Interview with Director of Mint

[GarryN]

On Sunday, Feb 10, the Director of the Mint was interviewed on 60 Minutes and related how the cent now costs two cents to manufacture and how a nickel costs more than 5 cents to manufacture. Then various people were interviewed and said how useless the cent was. A student from MIT even created a formula to calculate how much productivity is wasted using cents in transactions. Then at the end, the irony of all this was brought to light when the host described the four reverses that were planned for 2009. He said the design changes inferred that there was no plan to discontinue the cent in the near future.

I was thinking that if the deisgn and engraving time and the review and approval time were factored in, then the cost of the cent in 2009 would be much more than 2 cents. I wonder if the Director had that in mind when he calculated cost of the nickel since that has gone through some major reverse design changes over the last couple years.

[coop]

There is a mall where we sometimes go and they have all their prices set to only need quarters. If you look into their registers, all you see is quarters, No other change. Seems like a better way to keep down the amount of change you need to run a business.

[Dick]

Where is thatMall? I want to avoid it at all cost! If you don't use cents in your business, "you ain'y gonn git any of mine"!
Dick

[GarryN]

I would guess, Coop, that it would become annoying if a shop refused to accept change in denominations under a quarter.

[Dick]

It seems to me, to be a very poor way of doing business. They seem to forget that there are a whole lot of people who do not use a plastic card to get anything they need. There are MANY who don't even own a plastic card, to start with. They are the ones who deal in "small change"! ANY CHANGE! Many of them are the same ones who put their lives on the line so some of these business can flourish, today! IMHO, any business that operates in this manner, and discriminates against the very ones who "would" malke use of their items for sale, will definitely go elsewhere! It doesn't just "smell bad, ir reeks of "hen-house ways"!
Dick

[eagames]

Rounding to quarters is too much but I think they will drop the cents soon (round to 5 or 10 cents) or maybe they will make cheaper copper plated steel cents.

I'd hate to see them stop making cents, they are a bargain even at 2 cents