Realcent.org

by **pmbug** » Mon Apr 17, 2023 10:17 am

They pile up in drawers. They're taken or left on a whim at store counters. Vending machines and parking metres won't accept them. And last year they cost the U.S. Treasury $100 million more to produce than they're worth. Despite all this, the penny -- America's copper-plated 1-cent coin -- persists.

For decades .U.S lawmakers, journalists, and penny-jar owners have debated whether the coin's declining value justifies its continued production. All the while it gets less valuable with each passing year. Inflation has hit it from both sides: production and distribution costs have gone up while the actual utility of the coin goes down.

While the volume of cash transactions may be declining, the penny has never cost more to produce than it did in 2022, at 2.72 cents per 1-cent coin. Meanwhile, it is now worth just 80% of its value in 2017, the last time a major legislative effort to phase it out was introduced. ...

https://www.ft.com/content/2a4332d1-9fa ... 203c44f12d

h/t: https://gata.org/node/22577

by **Recyclersteve** » Wed Apr 19, 2023 1:24 am

I just posted about this topic in a bit different way on 4/15/23 (Sat.) when I posted regarding questions about Canadian cents.

Hmmm. It would be interesting if someone from the FT came out and said they are a member of this site…

by **thecrazyone** » Wed Apr 19, 2023 5:58 am

I will continue to take the ones that noone wants.

by **Silver4face** » Wed Apr 19, 2023 10:44 pm

I want the penny to stick around so that I can HARVEST. However, if we scrape away my personal interests, then the penny should be abolished for many reasons. As I have said in other posts, start buying rolls and stash them away. You can always open them later on down the road, or possibly sell them unsearched (Loomis, string) YEARS after discontinuance.

by **DC_Penny_Guy** » Tue May 16, 2023 1:40 pm

Congress should abolish more than just the penny... The nickel and the paper 1-dollar-bill should go, too.

by **Silver4face** » Tue May 16, 2023 10:16 pm

DC_Penny_Guy wrote:Congress should abolish more than just the penny... The nickel and the paper 1-dollar-bill should go, too.

Yeah I totally agree with you. However, I want the nickel to stick around so that I can drain out worthwhile stuff. I'm still buying wars, buffs, pre 1960 , older Canadian for face right out of rolls. In fact, I pulled a 1956 nickel today in absolute showroom condition! Probably an MS 64/65.

by **Doctor Steuss** » Wed May 17, 2023 11:01 am

My hot-take is that regardless of how many positives there are, I think that the potential spin for political opposition if a given party were to get rid of the penny would make for political suicide. Until we reach a point where bipartisan agreement can be found in basic sanity again in our country, instead of opposition for the sake of opposition, we’re going to keep on wasting money churning out pennies, and living with their inconvenience.

by **DC_Penny_Guy** » Mon May 22, 2023 9:26 am

Silver4face wrote:
DC_Penny_Guy wrote:Congress should abolish more than just the penny... The nickel and the paper 1-dollar-bill should go, too.

Yeah I totally agree with you. However, I want the nickel to stick around so that I can drain out worthwhile stuff. I'm still buying wars, buffs, pre 1960 , older Canadian for face right out of rolls. In fact, I pulled a 1956 nickel today in absolute showroom condition! Probably an MS 64/65.

Hey, I'm buying between $150 and $350 in penny rolls every week from my local banks, running them through my Ryedale sorter, then searching through the copper bucket for the wheaties/IHPs/dimes/foreigns. When they abolish the penny, they'll be abolishing my hobby. So I don't necessarily WANT it to happen anytime soon... But in a healthy democracy, one capable of good governance, it would have happened at least 10 years ago.

by **TXSTARFIRE** » Mon May 22, 2023 11:40 am

Dont forget that the United States is a Republic not a Democracy.

by **Doctor Steuss** » Mon May 22, 2023 5:41 pm

TXSTARFIRE wrote:Dont forget that the United States is a Republic not a Democracy.

We're actually both (with some other flavorings tossed it).

by **Gipper1985** » Tue May 23, 2023 8:28 am

Doctor Steuss wrote:
TXSTARFIRE wrote:Dont forget that the United States is a Republic not a Democracy.

We're actually both (with some other flavorings tossed it).

It seems like Democracy is one of those terms that has changed to meet the current political climate. Personally, I don't think we fit the definition of either at present.

by **Doctor Steuss** » Tue May 23, 2023 9:53 am

Gipper1985 wrote:
Doctor Steuss wrote:
TXSTARFIRE wrote:Dont forget that the United States is a Republic not a Democracy.

We're actually both (with some other flavorings tossed it).

It seems like Democracy is one of those terms that has changed to meet the current political climate. Personally, I don't think we fit the definition of either at present.

We are a representative democracy (although at local levels, we are often a direct democracy on things like state constitutional amendments, depending on states).

A broken first past the post duopoly wherein representatives prioritize their corporate interests over the interests of those they represent... but a democracy nonetheless.

by **Klark Cent** » Tue Aug 15, 2023 3:28 pm

Are there any threads speculating what it would be like if the melt ban ended or if the copper price went up high enough to create a 5 or 10 cent melt value per cent?

I'd love to unload my about $3,300 face but not at today's prices.

EDIT: i found some threads

by **Cu Penny Hoarder** » Thu Aug 17, 2023 9:00 am

Klark Cent wrote:Are there any threads speculating what it would be like if the melt ban ended or if the copper price went up high enough to create a 5 or 10 cent melt value per cent?

I'd love to unload my about $3,300 face but not at today's prices.

EDIT: i found some threads

Every Realcenter Cu hoarders dream!

:wave: