Book Review by Steven Butner

Published February 2018

From the Back Cover of The Creature from Jekyll Island:

“Where does money come from? Where does it go? Who makes it? The money magicians’ secrets are
unveiled. Here is a close look at their mirrors and smoke machines, the pulleys, cogs, and wheels that create the
grand illusion called money.

A boring subject? Just wait! You’ll be hooked in 5 minutes. Reads like a detective story – which it really
is. But it’s all true. This book is about the most blatant scam of history. It’s all here: the cause of wars, boom-
bust cycles, inflation, depression, prosperity. Your world view definitely will change. This may be the most
important book on world affairs you will ever read.”

IPS Book Review of The Creature from Jekyll Island:

Get ready for a jaw-dropping expedition through time! If you’re not an avid reader, don’t
fret. The Creature from Jekyll Island will leave you on the edge of your seat and have you
itching to read the next page. This book will consume your thoughts and have you thinking long
after the page is turned. It will help you understand the Federal Reserve System—but more
importantly, it will change your outlook of money forever.

Although this book is formidable in size (a whopping 608 pages), it is an enthralling

read. Griffin’s writing is plain and compelling, rather than a dry narrative overwhelmed with
jargon. The book almost reads like a mystery novel. As Griffin expresses:
“This is a story about limitless money and hidden global power. The good news is that it is as
fascinating as any work of fiction could be, and this, I trust, will add both pleasure and
excitement to the learning process. The bad news is that every detail of what follows is true.”

Some people label Griffin as a conspiracy theorist because the story seems too preposterous to
be true, but every claim is substantiated by fact and research. Griffin simply lays out the
evidence trail of one of the most well-concealed and outlandish crimes of all time. So put on
your detective hat, get out your eyeglass, light your old-school pipe, and begin the investigation
of the past century.

What is the Federal Reserve System?

Is it federal? Are there reserves? Is it a bank? Or is it something else altogether? Answering these questions
is the first stop on our journey, but it’s actually not at the beginning of the story—it’s in the
middle. To solve this riddle, we must travel back to the early 1900’s.

At this time period, most financial resources in the world were held in the hands of a few elite banking
consortiums, represented by the names of Morgan, Rockefeller, Rothschild, Warburg, and Kuhn-
Loeb. These were all competitors in the banking industry—Morgan and Rockefeller from America,
and the rest from Europe. But in November of 1910, six representatives from these powerful banking
groups (who represented an estimated one fourth of the wealth of the entire world) met in great secrecy
on a private island off the coast of Georgia called Jekyll Island. Why?

Starting in the late 1800’s and especially in the early 1900’s, there was a growing trend of new banks
springing up across America. Combined with less borrowing and internal business investing, the
market share and power of the elite banking groups began to decline. It was at this point that they
realized that “the enemy of my enemy is my friend.” For each of the elite banking consortiums saw
competition and the free market as their worst enemy. To “fix” this problem, they met stealthily to
devise a plan on securing and monopolizing their positions. Griffin writes:

“The reason for secrecy was simple. Had it been known that rival factions of the baking community
had joined together, the public would have been alerted to the possibility that the bankers were plotting
an agreement in restraint of trade—which, of course, is exactly what they were doing.”

Thus, the mission became one of forming a cartel agreement, using the force and involvement of
government, to gain control over the money supply. Their challenge: how to convince Congress that
the scheme was a measure to protect the public. The result: careful wording and hidden agendas
forming the “Federal Reserve System.”

This, however, is just the “Creature’s” origin. To learn the ploys, structure, gimmicks
and true purposes of the Federal Reserve System, you must read section one of the book for yourself.
Money, Money, Money
We all know what money is, right? Or do we? Is there such a thing as good or bad
money? Does funny money exist? Let’s find out.

In the Biblical Principles of Government course, IPS President, Mike Winther, defines five
qualities that constitute sound money. They are: scarcity, durability, intrinsic value, divisibility,
and transportability.

Previously in America, our nation had receipt money, which was backed by gold and silver—
that generally met the standards of sound money. However, the Federal Reserve System has
replaced our nation’s receipt money with fiat money—“paper money decreed legal tender, not
backed by gold or silver”—that fails two of the standards constituting sound money. This
means we own and are using funny money, since paper is neither scarce nor intrinsically
valuable. It’s as plentiful as the sand on the seashore and is comparable to Monopoly
money. The only difference is that we’re forced by government to accept it!

This was a key strategy of the Federal Reserve System in order to make money more “elastic”
(a.k.a. limitless). This endless, fiat money is created out of thin air in a mystical act that Griffin
aptly names the “Mandrake Mechanism.” But you’ll have to read on to find out more. It’s
revealed in great detail in sections two and three.

Not the First Time

Did you know that America had already fatefully experimented with centralized banking not
only once, but three times? The years of creation were 1781, 1791, and 1816.

These politically-granted-monopoly banks functioned the same way the Federal Reserve
does. They purchased government debt with fiat money using the “Mandrake Mechanism,” and
then used the government debt as “reserves” to create additional fiat money for public
lending. The results of which were the same.

What ends up happening (which you’ll need to read The Creature from Jekyll Island to fully
understand) is that the American public is fleeced of 30%, 40%, 50%, and even 60% of their
money—on top of their taxes!

Section four walks you through this tragic history and demonstrates how boom-bust cycles
came to be.
Friend or Foe?
So has the Federal Reserve System been a benefit or detriment to America? Compared to the
touted harvest of stability, protection, and prosperity, it has actually been a harvest of
destruction, impoverishment, and tyranny. The Federal Reserve System is indeed a beast of
prey, serving those who control its reins.

To find out why, dive into section five.

The Road Ahead

In the final section of the book, Griffin theorizes futuristic scenarios using present trends. Most
of what you’ll find here is unpleasant, but we must understand that these events have not yet
come to pass. However, we should not be naïve in thinking that there will be no consequences
to pay. There will be. I do like how Griffin concludes the summary for this section: “If we do
not like what we see, we still have an opportunity to change those forces. The future will be
what we choose to make it.”

Why the Fed should be Abolished

To summarize, Griffin’s seven reasons to abolish the Fed are:
1. It is incapable of accomplishing its stated objectives.
2. It is a cartel operating against the public interest.
3. It is the supreme instrument of usury.
4. It generates our most unfair tax.
5. It encourages war.
6. It destabilizes the economy.
7. It is an instrument of totalitarianism.
The Creature from Jekyll Island provides the reasoning and evidence substantiating these
claims.

Conclusion
Abolishing the Fed is just the beginning. The real problem is ideologies and philosophies like
collectivism, which asserts that the group is more important than the individual and that
government is justified in any act so long as it is claimed to be the greater good for the greater
number of people. This is the rot that must be done away with, and it already exists in many
forms. To be victorious, Americans must come across this knowledge and then act on it. A
stratagem to accomplish this crusade is laid out at the end of the book.

The Creature from Jekyll Island is an absolute must read in order to fully understand what’s
happening in our political system and economy. Pick up your copy today from the IPS
bookstore and learn how the “Creature” operates—and how it can be slain.
By Engineer’s Bookshelf, 09.16.10
The title of this book by G. Edward Griffin might cause you to think of a
horror story along the lines of "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde." However horrible it
is, "The Creature from Jekyll Island is not fiction.. The title of this book by G.
Edward Griffin might cause you to think of a horror story along the lines of "Dr. Jekyll and
Mr. Hyde." However horrible it is, "The Creature from Jekyll Island is not fiction..

"The Creature from Jekyll Island" is a second look at the Federal Reserve and how it operates with
our government, as well as how it operates outside our government and in co-operation with major
world banking organizations. Basically it chronicles the formation of the Federal Reserve on Jekyll
Island, Georgia in 1910 by members of a banking cartel in order to protect them from competition.
Though 15 years old, it still resonates today.

Founding members were:

• Nelson W. Aldrich, Senator and Republican "whip", chairman of the national monetary
commission, and father in law of John D. Rockefeller, Jr.

• Abraham Piatt Andrew, Asst. Sec. of the US Treasury

• Frank A. Vanderlip, president of National City Bank of New York, representing William
Rockefeller, and the investment banking firm of Kuhn, Loeb, and Co.

• Henry P. Davison, Sr. partner of J.P. Morgan Co, investment banker

• Charles D. Norton, President of J. P. Morgan's First National Bank of New York

• Benjamin Strong, head of J. P. Morgan's Bankers Trust Company

• Paul M. Warburg, partner in Kuhn, Loeb, & Co. and representative of the Rothschild banking
dynasty in England, and brother to Max Warburg who headed Warburg banking consortium in
Germany and the Netherlands (think Warburg-Pincus as a latter branch of Warburg)

At the time, ~ 1/6th of the total world's wealth was represented by these participants and their
organizations.

The original draft bill presented in 1910 to the Senate to establish central bank was presented by
Senator Aldrich, and became commonly known as the Aldrich Bill. The organization would have
the right to convert federal debt into money, e.g. monetizing the debt, then lend it back to the
government collecting interest in the process, and be the holder of such funds until used. Included
in the rights was the ability to create the official money of the United States (Federal Reserve Note
printed on all bills).

This also made the notes legal tender for all government needs, but for private citizen needs as
well. To further insure the adoption of such notes, the Secretary of the Treasury signature had to be
on them, as well as the words United States Treasury, to make it appears as if the notes were true
US Government money.

The original bill never came to a vote as the Aldrich name on the bill made it a target as he was
associated with Wall Street interests and political powers shifted. Instead, Paul Warburg wanted to
call it the National Reserve Bill or Federal Reserve System Bill to add "legitimacy" to the name.
After much political wrangling on both sides, the Federal Reserve Act creating the Federal Reserve
System was issued on December 22, 1913 just before the Christmas Congressional break, and
signed by Woodrow Wilson who was elected president in 1912 with the backing of the same cartel
members proposing the legislation.

By tying the formation of the Federal Reserve into the government in some way, the cartel could
also be "protected" by virtue of government authority even if investments went bad. Think
"bailout" in today's language.

The Federal Reserve Act was passed in 1913, thus beginning the transformation of our currency
into "fiat" currency (not backed by anything of value, and unlimited in amount by just printing
more - e.g. continuing to increase debt), and kicking off a series of financial crisis's that has
plagued the US continuing until today.....with no end in sight.

To read this book, and then listen to Ben Bernanke (current chairman of the Fed) essentially say
during Senate testimony on Sept. 2, 2010 that the solution to a recession created by the federal
government's central bank is to give the central bank more power and control. One has to conclude
that the citizens of this country have no clue as the criminal looting of our national treasury done by
the Fed and "related" entities. And Congress is in complete collusion with it as well.

By the way, Ben Bernanke received the nickname "Helicopter Ben" for referring to curing deflation
by simply printing and dropping money (into the economy) by helicopters.

The real horror in this story is that it is true, painstakingly documented (including documentary
sources from the originators of the scheme), and devastating to the wealth and health of the nation,
as well as the individual.

A "hard-to-put-down-once-you-start" read. I highly recommend it.