title: Eat the Bankers: The Case Against Usury: The Root Cause of the Economic Crisis and the Fix
author:  Sinclair Noe 
description: Sinclair Noe is a financial analyst and operates an estate planning business. "Eat the Bankers" is his fourth book.
zlib_text: ## Preface
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  I first became interested in the subject of usury during the 2008-2009
  financial crisis. I was primarily an investor at the time, having ‘retired’
  some years earlier following an undeservedly successful stint as an
  entrepreneur during the ‘dot com’ explosion of the 1990’s. I remember
  investment bankers telling me that business credit was seizing up because
  nobody could tell what was real. Somewhere around the same time I read St.
  Thomas Aquinas’ description of usury as selling what does not exist; and I was
  intrigued by the connection. My response as an investor was to start buying up
  investments, especially corporate equity, which was on sale at a big discount.
  My response as a curious individual and blogger was to start collecting old
  books on the subject and learning about usury.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
    
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  My background with startup companies certainly colored my understanding of
  what I was reading.  I had been involved with quite a number of small
  companies and h