From: anonymous-remailer@shell.portal.com
Date: Fri, 20 Jan 95 15:55:31 PST
To: cypherpunks@toad.com
Subject: Why emoney?  Why not a web of debt?
Message-ID: <199501202354.PAA13275@jobe.shell.portal.com>
MIME-Version: 1.0
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  [summary -- digital silk road along a web of debt-trust]

  Umm... money is not anything mystical -- it is just a convienient
way to trade and settle debts.  It was invented to solve the hassels
of trading a pound of butter, for a box of eggs, that for a tightly
woven basket, and finaly that for the gun you wanted in the first
place.  Yuch! accounting!!

  But electronic computers are good at checking out these kinds of
chains automatically.  Suppose there were a web of debt-trust.  Each
person would indicate the other people who's iou's they will accept
(and the amount they would be willing to take).  Thus I might take (up
to $10 of) Jo's, who might take Carol's who might take Terry's, etc.

  To buy something from me online, you will need to produce an IOU
from Jo, Carol or Terry.  I would hand it to Jo for verification.  Jo
would accept it or reject it (perhaps after talking to some other
folks online).  If it were a CarolIOU, or a TerryIOU I would insist Jo
trade it for a JoIOU.  All the details could be hidden behind a nice
little GUI.

  Jo and I would continuously balance the books between us by trading
JoIOUs for NoybIOU's.  After a while one of us might well end up with
enough extra IOUs that we want to get paid.  Perhaps the other would
perform services directly, or pay FRN's or gold, or whatever.

  If one of my friends wasn't able run an online IOU server, I could
probably trade things with my friend for IOU's.  Not that I'm running
a bank or any thing.

  With out every one being on line though I don't see an easy way to
prevent double spending.  Is there a offline multiple exchange token
system invented yet?

  Noyb