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From Warren Buffett's discussion of import certificates in Fortune (you may view the whole article at http://www.tiea.us/7286.htm ):

Import certificates are a tariff called by another name.

But this is a tariff that retains most free-market virtues, neither protecting specific industries nor punishing specific countries nor encouraging trade wars.

They would increase our exports and might well lead to increased overall world trade. And they would balance our books without causing a significant decline in the value of the dollar, which is otherwise almost certain to occur.

We would achieve this balance by issuing Import Certificates (ICs) to all U.S. exporters in an amount equal to the dollar value of their exports.

Each exporter would, in turn, sell the ICs to parties -- either exporters abroad or importers here -- wanting to get goods into the U.S.

To import $1 million of goods, for example, an importer would need ICs that were the byproduct of $1 million of exports. The inevitable result: trade balance.

Because our exports total about $80 billion a month, ICs would be issued in huge, equivalent quantities -- that is, 80 billion certificates a month -- and would surely trade in an exceptionally liquid market.

Competition would then determine who among those parties wanting to sell to us would buy the certificates and how much they would pay.

(The certificates would probably be issued with a short life, possibly of six months, so that speculators would be discouraged from accumulating them.)

----- end of my version of a small piece of the Fortune piece -----

We will have to determine who beside Senator Dorgan and John Gelles sees IC's as a brilliant approach to saving America and its money.

If we assume every nation would use the same technique to prevent too unfavorable a balance in trade, we may find that some exceptions are necessary. These are easily accomplished by exempting critical imports from the IC requirement.

This is a far reaching cure for free trade -- turning it instantly into fair trade.

I admit we will only be at the beginning of research of these IC's if several of us take up this cause.

But I propose that we do -- because it is a giant step forward by a Senator and an apolitical billionaire: what combination of of persons can be more representative of the promise of Unity to solve our most urgent problems?

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John Gelles

Unity-now wiki
My Website
mailto:john.gelles@gmail.com

Human rights and how to pay for them are key to a livable world.

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Corrected location http://www.tiea.us/7286.htm

John Gelles

Unity-now wiki
My Website
mailto:john.gelles@gmail.com

Human rights and how to pay for them are key to a livable world.