The Fountainhead Filibuster: Tales from Objectivist Katanga

[Petike]

Could be...

[Linkwerk]

Originally Posted by Enigmajones

Just thinking, since we're so mad to get an Irishman involved, how about this one? He was in Katanga in OTL anyhow.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Hoare

He's showing up, oh for sure.

[omega21]

Originally Posted by Linkwerk

He's showing up, oh for sure.

On Denard's crew?

[Enigmajones]

Originally Posted by omega21

On Denard's crew?

I imagine him working for the Katanga government would be far cooler. Being Denards opposite.

[Petike]

Even more obsolete and far-fetched than the Pulqui, but it's worth a laugh:

[Linkwerk]

Originally Posted by Petike

Even more obsolete and far-fetched than the Pulqui, but it's worth a laugh:

I for serious thought of a way to make this happen.



Also- I have a question: how would the economics of Katanga play out? I mean, fiscally. Let's make the following assumptions:


1) No central bank as such, but two competing semi-official ones: the Katangan Autonomous Region Bank in Elisabethville, which uses Congolese Francs and acts as a de facto central bank for Tshombes de facto independent state- but doesn't and can't set it's own monetary policy AND the Freehold Foundation, which issues Katangan Gold Dollars (KGD) on an obstinately private basis.


2) the Congolese Franc is a non-convertable currency, or so dismal as to be worthless on international markets. Only KGD's really matter in exchange markets (and that only because it's gold)


3) Trade with the rest of the Congo is very minimal. (Oh shit somebody blew the bridges and surly Gendarmes with for-hire officers are shutting down the rest of the crossings.) Relations with the Congolese central government are.....interesting. Most imports come in through the port of Boma, via the Incredible Galtville-Boma Free Enterprise Railway which is included as the Kolwezi Special Economic Zone and exempt from most/all tarrifs and taxes, or via Portugese Angola, which has it's own rail link to Katanga.


4) Because of these links, there's a resource extraction economy which functions in convertable currency and KGD's, and then there's an everything else economy, which uses Congolese francs.


5) Objectivism! The Freehold Foundation makes sures that KGD's weigh the same and are standard. Want a checking account? That's called a safe in your luxury apartment. Want bank security? That's called your FAL. Or you can keep your savings in the Katangan regional bank. Ha. Ha ha ha.


6) Tshombe's government will be heavily pressed to maintain deflationary pressure on the economy...but their bank is only a regional one and has pretty limited control over fiscal policy....but I guess they could issue their own Katangan regional bank bonds and thereby influence the money supply in Katanga's cut off economy?


7) If foreign banks want to come in and set up branches.....welcome! The terms of the Kolwezi SEZ mean that there's essentially no regulation as long as your branches are within Kolwezi/Galtville. Total freedom of currency flow! The Freehold Foundation does not give two shits if you want to pay your employees in Pounds or Francs or whatever. They like to point out that they don't care to visitors! Many of whom may be interested in the....let's say....fiscal liberties offered by this situation.



I have a rough idea, but when it comes to econ, I feel like a non-war nerd trying to write a Barbarossa TL, you feel me AH.com? I'll probably get the gist right, and I know what Rand and co would advocate...but I really wonder how the nitty-gritty of an objectivist economy plunked into 1960's Congo would work.


Also loads of implicit spoilers about how the Transitional Reconciliation Agreement is going to work out lol.

[President Al Bundy]

Let me try to help out here. After all, the Katangian Gold Dollar is my creation. Although I'm also not that much an ace in economics, I'll try to make it work out.

I'm gonna use the current prices for gold here, but obviously you may want to look up the gold prices of 1960's for your TL. I'm also gonna use metric systems, although this is just for explanation. Because I'm pretty sure that the Americanocentric Katanga will use non-metric systems here.

Let's just say one gram (or 0.035273961 ounce) of gold is one KGD. In the moment, one gram of gold costs $ 52.23. And that's one KGD. I think Katanga may use the following currency rates:

0.10 KGD - $ 5.23
0.25 KGD - $ 13.06
0.5 KGD - $ 26.12
0.75 KGD - $ 39.18
1 KGD - $ 52.23
2 KGD - $ 104.46
5 KGD - $ 261.15
10 KGD - $ 522.23
20 KGD - $ 1044.60
50 KGD - $ 2611.15
100 KGD - $ 5222.30
200 KGD - $ 10444.60
500 KGD - $ 26111.50

The KGD becomes primarily the currency for inhabitants of Katanga (At least those who can afford the KGD), as well as businessmen who are looking to invest into Katanga. However, foreign currency (US-Dollar, Deutschmark, Swiss Franc, British Pound and so on) can still be used in Katanga, although it is only used by tourists. And again, only wealthy tourists can properly afford a journey to Katanga, given that all prices are based on KGD. Even then, you can just buy KGD from one of the many gold traders in Katanga, so it makes no difference in which currency you pay there. However, Katanga still needs foreign currency for trade, because I'm not quite sure if foreign companies are gonna settle for gold.

As for the economy, anything goes. In fact, I can imagine Katanga becoming the illegitimate son of Bangkok and Las Vegas...on steroids, or rather cocaine. You want a spontanous sex change? No problem! You wanna purchase a bag of coke? Drugstores are at almost every corner, and they all offer Tío Pablo's finest yayo.

But business probably won't be as "free" as one can imagine in an objectivist colony. Simply because the Freehold Foundation may want a share of any profits. Probaly 10% of all profits would go to the Freehold Foundation as an "administrative fee" or something.

I don't claim that my depictions are accurate, but I hope I could help at least a little bit.

EDIT: And here are the prices for 1961. I used http://www.measuringworth.com/datasets/gold/ as a source, so I hope these are accurate enough for 1961:

0.1 KGD - $ 0.12
0.25 KGD - $ 0.3
0.5 KGD - $ 0.6
0.75 KGD - $ 0.9
1 KGD - $ 1.23
2 KGD - $ 2.46
5 KGD - $ 6.15
10 KGD - $ 12.30
20 KGD - $ 24.60
50 KGD - $ 61.50
100 KGD - $ 123
200 KGD - $ 246
500 KGD - $ 615

[Winston Smith]

Bumping this for MOAR UPDATEZ!

[Some Bloke]

Any chance of a script for an episode of the Hammershields?

[Winston Smith]

Bumping this mofo .

[Petike]

Originally Posted by Some Bloke

Any chance of a script for an episode of the Hammershields?

Should I write one ?

[Winston Smith]

Originally Posted by Petike

Should I write one ?

Yes! Go for it my son!

[Linkwerk]

Originally Posted by Petike

Should I write one ?

Doooo this!


Also I sat down to write down a short scene from a dark shantytown in mid 1963...and then my houseguest showed up.

[Winston Smith]

Originally Posted by Linkwerk

Doooo this!


Also I sat down to write down a short scene from a dark shantytown in mid 1963...and then my houseguest showed up.

And this is a problem why?

[Petike]

Originally Posted by Winston Smith

Yes! Go for it my son!

Didn't know I was adopted.

Oh well... Off to go watch a few Thunderbirds and Captain Scarlet episodes for inspiration. Incidentally, I've figured that the ending theme tune of THS could be rather reminescent of Cap's. And maybe I can shoehorn a minor "UN airfield is green !" reference somewhere into the episode. Or talks about the Americans or Brits working on a revolutionary "Falcon jet fighter" design, in case the Katanga standoff gets prolonged and the HS would need new steeds.

[Emperor Norton I]

Originally Posted by Enigmajones

Just thinking, since we're so mad to get an Irishman involved, how about this one? He was in Katanga in OTL anyhow.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Hoare

I had no idea there was a white/socialist island country off the coast of east Africa. Tis supremely odd.

[Kidblast]

Just read through the thread in the last 3 hours! It's great.

Though personally I'm going to go against the hivemind and say I think the Hammershields thing is a really campy and at best a silly diversion. Honestly, I don't see the US making a children's show about a foreign military unit. I can't think of any examples that spring to mind and there were plenty of opportunities to choose from in our TL. I mean, except for a certain Warren Zevon song, how much have you heard about the war in Biafra, etc?

The Seychelles are "whitish".

I imagine that the Freehold Economy would resemble that of the United States in the late 1800s. I would study up stock market regulation, etc before 1929 because the market was pretty much unregulated before that time.

I'd say that the Freehold Foundation's economic policy wouldn't be that expansionary.

[Lord High Executioner]

Originally Posted by Kidblast

Though personally I'm going to go against the hivemind and say I think the Hammershields thing is a really campy and at best a silly diversion. Honestly, I don't see the US making a children's show about a foreign military unit.

I thought it was supposed to be Gerry Anderson Supermarionation.
I.e. British.

[Maponus]

Just thinking, since we're so mad to get an Irishman involved, how about this one? He was in Katanga in OTL anyhow.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Hoare

My favorite part of that article was this.

Hoare was a chartered accountant and member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. Previously the Institute had said it could not expel him despite protests from members as he had committed no offence and meticulously paid his membership dues.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YUiBBltOg4

[lukedalton]

Originally Posted by Lord High Executioner

I thought it was supposed to be Gerry Anderson Supermarionation.
I.e. British.

Plus if really one want make it with real actors, just cast an american for the lead and go on...at the time there is the spi-fi rage (man from Uncle; I-Spy; Wild WIld west, etc. etc.) so a show like the Hammershieds it's not our of the question, on the contrary.
Second, think of the merchandising, the UN can finance her peacekeeping mission just with the sell of the action figures