Friday, June 12, 2009

Counterfeiting On A Stupendous Scale

Two men, most likely North Koreans, have been arrested by Italian border police near the Swiss border. In the false bottom of a suitcase they were concealing $134 billion in U.S. T-Bills. That's billion; with a "b". One hundred and thirty-four times ten to the ninth power.

Just a guess on my part but with all of the changes to U.S. currency in the last ten years, especially the $100 bill so beloved by generations of counterfeiters, I would surmise that large-scale counterfeiters are having a tough time of it, and are turning to documents that don't change appearance so often. But counterfeiting a $500-million bill? Puh-lease!

The Smallest Minority has got everything.

1 comment:

Old Grouch said...

"$134 billion in U.S. T-Bills"

Which will, one year from now (at the rate we are going), be enough to pay for one Big Mac.