worthless currency

The bus rider paid for the fare in Trillions of Zimdollar. Or else, a live chicken will do.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090816/ap_on_re_af/af_zimbabwe_zimdollar

I experienced this back on May 1st, 1975 aboard a Seventh Fleet warship on the way to Subic Bay (thank you President Ford).

We learned from word of mouth that the South Vietnam currency in our possession (my mom emptied her educator’s life savings two days before) was no longer good! From treasure to trash, educator to invalid.

But the sales guy in me wouldn’t give up. I ended up selling some of those worthless papers to bypassing navy guys in the Bay

for souvenirs (their coins enabled me to buy Coke from the vending machine).

I empathize with the Zimbabwe people. Money is money.

A researcher in Dartmouth also found US paper dollars tainted more with Cocaine (due to Recession stress??) than found 2 years ago.

He must have all the latest instruments for detecting tiny traces of the substance.

I admire University labs. Any TA can come up with a thesis to extend H1B visa.

One interesting finding in the study: Detroit, Boston, Baltimore and DC dollars carry more traces of cocaine than Salt Lake City‘s. It certainly indicates that young Mormon men got sent overseas for two years, thus depleting the potential drug using market in that city.

I would start a bridal service in Salt Lake City in anticipating for these guys’ return to start a Mormon family.

(and my ideal brand extension would be a baby clothing line, not Bath, Bed and Beyond, but Marry, Mummy and Munching).

That is, if they are not back from Zimbabwe. My stores will have to take US dollars , not foreign currency.

It’s hard enough to kick-start another consumer craze in this country, much less receiving Zimdollars for all the Chinese-made goods. Man, since when that things get so difficult yet so simple: start a Christmas in August movement.

At least it’s still hot enough to sell high-margin Victoria Secret summer stuff. Will you take live chicken for that?

P.S. As of this edit, London treasury bank notes are no longer issued in cotton. Instead it’s now in plastic. Signs of the time.