U.N. committee calls for dumping the U.S. dollar
UNITED NATIONS, July 1 (UPI) -- A U.N. committee is the latest advocate of dumping the U.S. dollar in favor of a replacement currency though it doesn't say -- or know -- which to turn to. The dollar has been challenged as a global currency for a variety of reasons -- from populist grandstanding to polarized political critics of the United States seeking to go separate ways. Former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein opposed the dollar's use for the oil trade and Iran, before the eurozone crisis, wanted the dollar replaced by the European common currency for hydrocarbon transactions. The latest clamor for displacing the dollar as a global currency rose after the 2008 economic downturn which, the U.N. committee said, showed the U.S. currency was ill-equipped to defend international trade. The U.N. Department of Economic and Social Affairs, in a report, called the dollar an unreliable international currency that should be replaced by a more stable system. "The dollar has proved no...