The Long Twilight of Gold: How a Pivotal Practice Persisted in the Assemblage of Money

Why has gold persisted as a significant reserve asset despite momentous changes in international monetary relations since the collapse of the classical gold standard? IPE theories have little to say about this question. Conventional accounts of international monetary relations depict a succession of discrete monetary regimes characterized by specific power structures or dominant ideas. To explain the continuous importance of gold, we draw on insights from social psychology and new materialist theories. We argue that international monetary relations should be understood as a complex assemblage of material artifacts, institutions, ideas, and practices. For much of its history, this assemblage revolved around the pivotal practice of referencing money to gold. The centrality of gold as experienced by policymakers had important effects. Using archival and other evidence, we document these effects from the 1944 Bretton Woods conference through the transition to floating exchange rates in the mid-1970s; most IPE scholars underestimate the role of gold during this period. Power relations and economic ideas were obviously important, but they contributed little to a fundamental development: the long process of reluctantly coming to terms with the limitations of specie-backed currency, and the progressive and still ongoing decentering of gold in international monetary relations.

Camera Obscura or the Way Things Appear: Some Remarks About Marx’s Economic Writings

I analyse the foundations of Marx’s analysis to examine the applicability of Marx’s theory of the capitalist economy to the study of current economic events. In this paper, I do not present critique the interpretations of Marx’s works made by contemporary economists; however, much of modern Marxian economics is invalid in terms of Marx’s own method and inappropriate for understanding modern capitalism. The paper is concerned with topics that have been the subject of contemporary debate and are central to Marx’s own economic writings. Here I present only textual evidence of the main tendencies in the development of capitalism discovered by Marx. There are limits to value (= time) as the sole criterion of economic expediency; the constant reproduction of a scarcity of jobs amid an abundance of goods; enlargement of material commercial relations on the other spheres of social life; development of monetary relations – the emergence of derivatives of money, i. e., ersatz money, digital money. The main conclusion that I came to is that some societies are gradually losing value and moral guidelines, threatening the very development and even the existence of other communities or peoples.

Methodological Support for the Analysis of Debt Security in Agribusiness and Measures to Improve Its Level

The relevance of the study lies in the fact that in modern competitive environment for effective business management, the analysis of settlements, namely the state of accounts receivable and accounts payable, which are an integral part of monetary relations and play an important role for risk assessment of the impact on the development of agribusiness is important. The purpose of this study is to improve the methodological support for the analysis of debt security in agribusiness and measures to improve its level as an effective way to manage settlements. Methodological techniques for comparing indicators and ratio analysis techniques were used to analyse calculations. The approaches of scientists to organise the analysis of settlements and debt security assessment in agribusiness are summarised and two phases are highlighted: 1) providing analysis; 2) organising the analytical process. Provisions are determined for the organisation of settlements analysis in terms of tasks, objects, subjects, frequency and stages which include: analysis of structure and dynamics of settlements, analysis of turnover of accounts receivable and payable; analysis of quality of settlements and assessment of debt security. A model of settlement analysis methodology has been proposed with the separation of debt security assessment, accounting and evaluation based on an integral indicator which includes: debt load indicators, structure indicators, quality indicators, and turnover indicators. It has been found that the improvement of methodological support through the introduction of the debt security assessment methodology provides ample opportunities for a comprehensive analysis of agribusiness calculations, enables the identification of threats and is the result of a detailed analysis of calculations. A matrix of measures to improve debt security is considered. The practical value of scientific work lies in the introduction of methods of analysis of settlements with the assessment of debt security, which will control the status of settlements with counterparties, reduce the risk of non-repayment of receivables, determine the need for additional resources to cover accounts payable and contribute to risk reduction

The Writing of Daily Life

This chapter argues that the growing importance of financial documentation in early modernity shaped the form and content of vernacular writing. Focusing on the diary, it traces links between journals and accounts from early Renaissance Florence through seventeenth-century England, showing how notebook culture spread in response to financial pressures. Ultimately, the extension of monetary relations in early capitalist England gave men and women new reasons to record apparently trivial details of their daily lives, which now appeared in lists of expenses, debts, and accounts. The chapter thus contributes to debates about English economic individualism and the origins of realist prose; in addition, it shows how practical documents served as a vector for transmitting financial imperatives to literary history.

A EDUCAÇÃO:um obstáculo histórico para o desenvolvimento da agricultura familiar

O estudo analisa o direito à educação com enfoque na agricultura familiar enquanto Direito Fundamental Social. Discute a garantia desse direito nos documentos que balizam a ação política para a agricultura familiar no país nas últimas décadas. Utilizou as informações do banco de dados do INEP/MEC, especialmente, do censo escolar (2016), complementados com 219 entrevistas de municípios dos estados do Pará (PA), Paraná (PR), Santa Catarina (SC), Bahia (BA), e em Pernambuco (PE), ao buscar evidências sobre as relações monetárias do padrão de acumulação econômica nas regiões rurais, com destaque sobre as medidas relacionadas ao direito à educação.Palavras-chave: agricultura familiar; educação; territorialidade.EDUCATION: a historical obstacle for the development of family farmingAbstractThe article analyzes the aspects related to the right to education with a focus on the family farming sector as a Social Fundamental Law, and the guarantee of this right described and expressed in public documents and translated into public policy actions concretized by the State in recent periods. The used information contained of INEP database, especially those related to the school census of 2016, and complemented by 219 interviews conducted in the municipalities of Francisco Beltrão, Itapejara D'Oeste and Verê in the state of Paraná (PR), in the municipality of Concórdia in Santa Catarina (SC), in the municipalities of Augusto Corrêa, Tomé-Açú and Viseu in Pará (PA), in the municipality of Petrolina in Pernambuco (PE) and in the municipalities of Uauá and Cruz das Almas in Bahia BA), totaling ten municipalities, in order to seek evidence on the monetary relations of the pattern of economic accumulation in rural regions, with emphasis on measures related to the right to education.Keywords: family farming; education; territoriality.LA EDUCACIÓN: un obstáculo histórico para el desarrollo de la agricultura familiarResumenEl artículo analiza los aspectos relacionados al derecho a la educación con enfoque en el segmento de la agricultura familiar como Derecho Fundamental Social, y la garantía de ese derecho descritos en los documentos públicos y traducidos en acciones de políticas públicas concretizadas por el Estado en períodos recientes. Se utilizaron las informaciones contenidas en la base de datos del INEP, especialmente aquellas relacionadas al censo escolar de 2016, y complementados con 219 entrevistas realizadas en los municipios de Francisco Beltrão, Itapejara D'Oeste y Verê en el estado de Paraná (PR), en el municipio de Concordia en Santa Catarina (SC), en los municipios de Augusto Corrêa, Tomé-Açú y Viseu en Pará (PA), en el municipio de Petrolina en Pernambuco (PE), y en los municipios de Uauá y Cruz das Almas en Bahía (BA) totalizando diez municipios, a fin de buscar evidencias sobre las relaciones monetarias del patrón de acumulación económica en las regiones rurales, con destaque sobre las medidas relacionadas al derecho a la educación.Palabras clave: agricultura familiar; educación; territorialidad.

Evolution and Current State of Money Circulation in Ukraine and the World

The article discusses the theoretical and methodological foundations of the functioning of the institution of monetary relations. The main stages of the evolution and development of monetary relations in the world are shown. The key motives that contributed to the transformation of monetary relations from one type to another are highlighted.On the example of the monetary system of Ukraine, as a particular case of the world system, the processes of its formation and formation are shown. Shown are the tools by which the country's regulatory authorities have an impact on the main characteristics of the monetary system. As a key participant in the system of monetary relations, the functions and powers of the National Bank of Ukraine are described.The state of the modern monetary system of Ukraine and its adaptation to crisis phenomena are considered. In the experimental part, the stages of development of the economic crisis are considered, and the regulator's decisions on measures of influence are shown to overcome it. The article examines data on the relationship between inflationary processes and control over the management of the country's gold and foreign exchange reserves.

Study of the economic behavior of an individual: correlation between psychological characteristics and monetary attitudes

The subject of this research is the monetary attitudes (financial prudence, money worship, money as socioeconomic status, money anxiety) and monetary relations (attitude to money, representations of monetary behavior). The goal of this article is to examine the specificity of monetary attitudes of an individual, and trace their correlation with psychological characteristics of an individual (risk tolerance and resilience). The research involves 371 respondents, median age of 34.5 years. Research methodology is based on the following instruments: “Scale of Monetary Attitudes” adapted by D. A. Bayazitova and T. A. Lapshova; “Reselience Test  adapted by E. N. Osin and E. I. Rasskazova; “Diagnostics of the Level of Individual Readiness for Risk” adapted by E. P. Ilyin; Zuckerman Sensation-Seeking Scale; essay “My Monetary Behavior”. As a result of the conducted research, description is given to the concept of “monetary behavior”, characteristics of value-semantic attitude towards money of the respondents, and the level of risk behavior in monetary terms. It is established that risky consumer behavior of a person implies the tendency to making “uncontrolled” purchases in the context of systematic money scarcity and pattern of debt (credit) behavior. The author determines that high value of monetary resource is negatively interrelated with the resilience indicators. It is demonstrated that such monetary attitudes as “excessive prudence”, “money worship”, “money anxiety”, “strive for higher socioeconomic status " are accompanied by self-doubt and disbelief in oneself in the situations of risk and uncertainty.

Light and shade of the Sacred theory of money

The article is devoted to the analysis of the Sacred Theory of money, which, in comparison with other theories, is quite seldom considered by foreign authors and in fact is not represented at all in the domestic scientific literature. Meanwhile, the sacred theory is one of the oldest attempts to explain the existence of money and monetary relations by their supernatural origin. In one case it was about the divine will, which had established such relations in favor of mankind, in another one – about their origin from the evil otherworldly forces, resulting in the demonization of money and their perception as the cause and embodiment of all evil. Modern authors (B. Laum, B. Lietaer, A. Semenova, etc.) note that the reasons for the appearance of money was probably not be needs of trade and exchange of goods (the inconvenience of barter and demand for a medium of exchange) but ritual practices of ancient religions. With the advent of Christianity, another side of the attitude to money, that is, the attitude as to a sacred phenomenon, showed more and more clearly, involving its condemnation and demonization, which was rooted in the moral doctrine of the apostles and early theologians. At the same time, according to the author, the sacredness of money is, in fact, not of divine but of human origin, because money - despite all the claims of chrimatophobes ("haters of money") is not the cause and embodiment of all negative phenomena, but a reflection of relationships between people. And the quality of these relations depends only on people themselves, on their conformity to the sacred divine image. Knowledge of the Sacred Theory allows a better understanding of the history and logic of the development of monetary theory, including its modern concepts.

Funeral Reform and the Materiality of Death in the Russian Civil War

Based on documents produced by various Soviet institutions in Moscow, Ivanovo-Voznesensk, and Yaroslavl’ in 1917–1922, this paper looks at the transformations of the Soviet funeral industry during the Civil War. After the October Revolution, a series of decrees proclaimed the secularization of funeral practices and attempted to purify them of monetary relations and hierarchy. The funeral ranks, or razryady, were eliminated, and Soviet institutions were obliged to provide equal services for all citizens regardless of their social background. This initiative was part of a larger project of creating a new man with new values by changing everyday practices. Due to administrative difficulties caused by the regime change and wartime challenges, the implementation of the funeral reform was fraught with perturbations at state, local, and family level. In Moscow, these problems led to the fullfledged “funeral crisis” of 1919, when the rise in mortality, serious shortages in supplies, and bureaucratic prevarications resulted in dead bodies being left unburied for prolonged periods of time. In the smaller towns of Ivanovo-Voznesensk and Yaroslavl’, the crisis was less intense, and the funeral industry, while being transformed in accordance with the decrees, could still cope with popular demands. Several factors might explain this difference, including town size and the less rigid attitude of the provincial authorities to the implementation of funeral innovations. The ambitious funeral reform was not entirely successful: this paper argues that the attempts to change this death-related industry did not concern the fundamental norms of dealing with the dead, namely the idea shared by both the Soviet officials and the population that a dead body deserves personal space, privacy, and respect.