It is perhaps ironic that the one thing which enables anything from happening is an illusion. Its value does not arise intrinsically, but instead from a collective belief that it can be used to acquire real things. To create it, governments and banks use an extensive system of inter-exchangeable loans: they, too, accept a belief that more of it will be returned to them in the future, often decades ahead. When that belief comes under question, entire economies come crashing down.

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