The Brave web browser

Posted Jun 19, 2017 7:23 UTC (Mon) by cladisch (✭ supporter ✭, #50193)
In reply to: The Brave web browser by neilbrown
Parent article: The Brave web browser

> I have wondered where the value of money comes from

Money is a universal medium of exchange, i.e., its value is that everybody else accepts it. This usually requires that it is hard to counterfeit and easy to transport and exchange.

(Please note that "value" is a subjective measure. The price of something is what somebody actually pays for it, and this is objective; the value is what what some specific person is willing to pay for it, and in the general case, this cannot be measured without the transaction actually taking place.)

> I read a suggestion that the value of "legal tender" currency is that the government accepts it to pay taxes

"Legal tender is a medium of payment recognized by a legal system to be valid for meeting a financial obligation." (Wikipedia) So this applies not only for debts to the government, but to all other debts (because you would ultimately use the courts to enforce contracts).

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The Brave web browser

Posted Jun 29, 2017 15:02 UTC (Thu) by Wol (subscriber, #4433) [Link]

"Legal Tender" as I understand it was introduced by us Brits when we moved from Gold Coin to Pound Notes.

There was a problem with lenders refusing to accept notes - despite them prominently containing a notice that the Bank Of England would swap them for gold on request - "I promise to pay the bearer on demand the sum of one pound".

So Parliament created legal tender. If a debtor proffered "legal tender" in settlement of a debt, the creditor *had* *to* take it - or forfeit their right to take the debt to a court.

I've actually used this to my advantage on one occasion - I ordered a load of goods mail order, and the supplier completely cocked up taking payment (I tried to pay by debit card). After a couple of requests for payment, which I tried to comply with, they sent the matter to their lawyer who sent me an email nastygram. I replied "I've tried to pay. Here's the details. I wouldn't see me in court if I were you - legal tender you know. You need to talk to your accounts department and tell them if they've got any sense they'll write the debt off." They did :-)

Cheers,
Wol