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For modern shoppers, cashless payment methods may seem like a convenient and secure option.

But if you want to avoid common risks like credit card fraud and digital systems that are vulnerable to cyberattacks, cash will always be king.(h/t to SHTFPlan.com)

In the U.S. and other economies that have legal tender laws, only cash is recognized as money. While others think that the balance of their bank accounts is money too, that is not quite the case. After all, your bank balance is one step removed from legal money.

All banks must maintain minimum balances of reserves in cash held either in their vaults, which makes up only a very small amount, or in their “reserve accounts” with their local Federal Reserve Bank branch.

These reserve account balances maythen be converted to real money, or cash, at your bank’s discretion. But the total cash in the U.S. economy also includes cash held outside the banking system, such as the money in your wallet or an emergency money cache hidden at home.

The total of bank reserves and the cash held outside the banking system is called the monetary base, but it is different fromthe money supply.

Most of the money supply is made up of bank credit not backed by reserves. When banks make loans, they credit your account, which becomes bank credit money. This money was created by the bank “out of thin air.”

Keep in mind that the banks did not create reserves, only credit money, which is not the same thing.

As of July 2023, the monetary base in the U.S. was $5.5 trillion, while M3 (the total bank credit money) was $20.9 trillion.

This means that if everyone demanded real money or cash, the banks would only be able to honor around one-fourth of all requests. This highlights the fact that the possibility of your bank failing is real, especially since more than 9,000 U.S. banks failed during the Great Depression of the 1930s. What are the risks of electronic payments?

Cash is important because being ableto hold real cash, not just bank balances accessible by check or electronic means, protects you from the potential infrastructure problems linked to an electronic system but also from the sudden seizure of all or some of your money.

As a prepper, cash is also preferable because “real” cash isanonymous and your bank account is not. When disaster strikes, you can still purchase essential goods or services as long as you still have money in your wallet or an emergency cache.

If that cash has been eliminated by some legal means and if you have angered the powers that be for whatever reason, such as opposing them and asking others to oppose them too, all banks can freeze your bank account or eliminate it.

In February 2022,the government of Canada froze the bank accounts of everyone who participated in the Canadian truckers’ general strike, along with those who helped them.

This year,British politician Nigel Farage had his accounts closed for political reasons. He also revealed that no other British bank would serve him. Without the means to use money, Farage said he came very close to emigrating.

Imagine if that had happened to you, especially if you weren’t a prepper. You wouldn’t be able to pay for gas for your car. Without cash, you wouldn’t be able to buy groceries or supplies for your emergency stockpile.

Soon after, theBBCformallyapologized to Farage over a story it ran on the closure of his accounts at NatWest’s private bank Coutts, which the former Brexit Party leader correctly said was due to his political views.

The BBC previously reported that the reason for the closure wasFarage allegedly fell below the financial threshold required to be a customer at Coutts.

The Coutts website advises that its clients should be able to borrow or invest at least one million pounds ($1.28 million) with the bank or hold at least three million pounds in savings.

However,an internal review of the bank account obtained by Farage revealed that the private bank’s wealth reputational risk committee had said his values did not align with the bank’s own.

“We acknowledge that the information we reported – that Coutts’ decision on Mr. Farage’s account did not involve considerations about his political views – turned out not to be accurate and have apologized to Mr. Farage,” said the BBC in the corrections and clarifications section of its website. What are the risks of central bank digital currency?

All of the world’s major central banks are currently devising plans to institute central bank digital currencies (CBDC) that they will control. This is very dangerous for the civil liberties of all citizens across the globe.(Related:British activist threatened with arrest for using CASH in cashless Aldi grocery.)

If this becomes a reality,the government would no longer need to seek the cooperation of the banks to freeze your accounts or “debank” you entirely, as the British banking system did to Farage.

With the push of a button, you could loseaccess to your financial accounts and you wouldn’t be able to buy food or supplies.

No government should beallowed to hold such power, which could easily become a life-and-death issue for a bank holder. Yet despite these serious risks,digital currencies are being promoted as efficient and modern.

Don’t be fooled. This is a civil liberties issue and it must be stopped now if you want to retainyour freedom and privacy.

Watch the video below to learn more about the dangers of a cashless society and central bank digital currency.

This video is from theCommunicate channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories:

Digital prepping: How to protect yourself against cyberattacks.

CASHLESS DOWN UNDER: Australia gears up for CBDC rollout, with major banks banning OTC cash withdrawals.

CASHLESS TYRANNY: EU launches testing of biometric payments from digital wallets.

Sources include:

SHTFPlan.com

Edition.CNN.com

TheGuardian.com

Reuters.com

Brighteon.com
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UK

Police rehearsed a knife attack scenario on a train line in March – here’s what went differently this time

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Police rehearsed a knife attack scenario on a train line in March - here's what went differently this time

British Transport Police held an emergency exercise for press officers in March, which ironically involved a stabbing on a train travelling south near Huntingdon.

In the training drill, the train stopped immediately between stations when a passenger pulled the emergency cord.

It took police 25 minutes to reach the train and casualties, far longer than the eight minutes in which Cambridgeshire firearms officers reached the scene at Huntingdon station.

Follow latest: ‘Nothing to suggest’ terror attack, police say

Chris Webb, a crisis communications expert who helped run the exercise, said: “People think if you pull the emergency cord on a train it stops immediately, but that’s not what happens these days.

“As soon as the driver knows there is a problem, he or she radios the line operator HQ and they discuss where to stop.

“The decision last night was to keep going to Huntingdon station, where it was much easier for armed police to get on.”

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Forensic investigators at Huntingdon train station in Cambridgeshire
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Forensic investigators at Huntingdon train station in Cambridgeshire

He added: “It must have been awful for passengers when the train kept going for another ten minutes or so.

“It’s always a balance. It might have prolonged the attack, but stopping in the middle of nowhere can mean the attack stops but it’s much more difficult for the emergency services to get there.”

Mr Webb, former head of news at Scotland Yard, said such exercises are held regularly by train operators.

A similar drill was carried out on the London Underground weeks before the 7/7 bombings in 2005.

“There are always lessons to learn but you cannot guard against everything.”

In the training exercise in March the suspect was a white man with mental health issues. He was shot dead by police.

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‘Two suspects are British nationals’

Read more:
What we know so far about the Huntingdon train stabbings
Eyewitness recalls horror attack on high-speed train

What happened in the Huntingdon attack?

Police triggered the Plato code to all emergency services in their initial response to the Huntingdon train stabbing, but that did not label it a terrorist attack.

Plato is called for a major incident where it’s thought a suspect is on the loose and has already, or is liable to, cause serious injury.

Plato does not denote a terror attack, though it is often used in terrorist incidents.

A forensic investigator on the platform by the train at Huntingdon train station in Cambridgeshire
Image:
A forensic investigator on the platform by the train at Huntingdon train station in Cambridgeshire

In a Plato response paramedics, fire fighters and other first responders are sent to a safe rendezvous point while armed police go in and deal with the suspect.

Plato depicts a situation where unarmed responders are vulnerable and are kept back until it is safe to approach casualties.

There are exceptions and it’s understood the East of England Ambulance Service has a special Hazardous Area Response Team (HART) which was allowed to accompany armed police onto the platform where the two suspects were arrested last night.

Once other first responders were allowed in, Plato was called off – an important part of the operation.

Plato was called during the initial response to the Manchester Arena bomb attack in 2017, but the fire service was not told it had been called off for two hours and that meant its officers did not go in to help with the rescue.

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Science

Hubble Observes Massive Stellar Eruption from EK Draconis, Hinting at Life’s Origins

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Astronomers using the Hubble Space Telescope observed a huge solar storm from EK Draconis, a young Sun-like star. The eruption’s energy may trigger atmospheric chemistry, forming greenhouse gases and organic molecules. Such events could mirror early solar activity that helped spark life on ancient Earth and distant exoplanets.

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Politics

Coinbase mulls $2B BVNK startup acquisition in stablecoin push: Report

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Coinbase mulls B BVNK startup acquisition in stablecoin push: Report

Coinbase mulls B BVNK startup acquisition in stablecoin push: Report

Stablecoins are becoming an important source of income for Coinbase, as they accounted for about 20% of the exchange’s total revenue during the third quarter of 2025.

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