How an Economy Grows and Why It Crashes

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C L O S I N G   T H E   F I S H   W I N D O W
Lacking the spine to ask for tough 
choices from his citizens, Slippie 
(as he was known), decided to 
pin the losses on foreigners. He 
took the bold step of closing 
the bank’s fi sh window to 
foreign depositors! From now 
on, the value of Fish Reserve 
Notes on the international 
market would be determined 
only by what someone was 
prepared to trade for them, 
not because they could be 
redeemed for fi sh. In truth, 
the notes’ value would hang on 
Usonia’s status as a great economic and military power. 
The breaking of the “fi sh standard” caused many islands 
around the ocean to lose confi dence in the notes. Not 
surprisingly, their value dropped sharply. But as they were still 
the most common form of money across the ocean, the fall 
eventually stabilized. Fortunately for the Usonian Senate, the 
closing of the fi sh window allowed the currency crisis to pass 
without bringing on a regime-changing catastrophe (the only 
real danger as far as the senators were concerned). Slippie 
breathed a sigh of relief.
Chuck DeBongo fumed and made threatening speeches. 
But his efforts proved largely symbolic—Usonia’s power was 
unassailable. 

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