Category Archives: WTF

I would not bend over to pick up a penny, nickel or dime. What’s the point? I can’t use this form of currency unless I find hundreds of them. I even dread receiving change at the store; the coins just sit in my drawer taking up space. Now, I might bend over for a quarter because quarters still possess some utility for certain services, e.g. parking meter or washing machine.

Would you bend over to pick up a penny?

In fact, you soon won’t be able to pick a penny in Canada. The Canadian government announced yesterday they no longer plan to mint their penny. Why? It costs a lot to make these coins. Australia and the UK decided long ago to phase out their equivalents of these coins.

This news story reminded me of the murky fact in my brain that the US spends more to produce most coins than their worth. How much more? According to a recent report from MSNBC, it costs more than two cents to make a penny. Minting a nickel costs 11.18 cents. These costs relate directly to the increase in costs for the metals used in the coin production: copper, nickel and zinc.

Given that these coins offer no utility and cost more than they’re worth, why is the US government still producing them for circulation?