The US cent aka "penny" has outlived its usefulness. However, the video is fraught with enough factual errors as to muddle the issue. For starters, the US mints billions (not just millions) of cents per year. We switched from copper to (briefly) CuNi, then to bronze coins when the dies/presses could handle the harder, more durable alloys.
Quote: For starters, the US mints billions (not millions) of cents per year.
Well, billions are just thousands of millions...
As always, there's no reason for the penny to exist and you'd have to be catastrophically bad at math to argue that it saves anybody any amount of money ever.
If everyone had to cost their own time in transactions involving coins, it would be more cost efficient to just throw them into the trash, rather than accumulate them for re use or taking back to the bank in bulk.
At least, the Mint has tried to help, by reducing costs of their continued use by introducing Zincolns.
The variation point of sale taxes from State to State is a reason for their continued existence. Perhaps some streamlining of the point of sale States' tax system should be implemented.
Quote: We switched from copper to bronze coins when the dies/presses could handle the harder, more durable alloy.
We switched from Coppernickel to bronze and the alloy was SOFTER. The switch was done because the bronze didn't contain the more expensive nickel and the low intrinsic value of the bronze cent kept it from being hoarded. We switched from the copper cent to the copper nickel because the metal value of the copper in the cent was greater than the face value.
Quote: The variation point of sale taxes from State to State is a reason for their continued existence.
Except that with rounding the sales tax can still be handled without cents.
I buy gas and it is always priced at 9/10 . So.... I think we need a mil coin, 1/10 of a cent. Incredibly tiny about 1/4" in diameter. Do it up as a commem piece and have issues for all past us senators and reps.
US needs to use different metal on pennies so they don't lose money on the cost to mint them. They should still keep them as in Canada the banks wont even take pennies anymore since they were eliminated up there so now people have currency that is not worth a cent (no pun intended).
I actually throw pennies into the trash occasionally - if they're in the way when I'm trying to clean a carpet or counter, or clear out an old box of stuff.
Quote: US needs to use different metal on pennies so they don't lose money on the cost to mint them. They should still keep them as in Canada the banks wont even take pennies anymore since they were eliminated up there so now people have currency that is not worth a cent (no pun intended).
1. Even if pennies were made out of rainbows and moonbeams, distribution costs would still be more than 1 cent per cent.
2. In Canada, every bank takes pennies, but they won't give them to you - this is how they are being taken out of circulation. They are still legal tender, so I don't know where you got any of this from.
I've always wondered why in recent years, even amidst talk of getting rid of the penny, the mints have still been cranking out more than ever. I mean, if they were really serious about this whole "kill the penny" gig, wouldn't they start by reducing the numbers that are being minted? We don't need as many as we used to, for two reasons 1) we still have billions of old cents in circulation, and 2) it's true; people don't use cents like they used to.
However, I think the guy who made this video is playing up the "you'll never use pennies for anything, and you'll never get them in your change" thing a little too much.
My dad gets pennies all the time, and what he does is he saves them up, along with the other change he gets, and cashes it in at the end of the year. He then uses the money to make an extra mortgage payment on the house. This year he's collected almost $80, with probably $15 or so in pennies alone.
The bottom line is, pennies are needed to properly complete transactions, period. This rounding to the nearest 5 cents is idiotic and will land up costing people quite a bit of money in the long run.
Quote: We switched from Coppernickel to bronze and the alloy was SOFTER.
Yeah...you're right; I tend to forget the 8 years of CuNi US cents. Generally speaking across many mints, bronze was a practical compromise to copper in terms of durability for coins. Well, besides my obvious gaffe, what about this video?
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Posted 12/05/2014 11:26 pm
The US cent aka "penny" has outlived its usefulness.
