Pennies Shall Die
We can all agree the economy of the United States of America has changed a lot in 151 years. So why are we using 151 year old currency? The penny, which was first commissioned in 1864, has reached the end of its life, even though some say we should keep it because removing it would hurt the poor. The American government wastes lots of money each year making these useless coins. It is time for our country to move away from the one cent coin. The penny should should be removed from circulation because other countries have done is successfully, they are not worth anything, and they are a waste of money.
America should ditch the penny because other countries have done it successfully. An article by a former soldier has the
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idea that our own overseas military bases have already ditched one cent coins (Fossett). If three other countries have already done it and our own military bases already have moved away from one cent coins we could to. This quote from TIME money magazine proves an important point about pennies ”Canada decided back in 2012 to stop making pennies because of production costs and consumers viewing them as largely worthless, and over the years many have called for the U.S. to similarly get rid of the penny.” (Nicks) This shows how we should consider how a country with similar resources and economy got rid of their one cent successfully, and think about following in Canada’s footsteps. Another piece of evidence from a Melbourne University study about their own removal of there one cent coin is “Even though losing two cents on each transaction would give a loss of $5256, 95% of large stores will be within $14.21 of breaking even at the end of the year” (The Effect of Eliminating 1 and 2 Cent Coins) This quote on the effects of rounding after australia got rid of there on cent shoes that rounding doesn’t effect them in any serious way. (The effect of eliminating 1 and 2 cent coins) We should fall in line and get rid of our useless one cent coin. Pennys should die because they are not worth anything.
Evidence from a TIme magazine article about financial reform is ¨ The penny is a currency without any currency¨ (Stanburn) Currency is a word the means system of money exchange so this quote means that the penny is a coin that doesn't help us exchange value. This quote from an article by a coins expert states ¨They don't buy anything, many people just throw them away, and nobody wants to use them, so let's just get rid of them!¨ (Headley). This quote is talking about the fact that you can’t buy anything with a penny, in today's economy nothing cost one cent because of this pennies tend to collect on people's dressers, in jars, and in trashcans. Ar reason from a Money Week article is we should remove the penny from circulation because the U.S. has had to pass legislation banning the melting of pennies.(Heaton) If our coins face value is so little that people can and do melt coins down for the metals in them and make a profit and to force the U.S. to ban the procedure just shows how little the penny is truly worth. The penny should die because it is not worth any thing, in fact it wastes …show more content…
money. We should stop producing pennies because they waste money.
This piece of evidence comes from Greg Mankiw in an article by PBS news “It costs the mint well more than a cent to make a penny” (Mankiw) This shows that we should stop producing the penny because it makes no sense to make something that is not worth the money you spent to produce it. Another quote comes from The Washington Post “I am able to report that…drugstore chains have estimated that handling pennies adds 2 to 2.5 seconds per cash transaction. Assume that the average citizen makes one such transaction every day, ...so futzing with pennies costs him $3.65 annually. “ (Mallaby) This quote proves that pennies waste money because by physically paying with pennies you waste money, it might seem like a small amount but with millions living here it adds up. A final piece of evidence is from a PBS newshour article “the government continues to mint four billion pennies every year, even when it costs 1.8 cents to mint one penny. That means the U.S. government pays $8 million more than pennies are worth.” (Solman) This quote shows that the U.S. waste a ridiculous amount of money every year making pennies. The penny should be eliminated because it waste our money even though there are some
counterclaims. While most evidence proves pennies should die, some people disagree with this stance because the poor may suffer slightly with the elimination of the penny. This piece of evidence from Susan Headley a coin expert says “There are thousands of small charities that depend on penny drives to bring in donations” (Headley). This quote shows how charities might have more trouble bringing in donations since people are slightly more likely to part with a penny versus a nickel or a dime. Though this argument may seem accurate, today many donations are made online and places like children's hospitals now ask for the donations at registers instead of using canisters of fountains to collect coins because counting, transporting, and in some cases cleaning the coins is expensive and time consuming.(Estrin) A quote from a banking article by Michael Estrin is “a tax would have a disproportionately negative impact on the poor who would be hurt the most by minor price increases”(Estrin). This evidence shows that the poor would suffer more than anyone else when it comes to having to round to the nearest nickel because they make more small purchases. While this example does explain why some would argue against the removal of the penny, it leaves out some important facts, studies conducted by Robert Whaples, an economics professor at Wake Forest University showed that overall rounding would not have a great effect and may even contain a slight benefit for the average consumer. (Barrett) In conclusion all of this information undeniably proves that the penny should be eliminated from existence because other countries have already done it, they are useless , and the waste money. America needs to move our currency into a more modern era by removing the penny from circulation. So follow this problem in the news and support your local politicians that have sided correctly in the U.S. penny debate.
In 2001 United States Representative Jim Kolbe introduced legislation to Congress to eliminate the penny coin in most transactions. Although this legislation failed, there are still consistent calls to eliminate the penny as the smallest-denomination United States coin. Our nation is founded on passed traditions. Any American can look basically in any place to understand why America has thrived for centuries. Every tradition, sculpture, monument, or artifact gives Americans history about what has occured. The country struggles to destroy any of these long kept traditions. Although some traditions are completely relevant, the use of the penny is of little worth today. Whether the penny is rolling around in your pocket or resting at the
In 2001, United Sates Representative Jim Kolbe proposed a legislation to Congress to dispose the penny coin from the currency of America because of its small impact. Although his legislation failed, most people currently argue about the penny’s existence today. Even though the penny stood as a mark of history, it is useless and should be eliminated from America’s currency.
Do we really need pennies? The story of the penny starts in 1792; it came with several different coins including the dime, nickel, quarter, and half penny. The pennies were first made out of 100% copper, but the price of the copper went up, because of inflation, the power of the penny went down. The cause of the mint is to reduce the amount of copper in pennies first from 100% to 95% but then to 5% copper and 95% zinc. Despite the debate in 2006, the value of metal on older pennies rose over one year.
To begin, United States should not eliminate the penny because the coin has impacted our language by giving us more phrases and words. According to source #4, it states, “The one-cent has influenced our language, giving us a number of idioms, such as ‘a penny for your thoughts’ (a way to ask what someone is thinking) and ‘not one red cent’ (meaning no money at all).” This is significant because it shows that the penny has affected the English language
Have a good look at the penny, what do you see? You probably see nothing but a copper coated circular poor valued cent. Little does everyone know pennies have been around longer than before their grandparents, even their great-grandparents! Matter of fact, it was around so long ago that Abraham Lincoln’s face was not the first design on the penny. I ask that you take the time to consider the American penny’s worth. Without the people’s belief in its value, the penny will be abolished. I see people every day throwing away a penny rather than to put it in their pocket and save it for future uses. Yes a penny is "outdated, almost worthless, bothersome and wasteful" (Safire) piece of junk, but it's has an economic, cultural, and historical significance to the United States of America. The problem is that nobody pays attention to that, and that gives pennies the image of no value. Three good solutions to show the pennies worth include: tolls and vending machines accepting the coin, more charities to keep their penny drives, and historical evidence of what the penny mean to America so that it can be passed on to the future generations.
The Penny is a wonderful coin. It might only be worth one cent but that one cent can help people in all sought's of situations. The penny should kept in circulation. There are many people that use the penny still in today’s society.
Millions of Americans work full-time, day in and day out, making near and sometimes just minimum wage. In 1998, Barbara Ehrenreich decided to join them in part by the welfare claim, which promises that any job equals a better life. Barbara wondered how anyone can survive, let alone prosper, on $6-$7 an hour. Barbara moved from Florida to Maine to Minnesota, working in the cheapest lodgings available and accepting work as a waitress, hotel maid, house cleaner, nursing home aide, and Wal-Mart salesperson. She soon realizes that even the lowliest occupations require exhausting mental and physical efforts and in most cases more than one job was needed to make ends meet. Nickel and Dimed reveals low-wage America in all of its glory, consisting of
We should keep the penny because it has history, in fact it was “the first currency authorized by the United States” (Lewis). The penny no longer has the value that it used to have, but it is still necessary to make purchases as accurate as possible. The penny may seem like a waste of time to many Americans because it takes so long for cashiers to make change, forcing people to wait in line, but it is actually worth the time spent. The penny helps with keeping prices a cent lower, and therefore stimulating the economy. The penny is important to many people who need the money and for whom pennies still have value.
"As of 2014, the cost of making a penny was estimated at 1.7¢. So yeah, it almost costs two pennies just to make one penny- which makes no sense (pun intended)". Over time, many people have called for the U.S. to stop making pennies. Three reasons why are, we have a lot of coins and bills, not many people carry around cash, and making pennies can waste time, money, and minerals. That is why I believe the U.S. should stop making the penny.
There is a side to this debate where the penny could win and stay in circulation. To start, the penny has been around for years and years and it has seemed to work for this whole time. This is true, the penny has been around and can be used still in everyday life. The turn side of this, though valid, is with systems changing is is becoming more and more rare for the penny to have a true dire need. One other strong reason to keep the penny alive would be charity. Charity relies on those people who do not necessarily care enough to keep the pennies t drop them off in the donation box. That though, has a simple solution. If the penny were no longer around nickels and dimes would begin to be the change customers and users are no longer wanting. Charity then in result
Many of Americans view the every day penny as only one cent that carries only little to no value, which is why they wind-up stashed away at the back of drawers. What most people don’t have a clue is the value it once held back in the days where a can of coke was about one cent. Our very own citizens who once fought battles and came home scarred knew that the penny wasn’t just one cent, it was the blood shed, their fallen brothers, and the never ending tears that symbolized one single Lincoln. Pennies are worth more than their currency, they are the history of our home and the beginning of where we stand today.
The penny has been in America for centuries, it's a sentimental object for Americans everywhere. However many have debated on whether or not it should be eliminated or continue being made. The penny should be preserved because it is apart of American culture, given to charity, and keeps items cheap.
For instance, in the article “Abolish the Penny (Source 3)”, it clearly states, “Where do they go? Two-thirds of them immediately drop out of circulation, into piggy banks or –as The Time’s John Tierney noted five years ago –behind chair cushions or at the back of sock drawers next to your old tin-foil ball.” Adding on, many people view the penny as a useless currency, and they even leave it in hidden places around their own home. The reason why pennies are sometimes located in piggy banks or at the back of sock drawers is that citizens see no purpose in obtaining them. In other words, it seems as if the penny has lost its fame and glory ever since other forms of currency have been established, such as quarters, dimes, and dollar bills. As explained by William Safire, quarters and dimes seem to circulate more often than pennies, and pennies “disappear” due to their worthless value and troubles. Specifically, the reign of quarters and dimes has overtaken the significance of pennies, and as time passes by, the term “penny” might not even be mentioned anywhere around the United States. In addition, more people nowadays tend to use quarters and dimes for due change, leaving the penny to become less essential for our needs. As stated in Source 3, the British and French have already abandoned their low-value coins approximately 30 years ago. This demonstrates the probable
In today's century pennies has no purchasing power,pennies are useless and should be abolished.Pennies are not worth the same amount as they did before. Pennies are made out of copper,but if we use the copper for a more valuable coin that could be utilized,states will get rich and have a beneficial in the economy."Arizona is rich in copper...bigger percantage of the large-denomination coins that might be more heavily used it the penny were discontinue."(Source A) If pennies would be "discountinue" the states that have copper would make coins that are in use and beneficial for the people.For example, quarters,dimes,and nickels are worth more than a penny and are in use and acceptable in stores or even vending machines.Making,"A system under which cash transactions would be rounded up and down"(Source A) would be an advantage for the United States.This is a system that would help the stores by not wasting time counting pennies.When,"replacing paper dollars with long-lasting $1 coins"(Source A) would benifit the economy by making dollar coins which will be more beneficial than an ordinary penny.