Today, 157 other countries use a VAT tax system that gives foreigners a large and unfair advantage over U.S. producers in both our markets and in foreign markets. This two-edged sword cost American producers $327 billion in 2006.

This problem description is excerpted from "Let's Get Rid Of Foreigners' $327 Billion Trading Advantage,"
originally published on the Eagle Forum on April 25, 2007. Used with permission.

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You have wonderful, almost utopian ideas and if our democracy had better ways to induce our people to act together on behalf of their own interests, they could accomplish everything you describe and much more. But how can that be done? The general intertia is so huge and the rejection of any political involvement so profound and widespread that it’s difficult to see how the kind of participation you (and I) want can possibly come about. The Internet has provided the tools but where will the motivation come from?

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... but can they work? What would an American continent cross-border movement look like? Specifically, what would it do about poverty in all three countries, but most particularly in the Mexico as it exists now? What influence could succeed in limiting the seemingly limitless greed of many powerful corporations now profiting from NAFTA and the status quo? Every one of your recommendations seem plausible—they could and should work, but who would pay for all this?

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... but I’m not sure I understand them well enough to know. Your article certainly stimulated me to want to read a lot more about international finance. Would your proposed financial systems make it easier for relatively small businesses to get involved in international trade? What would I need to know if I wanted to bring a small amount of capital and some expertise into a village in an underdeveloped small county with the intention of developing a cooperative craft industry based on the local craft, and using local talent and raw materials?

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Do you have anything you’re written about how to do these things without civil war—or armed revolution? Radical political and economic change isn’t easy to accomplish. Predators fight back—hard.

The social contract established in the New Deal and bolstered through the 1970's promised workers a certain return on their invested labor: if you work hard – thereby contributing to economic growth -- you are entitled to job security, improved living standards, and a secure retirement.

Although billed as "free trade" agreements, with the clear implication of a level playing field, the rules of these agreements tend to disproportionately favor rich countries, like the United States, at the expense of the poor. For example, poor countries are often required to eliminate their agricultural subsidies, despite the fact that rich countries continue to heavily subsidize their own farmers. This enables the U.S. and E.U. to "dump" subsidized produce on developing countries, driving down the price of local produce - with devastating effects on the local economy.