2 of 32

No

Write now Article Tools

Periodically, I hear rumblings regarding doing away with the penny. Comments are made as to the copper the coin is made of being more valuable than one cent. Proponents of banishing the penny remark about how cumbersome a purse full or pocket full of pennies can be. (They can always be kept in a piggy bank). Regardless of the arguments for getting rid of the Lincoln coin, there are certainly reasons not to.

Has it occurred to anyone how many other things would have to be changed? The word change is your first clue. How many items can you think of that come at a "round figure" price. Vendors love to charge $1.99 or $99.99 to avoid saying two dollars or one hundred dollars. Prices everywhere would have to be changed, because there would be no pennies with which to make change. How about taxable items? Taxes always lead to a handful of pennies to you or a penny or two added to your total amount to the cashier.

What if penny loafers were to return to the fashion scene? We know that fashion tends to be circular and things do come back around. It just would not be the same to put a nickel or dime in the slot on the shoe.

Why,even one of the oldest adages of our culture would have to change. How many times have you offered a penny for one's thoughts? Would asking that question using another coin be as poignant?

Granted, one cent does not purchase anything on its own, but it is great fun for a child to accumulate enough pennies to roll - then take several rolls to the corner store to purchase something yummy. I have been to many Vacation Bible Schools through the years, and most have had penny wars between the boys and girls to collect money to send missionaries. The children are all encouraged to gather the pennies around the house and bring them to VBS. At a certain point during the general assembly the girls all empty their pennies into a bucket on one end of a homemade "scale" (a two by four balanced across a saw horse). The boys then dump theirs in. The team that ends up bringing the most at the end of the week gets a privilege of some sort, and the elected missionary gets the money. It's a win-win thing, but another thing that just wouldn't be the same without the penny.

Another coin would have to be minted in it's place to bear that wonderful profile of President Lincoln. We just could not do without that. It is a staple of our society.

In 2009 the penny will be 100 years old. I believe I will give each of my 10 grandchildren 100 pennies and challenge them to start a "penny jar". It's amazing how fast those things expand in value.

The penny truly is a part of our culture that I hope endures. There is some sentimental thinking going on here, I admit, but considering the much larger issues facing our economy, it hardly seems worthwhile to deal with all the changes that doing away with the illustrious penny would require.

Learn more about this author, Linda Burleson.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

Add your voice

Know something about Should we eliminate the penny??
We want to hear your view. Write now!