Sacagawea gold coins now worth a fortune!!

[+Team GPSaxophone]

Why not:

 

Stop printing $1.00 bills

Start minting $1.00 coins

Start printing $2.00 bills

 

This would force people to use coins instead of dollars and increase the popularity of the dollar coins and $2.00 bills.

 

People hold onto $2.00 bills because they are rare. Same thing for the dollar coins.

 

Mass production of the new items and limited supply of the old is the only way to "encourage" people to adopt the new currencies.

[+Kodak's4]

quote:

---

Originally posted by mrcpu:

I can sell you "gold" coins. They have a loon on one side and a Monarch on the other.

---

 

Three things:

 

1. The Loonie isn't made from gold, it's made of a gold/bronze alloy over nickel.

 

2. I think it's rude to call Elizabeth II a Loon. Just someone is Royal, that doesn't make them whacko.

 

3. that's not a monarch butterfly, it's a bird.

[skydiver]

Well, since just about everybody in this thread seems in favor of the $1 coins, I'll stick my head out and post a counter argument.

 

I lived in Germany for 3 years while in the Army. The smallest paper money that was in regular circulation was 10 Marks (about $6.50 at the time), everything below that was coins (excepting the very rare 5 Mark bill). I always found myself stuck with a pocket full of loose change no matter how hard I tried to spend the change first. It was very, vey annoying, and I've been strongly against the $1 coins all along.

 

--- Two paths diverged in a wood, and my... my GPSr pointed dead center between them. ---

[Team Dragon]

I'm currently in Manila for the week and I've discovered that Filipinos use bills for everything. The exchange rate is currently about 50 Pesos to the US Dollar. The only coins I have seen are the 1 peso and the 10 Centavo (.1 Peso). I have quite a few 10, 20, 50 and 100 Peso bills. How'd you like to sit on your wallet if everything from 20 cents on was a bill? $1 coins (hex or octogonal) and $2 bills sound good to me.

[Salvo]

I from time to time drop these into microcaches, or otherwise small cache sites. As a coin collector, they really aren't worth much right now other than face value, but scarcity is the issue. In y2000 they stamped out about .5Billion of these coins. In y2001 they reduced the mint's output to @60Million. So far in y2002 they've stamped about a million out early in January -and haven't made any more since.

 

The 2002's are what we call 'Sleepers' and will be worth something, but only about 20+ years from now.

 

Someone on a prior post mentioned that they kept Susan B's which were minted in 1979, 80, and 81 -but only a few million were stamped out in '99 when the post office needed some for their machines. Those are 'sleepers' too!

[+Jamie Z]

SBA's were minted in '99? Wow...

 

I find it amusing that when I'm at work in the casino, where some table-game payouts are made with a 50-cent piece, that folks save 'em. They'll stick them right in their pocket.

 

I ask about it sometime, and the person will usually say something like "I save half-dollars." and I'll say, "Oh, well we have about $200 worth right here, do you want to just buy some?" Nobody ever does, but they'll keep stuffing them in their pocket when they get them one-at-a-time.

 

Jamie

[Eric O'Connor]

Or at least the way they are beginning to deal with small amounts of money...

 

Their Octopus card has a little built in chip and can be used and reloaded as often as needed. You can even have custom ones printed up like phone cards are here.

 

Fumbling for coins in Tokyo (even $5 coins) wasn't any more amusing than it is here in the states.

 

People concerned with anonymity can buy these with cash ($20/each) and the black market crowd can just stick with the C-note.

 

I already carry a card for the local subway and a seperate card for the parking meters.... One that will do it all sounds pretty dang sweet.

 

If it's under $20, there shouldn't be a bill or a coin for it... this is 2002 folks.

[+JAR]

One example of a coin replacing a paper note happened quite a while back in England. The pound coin first appeared in 1983 and the one pound note disappeared on March 11, 1988 (though Scottish banks continued to issue them into the 21st century). I find the one pound coins quite convenient; they're easy to distinguish by touch. But other posters are correct -- it required the removal of the pound note to make them a complete success.

 

Of course the Brits have a wonderful example in their pre-1971 coinage. In Britain the pound Sterling was (and is) the central unit of money. Prior to decimalization the pound was divided into twenty shillings and each shilling was divided into twelve pennies or pence. Although those divisions may seem odd, in fact having a pound divided into 240 equal parts does mean it can be exactly divided into halves, thirds, quarters, fifths, sixths, eighths, tenths, twelfths, fifteenths, sixteenths, twentieths, twenty-fourths, thirtieths, fortieths, forty-eightieths, sixtieths, eightieths, and one-hundred-and-twentieths. A decimal system allows precise division only into halves, quarters, fifths, tenths, twentieths, twenty-fifths, and fiftieths.

 

A gold coin worth £1 was called a sovereign and the half sovereign, also in gold, was worth ten shillings. A guinea was £1-1s-0d (which is £1.05). It was considered a more gentlemanly amount than £1. You paid tradesmen, such as a carpenter, in pounds but gentlemen, such as an artist, in guineas. Like the pound, the guinea could also be divided exactly into many different amounts -- halves, thirds, quarters, sixths, sevenths, ninths, fourteenths, twenty-firsts, twenty-eighths, thirty-sixths, forty-seconds, sixty-thirds, eighty-fourths, and one-hundred-and-twenty-sixths. One useful factor was that a third of a guinea was exactly seven shillings. A crown was a silver coin worth 5s -- though much more common was the half-crown worth 2/6 or exactly one eighth of a pound.

 

The shilling was also a silver coin as were the sixpence and the threepence (usually pronounced and sometimes spelt 'thruppence'). In conversation, the coin was sometimes called 'a thrupp'ny bit'. Silver coins called groats and worth four pence were also minted and were sometimes called Joeys. Lower value coins were made of copper (bronze from 1860). The penny was accompanied by the halfpenny (pronounced hape-nee and sometimes written ha'penny) and the farthing, worth a quarter of a penny. Half farthings were also minted but were unpopular because of their small size. Smaller coins -- one third and one quarter farthings -- were minted mainly for use in some British colonies.

 

A two shilling coin, exactly a tenth of a pound, was first minted in 1849. It was called a florin. A florin was also called a 'two shilling piece' or a 'two bob bit'. It did not oust the popular half a crown, usually called a half-crown, worth 2s 6d, which remained in use until 1 January 1970. Even in the 1960s auctioneers at country sales would move the bidding on in half-crowns. The bid between five and ten shillings being always 'three half-crowns'. A double florin was minted but was not popular.

 

Perhaps we should look at this model for the US?

[+mph6563]

quote:

---

Originally posted by BrianSnat:

In reality, no dollar coin will succeed until they retire the dollar bill.

---

 

But then, going to a strip club will be a lot more expensive. Or uncomfortable for the staff.

[+Jamie Z]

quote:

---

Originally posted by mph6563:

But then, going to a strip club will be a lot more expensive. Or uncomfortable for the staff.

---

Nope, I can refute this from personal experience. The first time I went to a strip club was in Thunder Bay Ontario, and I was unknowingly dragged in by a trick-playing friend.

 

Anyway, I'll skip the details, but loonies were the most oft-used money in the joint. The guys would hold them in their mouth and lean back on the stage. You figure out the rest.

 

Jamie

[+Jamie Z]

quote:

---

Originally posted by mph6563:

But then, going to a strip club will be a lot more expensive. Or uncomfortable for the staff.

---

Nope, I can refute this from personal experience. The first time I went to a strip club was in Thunder Bay Ontario, and I was unknowingly dragged in by a trick-playing friend.

 

Anyway, I'll skip the details, but loonies were the most oft-used money in the joint. The guys would hold them in their mouth and lean back on the stage. You figure out the rest.

 

Jamie

[+Jamie Z]

quote:

---

Originally posted by JAR:

One example...happened quite a while back in England. The pound coin...

...pre-1971 coinage. ...the pound Sterling... ...decimalization... ...twenty shillings... ...twelve pennie or pence... ...halves, thirds, quarters, fifths, sixths, eighths, tenths, twelfths, fifteenths, sixteenths, twentieths, twenty-fourths, thirtieths, fortieths, forty-eightieths, sixtieths, eightieths, and one-hundred-and-twentieths... ...called a sovereign... ...half sovereign... ...ten shillings... ...A guinea... ... the guinea... ...halves, thirds, quarters, sixths, sevenths, ninths, fourteenths, twenty-firsts, twenty-eighths, thirty-sixths, forty-seconds, sixty-thirds, eighty-fourths, and one-hundred-and-twenty-sixths... ...third of a guinea... ...seven shillings... ...A crown... ...half-crown... ...one eighth of a pound...

 

The shilling... ...sixpence... ...threepence... ...thruppence... ..a thrupp'ny bit... ...groats... ...four pence... ...called Joeys... The penny... ...halfpenny ,,,farthing... ...Half farthings... ...one third and one quarter farthings...

...two shilling coin... ...tenth of a pound... ...called a florin... ...two shilling piece... ...two bob bit... ...half a crown... ...half-crowns... ...three half-crowns... ...double florin...

 

Perhaps we should look at this model for the US?

---

Sure

 

Jamie

[+Jamie Z]

quote:

---

Originally posted by JAR:

One example...happened quite a while back in England. The pound coin...

...pre-1971 coinage. ...the pound Sterling... ...decimalization... ...twenty shillings... ...twelve pennie or pence... ...halves, thirds, quarters, fifths, sixths, eighths, tenths, twelfths, fifteenths, sixteenths, twentieths, twenty-fourths, thirtieths, fortieths, forty-eightieths, sixtieths, eightieths, and one-hundred-and-twentieths... ...called a sovereign... ...half sovereign... ...ten shillings... ...A guinea... ... the guinea... ...halves, thirds, quarters, sixths, sevenths, ninths, fourteenths, twenty-firsts, twenty-eighths, thirty-sixths, forty-seconds, sixty-thirds, eighty-fourths, and one-hundred-and-twenty-sixths... ...third of a guinea... ...seven shillings... ...A crown... ...half-crown... ...one eighth of a pound...

 

The shilling... ...sixpence... ...threepence... ...thruppence... ..a thrupp'ny bit... ...groats... ...four pence... ...called Joeys... The penny... ...halfpenny ,,,farthing... ...Half farthings... ...one third and one quarter farthings...

...two shilling coin... ...tenth of a pound... ...called a florin... ...two shilling piece... ...two bob bit... ...half a crown... ...half-crowns... ...three half-crowns... ...double florin...

 

Perhaps we should look at this model for the US?

---

Sure

 

Jamie

[+ClayJar]

Flood the market.

 

The problem with the golden dollars is that there aren't enough of them. People see these new, shiny, unusual coins and naturally want to save them. The solution is to flood the market with them in order to devalue them in the perception of John Q. Public. Once they're just stinkin' everywhere, the grab-and-hold problem will wane and people will start spending them.

 

The easiest way I can think of to handle this (although it'll take a few *illion dollars) is to not send tax rebate checks or direct deposits next year, but rather, send everyone their rebates in golden dollars. It'll incur a *large* cost to count and move them all, but enough people will have enough cash in the form of golden dollars that it'll absolutely kick-start the spending.

 

(It'll never happen, but if you want to drive adoption of a new style of money, you simply *have* to force enough of it into circulation to prime the pump. It's just a simple psychological problem. )

[+ClayJar]

Flood the market.

 

The problem with the golden dollars is that there aren't enough of them. People see these new, shiny, unusual coins and naturally want to save them. The solution is to flood the market with them in order to devalue them in the perception of John Q. Public. Once they're just stinkin' everywhere, the grab-and-hold problem will wane and people will start spending them.

 

The easiest way I can think of to handle this (although it'll take a few *illion dollars) is to not send tax rebate checks or direct deposits next year, but rather, send everyone their rebates in golden dollars. It'll incur a *large* cost to count and move them all, but enough people will have enough cash in the form of golden dollars that it'll absolutely kick-start the spending.

 

(It'll never happen, but if you want to drive adoption of a new style of money, you simply *have* to force enough of it into circulation to prime the pump. It's just a simple psychological problem. )

[Salvo]

I also tried to propagate the use of the Golden Dollar into the economy -by driving it home the hard way.

 

I went on a 2 week vacation to the Florida Keys in y2000 (Sadly, before I got into Geocaching) and took $1000 of the things with me -just for the fun of it.

 

Now going on an extended vacation w/11 kids is something that has to be logistically planned -believe me!

 

The hotels and meals were paid for on the credit cards, but visiting the merchants and paying for everything with the GDs was quite enlightening. Most had not thought out how they were going to store them in the register, as the 'extra' slot was generally for rolled lower denomination coins. Many just dumped them under the till with the larger bills.

 

I overheard at one establishemnt that we frequented... "Hey bob, he's back again!"

[Salvo]

I also tried to propagate the use of the Golden Dollar into the economy -by driving it home the hard way.

 

I went on a 2 week vacation to the Florida Keys in y2000 (Sadly, before I got into Geocaching) and took $1000 of the things with me -just for the fun of it.

 

Now going on an extended vacation w/11 kids is something that has to be logistically planned -believe me!

 

The hotels and meals were paid for on the credit cards, but visiting the merchants and paying for everything with the GDs was quite enlightening. Most had not thought out how they were going to store them in the register, as the 'extra' slot was generally for rolled lower denomination coins. Many just dumped them under the till with the larger bills.

 

I overheard at one establishemnt that we frequented... "Hey bob, he's back again!"