Stamp pandering

"Mongolia stamps featuring the X-Men? What would Genghis Khan do?," writes Andrew Leonard of Salon.com.

Leonard writes, "One stamp dealer's advertisement listed for sale stamps picturing Elvis Presley issued by Burkina Faso, Chad stamps depicting Marilyn Monroe, Chechnya stamps picturing Groucho Marx, Grenada Grenadines stamps showing Bob (Elliot) and Ray (Goulding), Mongolia stamps with the Three Stooges and the X-Men, and Montserrat stamps with Jerry Garcia. Most of these stamps never reach the issuing country's shores, and are designed, produced, and marketed by a foreign agency to stamp collectors around the world."

He goes on to say, "How can you not love an economic treatise that introduces the concept of "stamp pandering?" and cites University of Michigan economist Joel Slemrod.

Slemrod believes well-governed poorer countries that do not have other means of readily raising funds engage in sovereignty-selling activities such as stamp pandering.

Shown above is an X-Men sheetlet from St. Vincent courtesy of cartoonstamps.com.

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