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uthminsta
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1872 Posts |
 Posted - 11/19/2009 : 13:13:59
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In the event that the US stops making the one cent coin, what do you think will be the fallout? This question can be taken a hundred different ways, so I would just like to know different people's theories, opinions, conjectures, prognostications, tall tales, conspiracies...
Let's hear it!
Aaron
PS sorry if this thread already exists somewhere. If so, please direct me to it!!!
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Come to the new and improved realcent: http://realcent.org
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Cerulean
Penny Hoarding Member
USA
993 Posts |
Posted - 11/19/2009 : 13:30:21
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If the gov'ment demonetizes the cent...
Most folks will assume that cents are unspendable, and will refuse to accept them. Large amounts of cents will accumulate, looking for any so-called fool to accept them. Collectors will take what they want, and private industry will destroy the rest.
If the gov'ment does not demonetize the cent...
Most folks will try to turn cents back in to their bank. Banks will balk at accepting them. The melt ban will remain in effect. Cents gather dust as nobody wants to accept them, but the holder refuse to accept the monetary loss of disposing of them.
In either case...
The Mint will need to increase production of nickels and, to a lesser extent, dimes. Large-scale anti-hoarding of cents ensues, as nobody would pay money to acquire that which is perceived to be worthless and is difficult to be rid of. Only those who see cents for their metal value will actually want them, and will be perceived as crazy, just like now. |
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Cody8404
Penny Hoarding Member
USA
602 Posts |
Posted - 11/19/2009 : 13:56:06
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When the mint stops making cents the first thing to happen will be a huge party. There will be dancing in the streets and ticker tape parades. The now vacant bin in tellers cash drawers will be taken up by using dollar coins. The world will be wonderful and all will be happy.
In reality there will be a few news articles and the cent will die a slow death. If the cent is demonetized the government will probably buy them back from the Fed. This way the tax payers get the bill and not the bankers.
I also see the nickel and half dollar ending at the same time. I would also anticipate the quarter, disme and possibly dollar coin changing to a cheaper metal possible steel or Aluminum. The death of the cent will be a good time to revamp all the US coins. Once the government tells us the cent is worthless, it will not matter if the rest of our coins are worth less. Remember, there is not much but our coins, dimes, quarters, halfs, and yes the little dollars are still mostly copper. |
Awake, O kings of the earth! Come ye, O, come ye, with your gold and your silver, to the help of my people, to the house of the daughters of Zion, to the help of the people of the God of this Land even Jesus Christ. |
Edited by - Cody8404 on 11/19/2009 13:58:23 |
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jonflyfish
Penny Hoarding Member
USA
693 Posts |
Posted - 11/19/2009 : 14:00:33
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| Imagine nothing will happen. People will continue dumping their pennies in the gutter and the trash. |
The first panacea for a mismanaged nation is inflation of the currency; second is war. Both bring a temporary (and false) prosperity; both bring a permanent ruin. But both are the refuge of political and economic opportunities. |
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Coinage
Penny Collector Member
Canada
303 Posts |
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jadedragon
Administrator
Canada
3788 Posts |
Posted - 11/19/2009 : 14:18:28
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The market will be flooded with Canadian cents?
Actually, many countries have demonitized low value coins, and I understand generally they get bought back through the banks (Fuji, New Zealand, currencies folded into the Euro).
However, the US has never demonetized a coin before and I do not expect they are going to start with the celebrated Lincoln penny. Rather I expect they will move to plated steel like Canada has and make the penny profitable to make again.
If the mint discontinues producing pennies someday the penny will go the way of the still legal tender but never spent in real life 1/2 cents and $1 gold coins etc. They will be collected, melted, or hoarded for metal value. |
“The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.” – George Bernard Shaw.
Why Copper Bullion ~~~ Interview with Silver Bullion Producer Market Harmony
Passive Income blog |
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country_bumpkin
Penny Sorter Member
USA
86 Posts |
Posted - 11/19/2009 : 14:24:56
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You do realize that merchants are already rounding prices up to the nearest cent, no? We're getting *inappropriate language* over by those greedy merchants!
Imagine if the store with the self checkouts got rid of all of them and hired cashiers for all the registers. Would prices go up, or down?
(Actually, they would hire one cashier, and you would put up with a checkout line halfway around the store.)
The Brits dropped their farthing (1/4 cent) back in the 1950s. I doubt it made much of an impact then.
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“He who goes a-borrowing, goes a-sorrowing.”
- Benjamin Franklin |
Edited by - country_bumpkin on 11/19/2009 14:32:54 |
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Copper Catcher
Administrator
USA
2092 Posts |
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uthminsta
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1872 Posts |
Posted - 11/19/2009 : 14:53:04
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How do you think it will affect the activities of those in this forum specifically? Much depends on whether they demonetize the coin or not. I would assume they would NOT demonetize it, even if they discontinued it. Like the half cent (mentioned above), two cent, three cent silver, three cent nickel, half dime and twenty cent coins... they are all still legal tender, I assume.
Yes, several countries have demonetized their low-end coins. The British stopped making the decimal halfpenny for circulation in 1983, made some for collector sets in 1984 (NIFC), and demonetized it at the end of the year. So essentially from 1982 (a normal amount minted) to 1983 (far less minted) to 1984 (worthless)... will our cent be like that? Will they give us an exchange period to hand them all in?
Will people melt the coppers once they've been demonetized? I am going to post a poll on this.
Aaron
PS fiftieth post. Woot. |
Come to the new and improved realcent: http://realcent.org
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Edited by - uthminsta on 11/19/2009 14:54:59 |
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Nickelmeister
Penny Hoarding Member
Canada
588 Posts |
Posted - 11/19/2009 : 15:01:59
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| I hope they don't demonetize the Canadian penny. I have thousands of dollar's worth of plated steel coins sitting around in buckets. Too lazy to return my rejects :) |
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Lemon Thrower
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1588 Posts |
Posted - 11/19/2009 : 15:19:47
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good point that discontinuation and demonetization are not the same thing.
don't see a reason why they would demonetize it initially. probably have a phase out like they did with european countries.
i think when they stop making em it will make it hard to get pennies from banks. banks absorb a charge for getting coin delivered and they are not going to incur if for no good reason. plus, the supply will be dwindling. you better have your hoard then because the days will be numbered.
think they will discontinue the nickel and possibly the half at the same time.
nickel is expensive to make. if they don't discontinue they'll at least change the composition. the fears of price increases are tempered by the existence of nickels.
halves - they basically don't make these anymore except for collectors. its surprising that you can still get them. |
Buying:
Peace/Morgan G+ at $15.00
copper cents at 1.3X
wheat pennies at 3X
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coppernickel
Penny Pincher Member
USA
131 Posts |
Posted - 11/19/2009 : 15:30:35
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Thinking of rounding prices you reminded me of the gas price trick.
The signs say regular $2.69 9/10. Each gallon is 9/10 of a cent more than you presume.
It has been going on for a hundred years and you don't hear complaints about it. Did you even know about it? Read the little numbers after the price. |
Silver Monometalism is the most permanent and stable form of money the world has seen. Natural law and history prove silver value is best multiplied by gold and best divided by copper. It is only in this counterfeit currency time when the natural law appears suspended. |
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wagsthadog
Penny Hoarding Member
USA
565 Posts |
Posted - 11/19/2009 : 17:35:11
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Hi all-
I don't think the government will ever DEMONITIZE (re: make it unusable) the cent, but I can see them stopping production of it. However, they can do whatever they want- the copper in pre-82's can't be legislated out of existence. Intrinsic value is eternal!
JMO
wags |
Only when they CAN'T have it, ......THEN they'll want it.
I love Cents. If you get an UNC box, you win. If you get a regular circ. box, you win. If you get a zinc box, you don't lose....so you still win. |
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biglouddrunk
Penny Pincher Member
138 Posts |
Posted - 11/19/2009 : 18:31:09
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| Our stashes would move toward bullion value thus increasing the value. If I were in charge of US currency I would eliminate the penny, nickel and quarter at the same time. I would then make the half dollar small and ramp up the production. Thus all currency would be in tenths of dollars. So when pricing something one could say it $2.7 rather than $2.70. This might not be the most public friendly way, but as a math guy I think it's silly to eliminate the penny unless your eliminating a significant figure. |
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Dumpster Diver
Penny Collector Member
USA
474 Posts |
Posted - 11/19/2009 : 19:06:44
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quote:
Originally posted by Copper Catcher
This is a study that was done some time ago that is a must read!
You must be logged in to see this link.
Copper Catcher-thanks for posting this...fascinating read!
I never realized legislation was ever formally drawn up on this. |
"You're not really gonna throw that out...are you"? |
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Coinage
Penny Collector Member
Canada
303 Posts |
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beauanderos
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
2408 Posts |
Posted - 11/19/2009 : 19:33:29
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There's a difference between declaring the cent invalid for trade as in demonitizing it, and stopping production. I doubt they could legally demonitize an american coin, even if it was used infrequently (like a $2 bill) it would still be legal tender. It might gradually fall into disuse (perhaps the mint would collect and keep them, but that would not be an overnight deal. If they do stop making them and do demonitize them, that will be good for us... the melt ban will be lifted, what point would there be in maintaining it. Immediately you would feel the repercussions of a rapidly depleting copper penny percentage in your area as the big guys got their smelting pots up and running. imho  |
Hoard now and hold on!
http://coppermillions.blogspot.com/
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beauanderos
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
2408 Posts |
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coppernickel
Penny Pincher Member
USA
131 Posts |
Posted - 11/19/2009 : 19:40:50
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| The only way I see them actually demonetizing the cent would be when all US cash and coin is replaced by another system. |
Silver Monometalism is the most permanent and stable form of money the world has seen. Natural law and history prove silver value is best multiplied by gold and best divided by copper. It is only in this counterfeit currency time when the natural law appears suspended. |
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vrbsroma
Penny Collector Member
394 Posts |
Posted - 11/20/2009 : 15:06:15
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"If they stop making the cent..."
Will we have to round up all prices? How would that work? For this alone I think they'll keep minting them. The only thing that may change is the composition, but zinc IS pretty cheap. Why else would they halt the presses? |
As far as I know, it is stated "In God We Trust" on the US dollar. How can I trust this currency if I do not believe in God?
Possession is nine-tenths of the law.
When I give my two cents, they're always copper! |
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n/a
deleted
478 Posts |
Posted - 11/20/2009 : 15:32:58
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Here is what they did in New Zealand when they replaced very LARGE Cu/Ni coins with much smaller steel coins in 2006:
You must be logged in to see this link.
New Zealand's old 50, 20, 10 and 5 cent coins are no longer legal tender. This means that retailers do not have to accept them as payment for goods or services.
The coins will always be redeemable for face value at the Reserve Bank, No 2 The Terrace, Wellington.
On 31 July 2006, smaller and lighter 10, 20, and 50 cent coins were introduced into circulation. The new coins have retained the same designs, but the new 10 cent coin is copper-coloured, and the 20 cent coin has a distinctive edging. The $1 and $2 coins are unchanged.
Look at the SIZE of these Cupro/NI coins! They were legal tender until 2006 and the NZ dollar is very weak. Scroll down to the "demonitized coins" in the link below.
You must be logged in to see this link. |
Edited by - n/a on 11/20/2009 16:00:39 |
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Zyll
Penny Pincher Member
USA
214 Posts |
Posted - 12/16/2009 : 13:19:42
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I agree that this is the way to go with phasing out negative-seignorage coins and moving to tenth-dollar transactions only.
By the way I saw this article on this subject posted on coinflation's newsboard..."The New Republic: Our Penny Doesn't Make Cents"
You must be logged in to see this link.
quote:
Originally posted by biglouddrunk
Our stashes would move toward bullion value thus increasing the value. If I were in charge of US currency I would eliminate the penny, nickel and quarter at the same time. I would then make the half dollar small and ramp up the production. Thus all currency would be in tenths of dollars. So when pricing something one could say it $2.7 rather than $2.70. This might not be the most public friendly way, but as a math guy I think it's silly to eliminate the penny unless your eliminating a significant figure.
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Edited by - Zyll on 12/16/2009 13:21:50 |
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Lemon Thrower
1000+ Penny Miser Member
USA
1588 Posts |
Posted - 12/16/2009 : 13:25:55
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they stopped making silver dollars long ago but have never demonetized them. they did melt some of them.
if they demonetized them, folks would return to the banks, and banks would deposit surplus with the fed.
banks and brinks would look even less kindly on some nut ordering pennies. would be much harder to spend them. but year the copper ones would sell for much less of a discount to bullion price. |
Buying:
Peace/Morgan G+ at $15.00
copper cents at 1.3X
wheat pennies at 3X
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misteroman
Administrator
USA
2565 Posts |
Posted - 12/16/2009 : 18:01:39
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Good read CC. Thanks for sharing
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Buying CU cents!!!! Paying 1.2 unlimited amounts wanted. Can pick up if near Ohio area. |
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HoardCopperByTheTon
Administrator
USA
6807 Posts |
Posted - 12/19/2009 : 05:36:30
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quote:
Originally posted by jadedragon
However, the US has never demonetized a coin before and I do not expect they are going to start with the celebrated Lincoln penny.
Actually, the US did demonetize a coin before.
Surely someone can name it. 
Bonus question: Is that coin legal tender now?  |
If your percentages are low.. just sort more. If your percentages are high.. just sort more.
Now selling Copper pennies. 1.6x plus shipping. Limited amounts available. |
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Zyll
Penny Pincher Member
USA
214 Posts |
Posted - 12/19/2009 : 09:44:28
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Ooo Ooo! I know!
The trade dollar!
From david lange's book "history of the united states mint and its coinage"
"The decline in silver prices led to the use of trade dollars in domestic circulation at face value. Since those who deposited silver at the mint were paid in yhese coins at bullion value, the growing disparity between the trade dollar's bullion value and its face value represented an instant profit to the depositor. As long as the trade dollar retained its legal tender value, there was nothing merchants could do but continue to stockpile these coins that banks would not accept in amounts over $5. With no perfect solution in sight, Congress was torn between raising the legal tender limit on the trade dollar and eliminating its legal status altogether. On july 22, 1876, it chose the latter action; the legal tender status of the trade dollar was revoked and its coinage restricted exclusively to overseas demand."
But it was remonetized in the coinage act of 1965. |
Edited by - Zyll on 12/19/2009 10:06:58 |
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if they STOP making the cent
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