# A Solution to the Rejection of the Sacajewa Coin **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [February 6, 2001, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394 "2001-02-06T20:30:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![SuaSponte](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/67e7ee/32.png) [@SuaSponte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuaSponte)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2001, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/61 "2001-02-08T20:14:02Z")
Wow. I post a thread, get sucked away by work for a few days, and come back expected the thread to have suck without a trace. Thanks for all the responses! > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Flymaster \* > I’m doing my part to stop the acceptance of Sackies. I refuse them when they’re offered to me as change. If the cashier can’t (or won’t) supply REAL money as change, I fully intend to just walk out of the store without my purchase. Just hope you don’t run into a knowledgeable cashier. The Sackie is “legal tender valid for payments of all debts”, or words to that effect. If you refuse to accept a Sackie as change and walk out without your purchase, the cashier is not obligated to refund you your purchase price. Sua ---
**Author:** ![Tedster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4491bb/32.png) [@Tedster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tedster)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2001, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/62 "2001-02-08T20:27:22Z")
I think the design is pretty good, it’s been a while since we’ve had a newly designed coin that’s pleasing to look at. Years ago, that was the standard, not the exception. I think the re-issuance of a dollar coin re-illustrates the inflation that our money has undergone over the years. My dad tells me that cigarettes used to be a nickel a pack. The same nickel we use now! I think he pays about $2.50 a pack now. Oh Well. Really, what they need to do is start minting $5, $10 and $20 coins… It’s not like a dollar buys enough to warrant a coin all by itself, really. I like nickels and dimes for leaving tips, though. ---
**Author:** ![Yardstick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8c91f0/32.png) [@Yardstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yardstick)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2001, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/63 "2001-02-08T20:54:54Z")
$2.50 a pack? What Reservation…Er…Church…Er…Non-Taxable enterprises’s land were those smokes bought on? Anyway. The $1 bill is planning on being redesigned, it is however even less significant of a risk of counterfitting than the $5 or $10 bill and that is why there is no great rush to do it. Anyway, back to the Topic. I have personally never received a Sack in change from a transaction, I spend a lot of money and shop at Wal-Mart (gasp!!! I know, how un-PC! but there the only thing around) and even there I have not _seen_ a Sack coin let alone received one either. I have also never seen a Vending machine that was re-designed to accept one, at least not visibly so, Nor are they accepted in the Washers/dryers at my local laundromats. In all honesty the entire debacle seems to have been generated from some sort of political motivation primarily from Copper distrcts in the US Congress. There was never a public outcry against the dollar bill, nor has there ever been a supply chain problem with paper currency. Most important of all, I have never seen a cash drawer with a spot for them. Will the US Treasury provide special drawers for Safeway and Wal-Mart that have 5 coin trays? Or is this Merely another “Un-funded Mandate” placed upon American citizens?!?! Wow, Sorry I didn’t mean to get so political there in the end…It’s late in the day…I’m cranky! ---
**Author:** ![tracer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tracer/32/20578_2.png) [@tracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tracer)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2001, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/64 "2001-02-08T21:40:50Z")
Yardstick (huh huh) wrote: > [@](#): > > Most important of all, I have never seen a cash drawer with a spot for them. Will the US Treasury provide special drawers for Safeway and Wal-Mart that have 5 coin trays? If the cash registers currently in use only have 4 coin trays (for pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters, respectively), what do they do with the 50-cent pieces they get? ---
**Author:** ![Tedster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4491bb/32.png) [@Tedster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tedster)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2001, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/65 "2001-02-09T00:33:15Z")
I was waiting for someone to mention .50 cent pieces. I once added up (I was bored, okay?) the number of post 1964 Kennedy halves minted each year. I can’t recall the exact figure, but it was quite large, something like 10 or 20 for each man, woman and child in the U.S.A. I have never received one as change. So again, there must be an awful lot of Kennedy Halves in dresser drawers, coffee cans, deep in couches, or whatever. It’s just nobody _spends_ them, which is inexplicable. I can see putting back a couple for sentimental reasons, but it doesn’t explain the dearth of kennedy halves in circulation. Sackies I like, and I spend at least 5 or 10 dollars worth a week, giving as tips or change. Maybe they could significantly reduce the paper dollar printing without altogether eliminating it, thus ensuring the dollar coin’s success. There has never been a plan to redesign the One Dollar Bill since it’s figured counterfeiters aren’t going to bother with such a low denomination anyway. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2001, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/66 "2001-02-09T00:46:31Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by tracer \* > > If the cash registers currently in use only have 4 coin trays (for pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters, respectively), what do they do with the 50-cent pieces they get? \*\* FWIW, after the twonie was introduced into circulation, some genius invented and marketed a little tray that you put into the two-dollar-bill holder in your cash register. Perhaps a similar solution could be found. ---
**Author:** ![Helen\_s\_Eidolon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Helen\_s\_Eidolon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helen_s_Eidolon)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2001, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/67 "2001-02-09T00:46:36Z")
'nother Canadian weighing in in favour of loonies and toonies. They’re GREAT! You look in your wallet, and have no bills. You wonder how you are going to have the money to take a cab home. You look in your change pocket and find 17 $. Nothing beats that feeling, my friends. Not only that, they’re convenient. Not very heavy, they don’t get crupled or torn, makes vending machines loads easier, and lots of other good things. Smile, Americans. This is a good thing. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Flymaster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c4cdca/32.png) [@Flymaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flymaster)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2001, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/68 "2001-02-09T01:13:17Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Tedster \* > **It’s just nobody _spends_ them, which is inexplicable. I can see putting back a couple for sentimental reasons, but it doesn’t explain the dearth of kennedy halves in circulation.** It’s absolutely explicable. They’re fucking huge. Despite what the vending industry would have you believe, most people do NOT want to carry change around. Carrying a coin that size is simply not practical or worth it for most people. The public doesn’t want something that’s that heavy. They’re much more inclined to toss it in their change cup. And since nobody has accummulated enough of them to roll them and bring them to the bank for paper money, they stay right where the person tossed them. On the bottom of the change cup. ---
**Author:** ![tracer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tracer/32/20578_2.png) [@tracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tracer)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2001, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/69 "2001-02-09T01:19:15Z")
Tedster wrote: > [@](#): > > I once added up (I was bored, okay?) the number of post 1964 Kennedy halves minted each year. I can’t recall the exact figure, but it was quite large, something like 10 or 20 for each man, woman and child in the U.S.A. Side note: Even if you do go out and get a roll of Kennedy half-dollar coins from the bank, you’ll be hard-pressed to find any such coins with a minting date earlier than 1971. From 1965-1970, U.S. Kennedy 50-cent pieces were made with outer layers of 80% silver and 20% copper, and an inner core of 20% silver and 80% copper, making the whole coin 40% silver by weight. They don’t have as much silver in them as the 90%-silver 1964 Kennedy half dollar coins, but they’re still worth substantially more than 50 cents if you melt them down. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2001, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/70 "2001-02-09T01:34:36Z")
Gee, whenever I empty out my pockets at night I drop dimes and smaller into the change pot, but I cull out quarters and everything up for reuse. that way i save my big change but don’t carry around a pound of little change. I also try to cut down on my little change by spending smaller coins first when I have them and giving exact change when possible. Perhaps it’s a habit that has to be gotten used to. ---
**Author:** ![Tedster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4491bb/32.png) [@Tedster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tedster)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2001, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/71 "2001-02-09T01:35:59Z")
What are you going to do with a large blob of 40 per cent silver 60 per cent copper/nickel? I think the assay requirements, shipping costs, and general nuisance involved would negate any arbitrage you might get, I dunno. Europeans seem to handle change pretty well, with little leather change bags. I still think we should issue larger denomination coins, how about a $5 dollar coin with Crazy Horse on it, and a $10 Geronimo? Or just insert your favorite PC figure in their stead. ---
**Author:** ![Una\_Persson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/una_persson/32/346_2.png) [@Una\_Persson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Una_Persson)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2001, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/72 "2001-02-09T01:41:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Anthracite (in spirit, as jr8) \* > \*\*…I have to say: I think pound coins are great. > > Yes, they’re heavy, but they actually _feel_ like they’re worth something. When you hold one, it has real “heft” to it; when you drop it, it makes a solid \; when you throw it at someone, it results in a personal injury lawsuit. 🙂 You can’t mistake a pound coin for another coin. > > Dollar coins (SBAs or Sackies) are too light, IMO; they don’t feel like they’re worth a dollar. I can see why people don’t like them and don’t trust them. > > But then I think the two-pound coins are fun too. 😉 \*\* I had a nice post prepared to make, that I spent all this time typing out. But then I saw this one that is 99% of mine, so I am re-cycling it. So…what **jr8** said… ---
**Author:** ![Tedster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4491bb/32.png) [@Tedster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tedster)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2001, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/73 "2001-02-09T01:42:53Z")
What are you going to do with a large blob of 40 per cent silver 60 per cent copper/nickel? I think the assay requirements, shipping costs, and general nuisance involved would negate any arbitrage you might get, I dunno. Europeans seem to handle change pretty well, with little leather change bags. I still think we should issue larger denomination coins, how about a $5 dollar coin with Crazy Horse on it, and a $10 Geronimo? Or just insert your favorite PC figure in their stead. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2001, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/74 "2001-02-09T01:52:43Z")
Some people are considering a $5 coin in Canada, btw. The question is whose face to put on it. Do we put the Queen on it, like all the other coins? Or do we put Sir Wilfrid Laurier on it, since he’s on the $5 bill, and the other dollar coins had the same face as the bill they replaced (who happened to be the Queen both times)? ---
**Author:** ![tracer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tracer/32/20578_2.png) [@tracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tracer)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2001, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/75 "2001-02-09T02:19:58Z")
Put William Shatner’s face on it. He’s Canadian, isn’t he? ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2001, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/76 "2001-02-09T02:22:49Z")
On our _money?_ He wouldn’t even let McGill name their student union building after him, the snooty git. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2001, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/77 "2001-02-09T05:23:52Z")
OK, back to the Sackie. Can I mention that I really like the “tail” side? That eagle is Soooooo much better than the eagle on the pre-1999 quarters. That thing looks stuffed. Oh, and the new “state” quarters? Brilliant. I love them! Every time I get change I look at my quarters to see if I got a new kind. I just got 3 New Yorks today! My first 2001 quarters. I’m keeping one of each, but my personal rule is that I have to get them through normal commerce. So far I haven’t missed one, although I’ve only found ONE New Hampshire. ---
**Author:** ![lawoot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/35a633/32.png) [@lawoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lawoot)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2001, 9:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/78 "2001-02-09T09:00:13Z")
a slight hijack, but I think i read recently that the feds are planning a major coin redesign as well… A question for all you people who use the ‘feel’ test to decide what coin to use: Unless you’re blind, how many people actually reach into their pockets, feel the coin, and put it in the vending machine WITHOUT LOOKING AT IT FIRST? ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2001, 10:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/79 "2001-02-09T10:16:47Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Tedster \* > **Europeans seem to handle change pretty well, with little leather change bags.** Yeah, I have one of those. I initially resisted (“change purses are _girly_”), but capitulated after my change kept eating holes in my trouser pockets. Now, of course, I think it’s great, since it keeps all my change together. And since I now carry a card wallet and a “little leather change bag”, I haven’t had to carry a proper wallet in years. I don’t usually carry a lot of bills anyway, and those I do I either fold up and put in the card wallet, or just stuff in my pocket. And I worry less about getting my pocket picked, too. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2001, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394/80 "2001-02-09T15:24:56Z")
BTW, it’s easy to tell which coins are which. I just form the coins into a cylinder in my pocket and hold them in such a way that the smaller change drops out. then all i’m left holding are the loonies, twonies, and the occasional quarter, which I can distinguish by thinness and milled edges. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-solution-to-the-rejection-of-the-sacajewa-coin/53394.md?page=5)