[Title]Economy
[Author]Ty Jones
[Keywords]Ty,Money,Banks,Work,Clothing,Interest,Coins,Bills
[Type]Thing
[Bibliography]
[References]Money
[Links/Graphics]
[Copyright]1997 © Ty Jones.
[Article]<BR>"Keep the change, pal."

<BR><BR> Open up your wallet, and there's a good chance that you'll find money in it.  You will find no cattle, pottery, or vegetables.  But what if you did?  What if everybody did?  
<BR> What I'm getting at is that in most places in the world, we use some sort of monetary unit.  Let it be a dollar, peso, lira, yen, franc, or something like it.  It's often in coins, paper, or both (not one object made of paper and money, I mean some coins and some bills).  We work and it is given to us in return.  We use it to purchase necessities, such as clothing and food, and amusements, such as going to movies, seeing concerts, buying televisions, and just about anything fun.  Some things we purchase are half necessity and half amusement, like cars and fine foods.  We can put this money in a bank, where it is safe.  In exchange for letting the bank use your money, they give you interest back.  This means that they will give you a certain percentage of your money in addition to it the longer you let them have it.  So if you were to deposit $100, you might get back $106 in a year.
<BR> But back to the thing about finding cows and stoneware in your wallet.  Not all societies use money, as we know it.  There are still places where it is perfectly acceptable to trade, let it be foods, clothing, or just about any vital object.  Some people even trade work or tasks for food or shelter.  Even in the United States, there are people willing to do things such as mow your lawn for a warm meal.  Think about it...aren't you actually trading your work and time for money, and then don't you trade your money for things you want when you make a purchase?  We've just added a middle man.