Playing off the popularity of the state quarter series, the Mint plans to release a set of Presidential Dollar coins, four per year in the order the presidents served, starting in 2007.
As much as I like the dollar coin, and while this may inspire a little interest from collectors, it won’t result in a big push toward the use of a dollar coin. As many have said in the several dollar coin threads we’ve already had, it’s not going to happen until we do away with the paper dollar.
I got one of the new nickels yesterday. My first thought: “Why is there a viking longboat on my nickel?”
Nice idea, but they should only mint a few of them, because only collectors will bother with them.
I see absolutely zero reason we should have a dollar coin in the first place.
They’re also looking to redesign the penny for the bicentennial of Lincolns birth.Linkaroo
The savings to the government alone in printing costs would be phenomenal (I imagine…just an estimation, no hard numbers) if we switched over entirely.
They should really get some good designers to help them with these new coins, because the new nickel is just ugly. Of course, most of the designs on the state quarters are too, so I guess that won’t keep people from collecting them.
I don’t get this. He was one man. Why get two coins? Are they honoring the man or the term?
I mean, the former Confederate states only got one coin, not one honoring when they initially joined the union and one commemorating when they re-joined the union.
I think dollar coins can work, they just need to be gently forced on us. Vending machines in NYC give $1 coins, IIRC. This should be done more often, especially at vending machines. How often is someone going to stand at the soda machine trying to get it to accept a faded, wrinkled $1 coin? The vending turnaround will increase with coins, helping the economy, and the people in line will be less impatient, improving everyone’s mood and by extension, their health.
Dollar coins will save us all.
Go to any USPS stamp vending machine. Stick in a $20 and buy one $0.23 ( where the hell is the ‘cent’ symbol on this keyboard. I think this is the first time in all my 41 years I’ve thought to look for the damn thing and I can’t find it. Anyhow) stamp. Out will come tumbling an assortment of $1 coins as change. Go next door to McDonalds and order from the Dollar Menu. Enjoy.
The stamp vending machines at the Post Office dispense Sackies when giving change. I’ve also found a few parking lots in downtown Chicago that do this. Always nice to park, pay a ten dollar fee with a twenty and get 10 goddamn coins back. I just love walking around with those things in my pocket all evening.
The U.S. gov’t should just stop minting dollar coins. It hasn’t worked since they tried 'em with the Eisenhower (those were godawful huge chunks of metal) dollars back in the 70’s, and it ain’t gonna work now. Nobody, except collectors, want the damned things.
Alt+0162 on the number keypad . . . ¢
¢ … Cool, thanks!
Similar to the printing cost thing, dollar bills have to be taken out of circulation after a few years because they get damaged and ripped. It’d be less of a problem with coins.
Shouldn’t that be .Link-oln? 
Many more here, from Arnold Winkelreid’s website:
http://home.earthlink.net/~awinkelried/keyboard_shortcuts.html
Or, in ATMB:
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=959&highlight=ASCII
I want the damn things. I freaking loathe dollar bills. It’s much nicer to just dip into my pocket for change when I need to pay a small amount.
There are three groups of people that like dollar coins:
[ol][li]Coin enthusiasts, such as yourself,[/li][li]the vending machine industry, and[/li][li]the Mint[/ol][/li]The general public prefers dollar bills because most people don’t like carrying coins around. Dollar bills are lighter and less cumbersome.
Anywho, I agree that Grover Cleaveland should only get one coin. I’ve been collecting the state quarters, but I probably won’t bother with the dollar coins. Given how rarely you see dollar coins around here, I might not ever see half of them.
I live near the Canadian border and go up there a few times a year. I think their dollar* and two dollar** coins are the way to go. Take the paper out of circulation.
*worth about a US quarter
** about two US quarters
I also think this is rather silly. Using this logic, shouldn’t all the states that formed the Confederacy get two coins in the “50 State Quarters” program? After all they joined the United States twice.
I would like to see this:
That takes care of (1) the unnecessary costs of printing small bills; (2) the argument that cashier tills are not equipped for $1 coins; and (3) the argument that we would all have to carry around a wad of useless coins.
Good plan, Bearflag70. Allow me to add:
6½. Stop production of half dollars. These are currently used even less than the dollar coin, plus its awkward size is a show-stopper.
And I would definitely make #3 be: Eliminate two dollar bill, introduce a $2 coin. This coin would only be slightly larger than the dollar – because, let’s face it, we’re at the “large size” of what people want to use anyway. Since this is an entirely new type of coin, we can easily make the coin stand out from the dollar. Instead of strictly circular, make it 13-sided. It could also be multi-metallic so it visually stands out as well.