Not worried enough about economy? Try these conspiracy theories

By AARON LONDON
SPARE CHANGE

With consumer confidence falling and the threat of a recession rising, there is little to smile about economically these days. But consumers should take heart. As bad as things may seem, there are people out there that feel even worse about the future of the U.S. economy.

They are not economists or policymakers and they aren't even subprime mortgage holders concerned about their coming loan reset.

No, they are conspiracy theorists who see even more trouble for the economy than the housing correction and rising energy prices.

Many economic conspiracy theorists point to the Federal Reserve Board as the embodiment of all that is evil and wrong with the U.S. economy, the state of the nation and the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. In fact, in some circles, the Fed is considered almost as evil as the designated hitter rule in baseball.

But while the Fed has been a target for economic conspiracy theorists almost since its inception in 1913, a new economic bogeyman has emerged in recent years to capture the attention of a whole new generation of budding urban mythmakers: a globalist conspiracy to create a new currency.

According to this economic legend, dark forces are at work as we speak to create and implement the "amero," a North American variant of the euro, to replace the American, Canadian and Mexican national currencies. And with the creation of that North American Union, so the conspiracy theory holds, goes economic freedom, Yankee ingenuity and probably apple pie.

Now there is a grain of truth to what these conspiracy theorists say. Back in 1999 a Canadian economist proposed the creation of a North American currency called the amero. The idea was widely ignored and there has been little or no mention of it since, except for in online blogs and on late-night talk radio.

This underground firestorm of controversy was fueled recently by the appearance of an actual amero coin, which conspiracy theorists immediately hailed as proof positive of the coming globalist takeover of the U.S. economy.

It seems, however, that the amero coin was produced by a private company that maintains on its Web site that the artifacts are "private issue fantasy coins." Perhaps they are legal tender in some alternate universe or on some online video game. In the real world, however, they have as much spending power as the set of presidential coins once given away by an oil company with each tank of gas.

In addition to the existence of ameros available for purchase, there are groups advocating the abolition of national currencies in favor of a single global currency, including the Web site singleglobalcurrency.org.

Some are legitimate sources of intelligent discussion about the relative merits of a single currency system, and some are less-than-credible rants on global conspiracy theories and propagation of urban myths.

But that doesn't seem to matter to those convinced that the introduction of the amero is right around the corner.

Now maybe it is easier to deal with tough economic times by ignoring the day-to-day realities of credit issues and slow job creation in favor of more sinister theories of where the economy is heading.

But if conspiracy theories are your cup of tea, perhaps it might be more productive to consider some more mainstream plots, such as the truth behind the Kennedy assassination or whether or not NASA faked the moon landings or perhaps the greatest conspiracy ever, the 1969 New York Mets.

But if fears of a growing movement toward creation of a global currency is keeping you awake at night, rest easy. There already is a global currency. And it is called the U.S. dollar.

Despite its recent decline against the euro, the U.S. dollar is still the major international reserve currency and is more than likely to rebound in the coming months and reestablish its global primacy.

In the meantime, tracking down some of these conspiracy theories could be a pleasant diversion from current economic realities. And might even be good for a chuckle or two.