the American Monetary Institute. |
9:40 AM David I. Kelley describes
HOW USURY WAS "LEGALIZED" IN AMERICA
 David I. Kelley | Dave Kelley, Legal and Economic Researcher from Ohio's Cleveland area, has witnessed firsthand the growing disparity in income and the resulting impact on wealth over the last three decades as a Certified Financial Planner. The issues advisor to presidential, senatorial and congressional campaigns, Kelley is also a Registered Principal with the NASD, author of two books on pensions, hundreds of articles and columns in the financial area with over 40 articles focusing on pensions and Social Security. He details the steps by which the most vicious interest rates (over 32% annually!) were "legalized" in the U.S. and what can be done to once again make them illegal!
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10:20 AM Congressman Dennis Kucinich and his wife Elizabeth are
invited to address the conference but their appearance will depend on
the Congressional and Campaign Schedules. Perhaps the Congressman will address
us as the after Dinner speaker. (Subject may be updated)
 
Dennis & Elizabeth Kucinich | Six term Congressman from Cleveland, Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Governmental Reform; 2004 and 2008 Candidate for the Presidency of the United States of America; leading peace advocate; Introducer of Articles of Impeachment contra George Bush and Richard Cheney;
Dennis Kucinich, who has addressed two previous AMI Conferences will speak on
Our Constitutional form of Government Carries Deep Responsibilities for All of Us
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11:00 AM Stephen Zarlenga, Director, American Monetary Institute on
The Fiction of Hayek's Notion of Competing Currencies - A Refutation
 Stephen
Zarlenga
| Important political movements are afoot based on the monetary assertions of the Austrian School of Economics. Libertarians believe the Austrians have done their homework. However, whether intended or not, their views have favored the growth of plutocracy. Zarlenga has challenged this school with a Refutation of its founder Carl Menger's "Theory of the Origin of Money." He now deconstructs Frederich Hayek's "Denationalization of Money" which is the basis of the present promotion of Competitive currencies; as the Austrian School moved from the historically untenable position of advocating gold for money, to an historically untestable argument against national money systems. Yes Its "wild and crazy", but do be-aware of it! |
12:00 PM LUNCH BREAK
1:00 - 6:00 pm Revisiting the "Question" of Usury -
A Destroyer of Nations or a Necessity of "Economics;" - or Both?
1:00 PM Stephen Zarlenga introduces the topic with a brief recap of his 2004 address
to Lord Sudeleys "Monday Club" in London titled The Usury Problem Remains
1:30 PM Prof. Michael Hudson speaks on
How Antiquity Dealt With the Debt Problem
| Dr.Michael Hudson | Author, Super Imperialism and Global Fracture; editor, Debt and Economic Renewal in the Ancient Near East; economic commentator for National Public Radio; Distinguished Professor of Economics, University of Missouri, Kansas City and Chief Economic Advisor to the 2008 Kucinich for President Campaign. Dr. Hudson was the first to publicly identify the mechanism of "Dollar Imperialism" through the U.S. Balance of Payments deficits. His talk discusses on "How Antiquity Dealt With the Debt Problem," including how debt and credit preceded the development of money including an explanation of the possible origin of money out of debt/credit relationships.
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2:15-6:00 PM The Morality and Ethics of Money Systems
and the Ongoing Question of Usury
We've invited several philosophers and ethicists
who focus on economics and the ethics of money systems to make presentations.
Invited so far are representatives of the Quakers; the Presbytarians; and the Catholics.
Serious suggestions welcomed. Chapter 7 of our book focuses on the Christian Scholastics views, and we know that the Anglican Church got the Bank of England nationalized in 1946.
(See end of Chapter 20 in The Lost Science of Money book by Stephen Zarlenga).
Thank you Bill Moyers for re-introducing the Usury Question,
through William Greider on TV in mid July. The AMI defines usury not in the false manner
put forward by Jeremy Bentham, as "charging more interest than usual;"
but as the anti-social misuse of the money mechanism for private gain.
As today's headlines show, usury continues to be a major problem.
John Medaille
George Crowell
Geoff Garver
Bill Greider???
Jeremy Bentham crosses over "from the beyond"
| John Médaille, the author of The Vocation of Business: Social Justice in the Marketplace,
is a businessman and theologian.
He teaches a course on "Social Justice for Business Students" at the University of Dallas.
His upcoming book Equity and Equilibrium:
The Political Economy of Distributism will be published in Spring. His talk is titled,
"Usury: Wealth without Work and Why it Matters."
He will discuss how usury destroys the incentives
for real investment and reduces the just rewards of both investment and work.
George Crowell has a Th.D. from Union Theological Seminary
where he studied with Reinhold Niebuhr.
Having taught at Lake Forest College and the College of Wooster,
he moved to Canada in 1968
to teach Social Ethics
in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Windsor until retirement in 1996.
He dealt with a wide variety of crucial social issues
but only became informed about neglected monetary issues in 1994.
He has worked to get the New Democratic Party
and the Green Party of Canada to seek changes in monetary policy,
and to develop awareness in his professional organization, the Society of Christian Ethics,
of the enormous impact of money systems, for ill or for good.
He will speak of Usury in our times,
and will stress
the prospects
for religious organizations to push for urgently needed changes in monetary policy. Geoff Garver is an environmental law and policy consultant in Montreal, Quebec.
He served as Director of Submissions on Enforcement Matters
at North America's Commission for Environmental Cooperation,
working on complaints of failure to enforce environmental law.
He spent nine years with the U.S. Justice Department's Environment
and Natural Resources Division handling cases concerning land and natural resource management,
water rights and environmental impact assessment.
Geoff grew up in a Quaker family in rural Western New York. He discusses
The Impact of Environmental Abuses on the Sustainability of Economic Activity. We are hoping for confirmation from financial author
Bill Greider that he will take time from completing his latest book to address our conference!
As mentioned above Bill has re-introduced the problem and concept of usury into our culture
on a recent Bill Moyer's Journal show on Public Television.
Then in the current issue of The Nation Magazine,
Mr. Greider's cover story calls for placing the
Federal Reserve System into the U.S. Treasury, in effect nationalizing it.
This is real progress from progressives!
In the "interest" of fairness,
Jeremy Bentham
the man who saddled humanity
with the present misdefinition of usury as overly high interest rates,
and the creator of utilitarianism,
which effectively removes morality from economics, will make a special appearance
from the beyond,
to defend his deeds with the topic (also the title of his 1811 book on the subject:
"In Defense of Usury."
Please let him state his case before hurling vegetables.
| (COFFEE BREAK DURING USURY SECTION AROUND 3:15 PM)
About 6:00 PM Break for Dinner 7:00 PM Dinner and Awards Ceremony
Sunday September 28th
8:00 AM Coffee,Tea, breads and jams available in meeting room
9:00 AM Panel discussion on Proposed Legislation -
American Monetary Act & Monetary Transparency Act
Outline of the three main, uncompromisable elements of the act -
the minimum actions necessary to place time on the side of justice
and humanity.
 | Dick Distelhorst, Steven Walsh, Stephen Zarlenga, Robert Poteat, Jamie Walton and others discuss The American Monetary Act and to a lesser degree The Monetary Transparency Act. |
11:00 AM AMI Chapter Leaders Discuss Successes and Challenges.
AMI Chapters Panel on Political Action. Panel on Political Action
Program (Planning AMI efforts until the next conference) Dick Distelhorst,
Ken Bohnsack, and others present their views and experience.
12:00 PM Stephen Zarlenga closes the Conference
A brief summary, outlining some objectives til the next conference, September 25-28, 2008.
12:45 PM Participants take readily available taxis for the 3 mile trip to the
North Avenue Beach House where Beach Barbecue party is already set up 250 yards
South of the Beach House, under the trees in the grassy area. Shade and chairs available.
NOTE: Also Invited, but unlikely to Address this Conference are:
 | Congressman Ron Paul, Candidate (?) for President.
Ralph Nader, Independent candidate for President.
Senator Chris Dodd, Chairman, Senate Banking Committee.
Senator Barack Obama, Democratic candidate for President.
Senator John McCain, Republican Candidate for President.
Congressman Barney Frank, Chairman, House Financial Services Committee.
Cynthia McKinney, Green Party candidate for President.
|
Whether these presidential hopefuls can attend or not, there will be in attendance,
and on the podium,
a surprise appearance by one former occupant of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave!
For security reasons, we can say no more. Registration form below.
Some of our 2007 Speakers:
2007 SPEAKER Brian Leslie, Editor of the British Green Party's Sustainable Economics spoke on Money Reform -
The Key to a Peaceful, Sustainable Future
Brian Leslie | Brian Leslie was introduced to monetary reform between the two World Wars by his parents who were campaigning for Douglas's Social Credit ideas. He joined the Green Party in 1982, and argued for monetary reform within it. For the past 16 years he produced and edited Sustainable Economics, the Green Party's Policy Working Group's bi-monthly magazine newsletter.
As one of the United Kingdom's most advanced monetary thinkers, he see's the fraudulent debt-money system as the key issue preventing reform toward a peaceful, socially just and sustainable future for humanity. His talk will connect money reform to the various other crucial issues which require urgent reform.
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2007 SPEAKER Ole Mackeprang, European Financier spoke on
Money Systems & Warfare
Ole Mackeprang
| Ole Mackeprang, European Financier speaks on "Money Systems & Warfare" and will update us on the practical changes the Euro has brought about since its launch several years ago. At that time the Euro was proclaimed "dead on arrival." Today pundits are saying that the U.S. Dollar is the casualty. Mackeprang speaks 8 or 9 languages and has worked in 62 countries, principally France, Germany, Italy and Spain (Banque Rothschild and Banque de l'Union Parisienne are some of the more famous of the companies he has worked with).
He has recounted his fascinating experiences in a new book pictured at left, which is destined to become a highly interesting motion picture. I've read much of it and the life experiences described are what American kids (20 & 30 year olds) can only dream about in today's world. It will make an exciting film, and Yes - we shared some of those experiences working together in old Europe!
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2007 SPEAKER Prof. Paul Davidson, discussed
"Reforming the World's Money in the Absence of a Supernational Government"
Elements Necessary for International Monetary Reform
Prof. Paul
Davidson | Economics Prof. Paul Davidson, University of Tennesee, editor of the well known Journal of Post Keynesian Economics website and email group, will present the minimum elements necessary to place international monetary reform on the road to progress. Prof. Davidson, widely regarded as a leading expert on John Maynard Keynes ideas and life, author of the forthcoming book John Maynard Keynes (great Thinkers in Economics); will open AMI's discussion of international monetary reform, which must accompany or soon follow the needed national reforms. Its appropriate to start here with Keynes, since he played such a key role in structuring the present system, which objectively is now "on the rocks" and threatening the world's economies.
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2007 Speaker Larry Rudebusch, discussed lessons from his recent
Libertarian Candidacy for Congress in South Dakota
on a Monetary Reform Agenda
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