# So much for more dollar coins. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 13, 2011, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066 "2011-12-13T19:56:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/81 "2011-12-14T19:21:45Z")
> [@Dr.Drake](#): > > Could somebody spell out for me what these political reasons are? I just don’t understand what the problem is. Basically, the issue is this: To a much greater extent than in other countries, a small minority of people can block legislation if they feel strongly enough about it. And there is definitely a portion of Americans that are strongly traditionalistic about the money. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/82 "2011-12-14T19:23:10Z")
> [@iamthewalrus\_3](#): > > there’s no actual good argument to make for keeping pennies, and getting rid of them is met with the same tremendous public disapproval. Make the argument that something that costs .92 now wouldn’t cost .95 the day after there are no more pennies. Try not to be snarky, it’s an honest question. If I were selling widgits for .91, with no more pennies I’d charge .95 for them. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/83 "2011-12-14T19:31:08Z")
I have always believed that the political resistance would fall away if they issued the Dollar coin with Reagan on it (not just within a Presidential series, but as the permanent image). All those on the right would turn around and become very vocal supporters, - the folks on the left would sigh heavily and roll their eyes, but not put up a major stink (just like with every other political argument :D). …oh, and they would have to stop printing paper dollars. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/84 "2011-12-14T19:58:36Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Make the argument that something that costs .92 now wouldn’t cost .95 the day after there are no more pennies. #1 What do you buy that’s 92 cents each? #2 You round the transaction after you add all the individual purchases together and add tax, there’s nothing stopping anyone from selling something for 92 cents, any more than they stop people from charging $x.xx+nine tenths of a cent per gallon of gas. #3 You buy something for 92 cents, they add 7% tax and it comes to 98 cents, which rounds up to 1 dollar. Buy something for 95 cents, they add 7% tax, it comes to $1.02, which rounds down to 1 dollar. #4, it’s 3 cents! You can save 3 cents a day for an entire year and have just enough money to take your honey to a fancy meal at Mc Donalds, as long as she doesn’t expect an apple pie for dessert. ---
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/85 "2011-12-14T20:09:09Z")
> [@Cheesesteak](#): > > #1 What do you buy that’s 92 cents each? > > #2 You round the transaction after you add all the individual purchases together and add tax, there’s nothing stopping anyone from selling something for 92 cents, any more than they stop people from charging $x.xx+nine tenths of a cent per gallon of gas. > > #3 You buy something for 92 cents, they add 7% tax and it comes to 98 cents, which rounds up to 1 dollar. Buy something for 95 cents, they add 7% tax, it comes to $1.02, which rounds down to 1 dollar. > > #4, it’s 3 cents! You can save 3 cents a day for an entire year and have just enough money to take your honey to a fancy meal at Mc Donalds, as long as she doesn’t expect an apple pie for dessert. #5 rounding would only apply to cash transactions and thus would not affect many many transactions using credit/debit cards. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/86 "2011-12-14T20:09:14Z")
#5 You can still pay via non-cash, and the price will not be rounded, so is still 92 cents. **Bearflag70** SNAP ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/87 "2011-12-14T20:10:31Z")
> [@Cheesesteak](#): > > #2 You round the transaction after you add all the individual purchases together and add tax, there’s nothing stopping anyone from selling something for 92 cents, any more than they stop people from charging $x.xx+nine tenths of a cent per gallon of gas. I think this is a really important point that a lot of people miss or don’t really think about. They envision having to pay that extra 3 cents each bolt/pencil/whatever they’re buying, but that’s not what actually happens. (Unless you’re buying them in individual transactions, obviously). You’re only going to be paying a maximum of 4 cents (5 cents? I’m math impaired) extra on any given _total purchase_. And sometimes it will round down and you’ll save. It will probably even out. ---
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/88 "2011-12-14T20:10:39Z")
QUACK! I hear an echo! ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/89 "2011-12-14T20:11:59Z")
I’ve you’re referring to me I wasn’t meaning to repeat so much as just to emphasize. ---
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/90 "2011-12-14T20:14:40Z")
> [@OpalCat](#): > > I’ve you’re referring to me I wasn’t meaning to repeat so much as just to emphasize. **GuanoLad** , not you. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/91 "2011-12-14T20:27:18Z")
None of these arguments can alter the fact that coins are heavy, noisy, and a pain in the ass to use. A dollar coin just adds to that problem. People who get their jollies thinking about buying a meal with coins are just deluded. Dollar coins are Evil! ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/92 "2011-12-14T20:38:32Z")
> [@Shakester](#): > > (Points at north America and laughs) Hey, be careful which part of North America you’re pointing at! Both Canada and Mexico have polymer banknotes now. (St Pierre et Miquelon, and Kalaalit Nunaat, not so much…) ---
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/93 "2011-12-14T20:38:54Z")
Pennies, nickels, dimes, and dollar bills are a waste of taxpayer money to create. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/94 "2011-12-14T20:40:39Z")
Regarding the idea of rounding, my understanding is that the PX stores used by overseas US military do this already, because of the cost of transporting pennies overseas. And I remember a retail store I visited sometime in the past few months that did the same thing, although I can’t remember the name. It might help if a large American retailer like Walmart or Target chose to round their transactions. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/95 "2011-12-14T20:41:48Z")
> [@The\_Second\_Stone](#): > > I collect them, but I don’t see people using them. I presume that this does not mean the Sacajawea is also gone. Eventually the one dollar paper must go. Sacajawea dollars are no longer being made. They were replaced by the Presidential series. Stupid plan, but there you go. Make a ton of one type of dollar coin, and take the dollar bill out of circulation, and let people bitch for a while. The problem with changing the size of the dollar coin is that there has been a considerable expense put in to making coin machines accept and dispense dollar coins in the size and type they currently exist. The Sacajawea dollars were carefully designed to meet the size, weight, and electrical properties of the Susan B. Anthony dollars because machines built to process them relied on those properties. The same allow is used in the new Presidential series coins. > [@samclem](#): > > Except, we removed the $500 and $1000 banknotes. Yeah, but those bills are not typical use for most people. Whereas _everybody_ handles one dollar bills. ---
**Author:** ![OpalCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8edcca/32.png) [@OpalCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OpalCat)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/96 "2011-12-14T20:42:28Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Regarding the idea of rounding, my understanding is that the PX stores used by overseas US military do this already, because of the cost of transporting pennies overseas. And I remember a retail store I visited sometime in the past few months that did the same thing, although I can’t remember the name. It might help if a large American retailer like Walmart or Target chose to round their transactions. There was an ice cream shop in Tucson years ago, sadly now gone, that had all of their products priced so that when the tax was added, it was a rounded number. I think to the quarter level. It was very convenient and made me wish more places would do it. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/97 "2011-12-14T20:45:19Z")
> [@realmojo](#): > > It’s because strippers would look silly wearing a change purse for tips. Guess you haven’t been to a strip club in Canada. They don’t look silly at all. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/98 "2011-12-14T20:52:05Z")
Another problem with getting rid of nickels, unless you get rid of dimes and make quarters the smallest coin, there’s that annoying problem of making change for quarters. You can get 2 or 3 dimes for a quarter - who gets cheated? Suppose we get rid of pennies and nickels, get rid of quarters, make the dollar coin quarter sized, and a 2 dollar coin the current dollar size. Then all the existing change machines will be screwed. People would be dumping quarters in the change machines that think they are dollar coins. Etc. Once you make machines that can process bills, having it be able to handle $1 as well as $5, $10, or even $20 isn’t that much more complicated - mostly it’s image comparison software. Whereas with coins there are mechanical sorters involved. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/99 "2011-12-14T20:53:58Z")
> [@OpalCat](#): > > There was an ice cream shop in Tucson years ago, sadly now gone, that had all of their products priced so that when the tax was added, it was a rounded number. I think to the quarter level. It was very convenient and made me wish more places would do it. Yeah, it’s odd that the standard here is pricing before tax, which has to then be applied. Would be much simpler if taxes were already incorporated in the stated pricing. You see a price on the wall, you know what you are paying. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2011, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066/100 "2011-12-14T20:58:51Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > Yeah, it’s odd that the standard here is pricing before tax, which has to then be applied. Would be much simpler if taxes were already incorporated in the stated pricing. You see a price on the wall, you know what you are paying. That put’s a huge burden on the business. If the municipality changes its sales tax rate then the retailer would have to change all of its prices. Besides prices of goods aren’t static. They change regularly based upon supply and demand of particular goods. As an accomodation, how about we do away with all sales taxes. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-much-for-more-dollar-coins/606066.md?page=6)