Monday, February 25, 2013

Capital Homesteading Now


As part of our continuing campaign to persuade Bob Marshall of the Virginia House of Delegates to talk to CESJ president Norman Kurland, we sent the following letter last Thursday.  As you can see, it reiterates points we’ve made before, but that are worth repeating.

If you think the effort is worthwhile, or you believe that even an incremental implementation of Capital Homesteading has the potential to turn the economy around, perhaps you should add your voice and encourage Bob to talk to Norman Kurland.  His e-mail is delegatebobmarshall [at] Hotmail [dot] com.  What have you got to lose?  It doesn’t even take a postage stamp.

February 21, 2013

Dear Mr. Marshall:

You are well known as one of the leading Pro-Life legislators in the Virginia House of Delegates.  This implies respect for the dignity of every person, not just those who happen to share your views or belong to the “right” group.

Your reputation has the advantage of letting people know where you stand.  It has the disadvantage of generating automatic resistance to any initiative you propose that is not clearly for the benefit of all Virginians.

As I have stated before, I believe that your current initiative regarding a “Virginia-Only” currency is both economically and politically unsound.  You have the opportunity, however, with a slight shift in the specific objective, to turn what is being interpreted as a very large barrel of pork for the rich into a very real and direct benefit for every child, woman, and man in the Commonwealth.

This can be done without taking anything from the rich except the virtual monopoly they currently enjoy over ownership of future new capital.  Nor is new legislation needed at either the state or the federal level.

“Capital Homesteading for every citizen” can be achieved incrementally.  Meaningful gains and a sustainable economic recovery in which all Virginians can participate can be realized in the short- to mid-term by:

·      Encouraging private sector insurance companies in the Commonwealth to offer capital credit insurance and reinsurance to replace traditional forms of collateral for loans that expand ownership of new and existing capital,

·      Promoting Subchapter S corporations that are 100% owned by their workers through an ESOP trust.  An “S-Corp ESOP” pays no state or federal corporate income taxes, effectively adding at least 50% to the bottom line, and

·      Lobbying the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond to rediscount loan paper (“bills of exchange”) for loans made in ways that expand capital ownership, thus using it as a “central bank” for Virginia as originally intended.

In the long-term, of course, a national “Capital Homestead Act” would extend the benefits of direct capital ownership to everyone, not just people employed by private sector corporations.  This is essential.  The measures here, while effective in the short- to mid-term, will only be sustainable for future generations if everyone benefits.

Again, I urge you to talk to Norman Kurland, president of CESJ, at your earliest convenience.  He is at present in Cleveland discussing the possible implementation of a similar proposal in Ohio, but will be back in the office Monday, February 25.

Yours, etc.

#30#