The Banana

      I believe that the key to the world’s economic problems is the establishment of a universal currency--something that transcends political and social barriers and that people the world over value equally. I think that the ideal material for such a system is not the “Euro” or the “Dollar” but something much closer to home; I think that the answer to the world’s financial problems is…the banana.
       Not only would it be easy to make the switch, but it would be useful to anyone. What native in Africa would want useless paper money? But anyone can see the value in a banana. Also, a banana currency would keep people from being miserly. Imagine what would happen if someone tried to keep lots of bananas past their freshness date--you could smell a miserly person. Long term investments would have to be turned into banana chips, and to gain interest you would have to plant a banana seed and wait for it to grow. Your retirement would beautify your yard!
     In short, the solution to all the world’s monetary problems is the “Banano”, the fruit-based currency.

John (age 16)