Companies today are now forced to write off impaired assets, stock-in-hand and goodwill while balance sheets are coming under greater scrutiny by lenders.

Unfortunately the flow of money in and out of your business is not necessarily linked to the availability of assets within the community. Barter exchange offers a way to mobilise the wealth of the community while contributing to the social infrastructure and welfare of the region.

By allowing a business to spread its overhead, purchase at a lower cost, and reduce the cost of borrowing bartering helps businesses compete even in difficult times.

Surplus time, empty seats, unsold tickets, idle inventory, stock overruns, liquidation items, time-sensitive products, seasonal stock, idle production capacity, vacant rooms, extra airtime and slow-moving stock are all valuable commodities.

Using a barter exchange you can reduce your existing cash outlay by selling your excess capacity in return for credits which can be used to purchase market-value goods or services from other participants.

We recommend Ormita (www.ormita.com) for a bunch of reasons – primarily because of the above.

SOME MORE BENEFITS OF BARTER

Save Cash
- Realise full market value for non-recoverable, non-recyclable, limited commodities or otherwise unsold stock or time.
- Access interest free credit and repay borrowings with new sales.

Increase Your Asset Base
- Buy at a discount of up to 90%.
- Invest in other businesses without the need for cash.

Increase Your Financial Liquidity
- Convert existing bad debts to assets.
- Pay existing creditors from new sales.
- Convert equity from slow moving inventory or unsold appointment time.

Attract New Cash Paying Customers
- Access innovative ways to new cash contract tenders.

Build Your Brand
- Build a community network around your brand.
- Expand distribution channels and market reach.
- Align your business with charities and community enterprises.
- Gain repeat business and take customers away from the competition.
- Improve your social standing, customer and staff loyalty.
- Create local business opportunities within your community.

Retain Staff and Customers
- Create customer loyalty programmes.
- Provide staff incentives.
- Implement a staff donation/giving programme.
- Pay for client entertainment.

Become More Efficient
- Substitute imports with higher quality, locally provided goods or services at wholesale price.
- Decrease wastage and develop new consumer habits.
- Get more out of your employees with employee rewards and buying programmes
- Take overstocked, last season or end-of-line items off-market while earning full retail value.

The Ormita Commerce Network has a good page on their website about the history of “money”, the types of money and how money and barter are created. It also talks about offset trade and community currencies in great detail.

I think its at http://www.ormita.com then ABOUT US then HISTORY! Check it out! It’s an interesting read.

I also recommend books by E.F. Schumacher (EF Schumacher Society) and Reigel on the topic of local money and sustainability.

Paul Craig Roberts has many good, on point commentaries/articles on Counterpunch. However, I await the commentary where he admits that the policies of his old boss Reagan contributed to much of the mayhem in and destruction of the economy today.

I wholeheartedly agree. PCR used to write for BusinessWeek as well and he supported the tax cuts and Reagan huge military expenditures. It was during the Reagan years that banking regulation and all regulation were relaxed and tax burdens shifted onto the working class.

Hillary quiere que Chávez se vuelva “neo-liberal”, que le entregue las empresas básicas, que no “maltrate” a su pueblo y que se porte chévere

30/03/09 – http://www.aporrea.org/tiburon/a75244.html

http://lapaginademontilla.blogspot.com/

La secretaria de Estado de EEUU, Hillary Clinton, manifestó que el interés de Venezuela debería ser el de promover una “economía de libre mercado y no caer en las políticas fracasadas del pasado”. ¿Será que esta señora ignora los desastres de la crisis del sistema capitalista y la fórmula ‘mágica’ neoliberal del libre mercado? Para empezar le diremos que no creemos en esa receta y que nuestro camino ya está trazado y aprobado electoralmente por la gran mayoría del pueblo venezolano: el Socialismo del Siglo XXI.

Igualmente manifestó que su gobierno no responderá a los “insultos” que ha hecho supuestamente el presidente de la República, Hugo Chávez, cuando en realidad son una respuesta ante las acusaciones emitidas por la Casa Blanca. A su juicio, EEUU tiene “muchos problemas” con el mandatario venezolano, debido al “maltrato” al pueblo venezolano y “la manera como trata a sus vecinos”. ¿Cuáles serán? ¡No me diga que es Colombia!

Según Hillary, “Chávez debe cambiar su comportamiento para el beneficio del pueblo de Venezuela, de sus vecinos y de todo el hemisferio”. Igualmente, la secretaria de Estado cuestionó la política aplicada por el gobierno de Hugo Chávez por “estatizar” las empresas básicas. Es decir que las deberíamos entregar a la oligarquía sumisa o a las transnacionales. Pero Hillary se olvida de los auxilios multimillonarios que ha hecho el gobierno de Obama a los bancos privados.

Las primeras declaraciones de Obama sobre Venezuela fue que el presidente Hugo Chávez “ha impedido” el progreso de América Latina y que “Venezuela está exportando actividades terroristas y respalda a entidades maliciosas como las FARC. Eso crea problemas que no se pueden aceptar. Ese no es un buen comportamiento internacional que debemos esperar de cualquiera en el hemisferio”.

Un informe del departamento de Estado, manifestó que “la politización del sistema judicial y el acoso oficial de la oposición política y los medios de comunicación caracterizaron la situación de los derechos humanos durante el año” en Venezuela. Ante tales declaraciones, Chávez respondió que el gobierno de Estados Unidos es cínico al acusar a Venezuela de violar los derechos humanos y no reconocer la violación que hay en su propio país. Manifestó que Obama ignora la realidad de Latinoamérica. Nosotros no tenemos una cárcel donde se torturen a los prisioneros en ningún país del mundo.

Correo: moc.liamgnull@allitnom1ramo
Internet: http://lapaginademontilla.blogspot.com/

It’s like a 3.5 version of this article plus the entire history of banking in America. It’s an amazing documentary. It explains what the problems are with various types of monetary policies and even gives a sort of how-to to fix our problems. When you get the chance, since it is a bit long, I highly recommend watching it.

Conspiracy theorist have been “financially” hanged for this.

Doug, do not feel like a hero.

Your concerns are TOO late.

All look to the “East” for the ‘bright light’.

That depends on where you exist.

Your article does bring light of the darkness you have been under as an “American”.

Educate your own. This may help some survive.