At 10:04 AM 01/18/2000 EST, you wrote:
>    Well, volksies, I got my LL Bean back-of-the-seat organiser in the mail
>yesterday.  Very nice and sturdy looking.  I will put in place today.  just
>one little tinesy wieny note for those of you up in Canukland.  That $19.95
>item price turned into a giant $51.16 cnd dent on my Visa !  Sooooooo, beware
>when you order stuff from down south of the border !!
>
>Cheers
>
>Frank Condelli

Just want to let you know I am in favor of FREE free trade with Canukland
and most others, ie NO DUTIES/TARRIFS/LOADS/PILING ON/FEES/OBSTACLES TO
LEGITIMATE BUSINESS/ETC. with all monetary exchange AT PAR. That is the
only level playing field there can be. I noted recently that my bank
charges me 3% over par for spot exchange. It was 1% a year or so ago. And
the merchants in Canukland got some heafty exchange rate ideas for US
currentcy, 20% over par typically, when you exchange in the brickandmortor
market.

When the one world wide cyber currentcy system gets in place, maybe the
middlemen can live comfortable on an 0.5% margin with cyber volumes growing
exponentially and providing sufficient windfalls for the connected. But I
doubt it, greed being what it is, in both governments and peoples, and
governments of the people.

Sami is the economist. What say you, Sami.

T.P. Stephens aka Doktor Tim
San Juan Island, WA