[QUOTE=Gorsnak]
Dangit. I went to the whereswilly Canadian equivalent (Willy for Wilfred Laurier, former PM on the $5 bill) and entered the serial number of my lone five and… it was the first entry. Booooooring! 
[/QUOTE]
[sidebar]Why in the world did they call it “Where’s Willy?” “Willy” is the nickname for William. The nickname for Wilfred is Wilf. Grumble, grumble, grumble… [/sidebar]
[QUOTE=Northern Piper]
[sidebar]Why in the world did they call it “Where’s Willy?” “Willy” is the nickname for William. The nickname for Wilfred is Wilf. Grumble, grumble, grumble… [/sidebar]
[/QUOTE]
In script fonts, Wilf and Milf are too easily confused.
[QUOTE=silenus]
Worked in the military for years. Script was always issued “In Theater” in “pocket-change” denominations.
[/QUOTE]
The scrip was only redeemable at military facilities? Was that to keep the value from leaking out into the surrounding economy?
Yep. Among other reasons.
[QUOTE=silenus]
Worked in the military for years. Script was always issued “In Theater” in “pocket-change” denominations.
[/QUOTE]
Are you seriously suggesting that this would be practical in everyday situations? Or are the ‘other reasons’ including the fact that it would be a nightmare to administer for almost anyone having to deal with such things? (Edit: one of my local bus companies issues credit notes to people who haven’t got the correct change for their fare…does that also merit mention?)
[QUOTE=GingerOfTheNorth]
I’m very fond of the loonie and toonie. I used to get Sackies at the bank down here when I first moved, just a little reminder of home. I stopped when people who were stupid as a sack of hammers wouldn’t accept them, thinking they weren’t real money.
[/QUOTE]
I used to work behind the counter of a convenience store, and although I don’t mind Sackies myself, I was always annoyed when people gave them to me. I knew I’d have a bitch of time getting rid of them. I dreamed of telling everyone who asked for a bill instead of the coins to sod off. This was one of many reasons I was all wrong for any form of customer service. Americans are entitled pricks.
One form of money I think is underrated is the $2 bill. They are rarely used, but you can get them at most banks just for the asking. I like to use them for tips.
Oh, and I for one also don’t care if coins are cheaper. The U.S. government can afford to print the paper.
[QUOTE=scr4]
It’s a familiar alternative, but that’s all. Americans are remarkably conservative when it comes to personal life, and the American government has always been reluctant to challenge it. The resistance to the Metric system is another example of this.<snip>
[/QUOTE]
This is the heart of the matter in a nutshell. The rest of the world has experienced what Americans have now, and we have experience with the changes that are proposed (dollar coins and metric system), and we tell you repeatedly that it honestly is a better system, that it isn’t that hard to change, and there aren’t any major problems with the changes, but Americans dig in their heels and put their fingers in their ears and go, “Nononononono! No change! No change! Change is bad!”
[QUOTE=featherlou]
This is the heart of the matter in a nutshell. The rest of the world has experienced what Americans have now, and we have experience with the changes that are proposed (dollar coins and metric system), and we tell you repeatedly that it honestly is a better system, that it isn’t that hard to change, and there aren’t any major problems with the changes, but Americans dig in their heels and put their fingers in their ears and go, “Nononononono! No change! No change! Change is bad!”
[/QUOTE]
Or it can be for the reasons already stated and ignored. :rolleyes: Like I said, I have actually ventured outside of the borders. I have lived several years in another country. I prefer the money to be left alone. Not because thats how it always was, but because I have lived with both and I prefer it the way it is. Is that so hard to understand? This is for a small cost savings. meh. Try cutting some actual government waste and pork. The only benefit I can see is at a vending machine. I use them so infrequently that it does not matter.
[QUOTE=Loach]
I hate the idea. It would be almost impossible to engrave each coin I get with wheresgeorge.
[/QUOTE]
Dammit, Loach, I came in here to say that! 
[QUOTE=Mama Zappa]
Dammit, Loach, I came in here to say that!
[/QUOTE]
Oh no, another one. Do you get funny looks from your family too?
[QUOTE=Gorsnak]
Dangit. I went to the whereswilly Canadian equivalent (Willy for Wilfred Laurier, former PM on the $5 bill) and entered the serial number of my lone five and… it was the first entry. Booooooring!
[/QUOTE]
Of course it was. The only way it would have been in the database already is if someone like you entered it, then forgot to mark it.
You do know how wheresgeorge/whereswilly works, don’t you?
[QUOTE=Loach]
Oh no, another one. Do you get funny looks from your family too?
[/QUOTE]
Indeed I do!! Typo Knig and I had a stack of bills to “george” a few months back. My brother was visiting from out of town and was very confused when he heard Typo reading me serial numbers to enter into the computer. He rolled his eyes even harder when we explained, then made him hand over a couple of dollars from his pocket to track (we did give 'em back!). It’s part of the reason I volunteered to be Girl Scout cookie manager for our troop 3 years in a row 
(well, that and the dozens of cases of Samoas in the dining room…). And the kids think we’re nuts also (well, this is just one of many reasons for that!)
[QUOTE=samclem]
As many have said before me, the main reason that Americans won’t accept the dollar coins(whether Ikes, SBAs or Sacs) is that we still have the paper dollar as a more attractive alternative.
.
[/QUOTE]
“A more attractive alternative”?? I feel like we’re becoming like a third-world country, when it takes a wad of bills to buy a sandwich. How is that more attractive?
One particular reason the dollar bill hangs on is that the factory that makes U.S. currency paper is in Massachusetts, and Ted Kennedy, has taken an “over my dead body” stance in regard to ditching the dollar bill.
Since it seems to have fallen into the depths, without anyone noticing, I’m going to mention this again.
People have been talking about the Mint as though it controls all currency (in the broadest sense of the term - exchangeble media, rather than simply paper, as the BOE and Mint use the term) issued in the US. It doesn’t. The Bureau of Engraving is a seperate office, and neither the BOE nor the Mint has authority over the other. They are on the same level in the Treasury Department’s heirarchy, and so they are competetors for the resources of the Treasury Department.
Per the BOE’s own website: 45% of all bills issued by the BOE are $1. If we eliminate that, it’s going to make a huge hit on the number of people employed by the BOE. Which translates to the BOE’s budget, and therefore the power and prestige of the BOE, itself. This isn’t to say that it’s the only factor resisting the “logical” decision to remove the $1 from circulation - but it is another reason why the Treasury isn’t getting its act together to coordinate a discontinuation of the dollar bill with the release of the new dollar coins.
Well, here is one American, who, while vehemently against metric, wouldn’t mind having coins instead of dollar bills.
FWIW, I’ve noticed during my trips to the US that my wallet ends up being stuffed full of $1 notes and 1c pieces, sometimes to the point where it’s almost not possible to close it easily.
My advice: Ditch the 1c pieces, for a start. Our lives (NZ & Australia) got a lot easier once we got rid of them, and NZ has also ditched the 5c piece.
I was initially sad to see $1 & $2 notes go, but the coins aren’t a hassle at all- you spend them first anyway to get rid of them, and I’ve never noticed the “extra weight” or had to carry a coin-purse; my wallet’s coin compartment is fine.
[QUOTE=Sunspace]
[QUOTE=Northern Piper]
[sidebar]Why in the world did they call it “Where’s Willy?” “Willy” is the nickname for William. The nickname for Wilfred is Wilf. Grumble, grumble, grumble… [/sidebar]
[/QUOTE]
In script fonts, Wilf and Milf are too easily confused.
[/QUOTE]
What’s “Milf”?
[QUOTE=Northern Piper]
What’s “Milf”?
[/QUOTE]
It stands for “Mother” (or “Mature [lady]”) “I Would Like to [be] Friends [with]”. If you google it, you will find an alternate expansion; the results are extremely not work-safe.
[QUOTE=Sunspace]
It stands for “Mother” (or “Mature [lady]”) “I Would Like to [be] Friends [with]”. If you google it, you will find an alternate expansion; the results are extremely not work-safe.
[/QUOTE]
Mother I’d Like to Fuck. It’s never been “friends”.