I'm Looking Through You

The Death of Money – Part Three

I remember an Orson Welles Mercury Theatre programme in which he read, among other things, some selections from George Washington’s Farewell Address. At best this is a rough paraphrase, but the gist of what he said is,
“If future citizens of the American Republic ever want for anything, or are unhappy for any reason, they can search across the known universe and find no one to blame but themselves.”
That particular bit may not in fact have been from Washington’s letter to the nation, but whatever its origin, it has stayed with me for years and resonates as the US dollar declines with each passing day. With it goes the USA’s position in the world. We have shopped ourselves and warred our nation over a cliff, and we can’t imagine what will break when we hit the bottom.
John Lennon and Paul McCartney wrote these words right about the time the last US silver coins were withdrawn from circulation :

I'm looking through you
where did you go?
I thought I knew you
what did I know?
You don't look different
but you have changed.
I'm looking through you
you're not the same.


Copyright 1965 by Northern Songs Ltd.