Armstrong:
Grant Kuyak Upload:
Posted on 02/11/2025 7:51:00 AM PST by delta7
President Donald Trump directed the Treasury Department to cease minting pennies. The penny has been circulating for 233 years, first established in 1792. Trump has been against the creation of a CBDC, but this move is clearly one massive step illustrating the long-term trend of inflation.
More than that, the penny was the descendant of the Roman Denarius, and its origin stretches back to the Punic Wars of the Roman Republic when the Denarius first appeared. Before that, Rome’s coinage complied with the Greek monetary standard. The cost of the Punic Wars was highly inflationary, and the Romans issued the denarius, and they greatly debased their bronze coinage.
After the Dark Ages, this is when we see the reappearance of the Denier named after the Denarius in French. The Germans called it the Pfennig, and the English called it the penny. Yet these were struck in silver – not bronze. The denarius was originally valued at 10 pounds of bronze. So, the end of the penny is really the end of over 2500 years of monetary history.
The first pennies, known as “large cents,” featured the Flowing Hair design (1793) with a chain reverse, later replaced by a wreath reverse for better strikes. The value of a penny was far more than any of us in modern times respected. There were even half pennies issued until there was a financial crisis involving a shortage of copper in 1857.
In mid-1793, Joseph Wright’s Liberty Cap design introduced a more consistent look and remained until 1796. In 1796, the Draped Bust design, based on Gilbert Stuart’s artwork, replaced Liberty Cap cents and lasted until 1807.
From 1808 to 1814, the Classic Head design by John Reich depicted Liberty with a headband. Poor-quality coins struck in 1812 improved after the War of 1812.
From 1816 to 1839, the Matron Head (Coronet Head) design by Christian Gobrecht made Liberty appear more conservative. In 1839, the Braided Hair design gave Liberty braided hair and a larger wreath reverse. Large cents were unpopular and costly to produce, leading to their replacement by smaller, copper-nickel cents in 1857.
The Flying Eagle cent (1857–1858), designed by James Longacre, featured an eagle in flight but was discontinued due to striking issues. It was replaced by the Indian Head cent (1859–1909), which depicted Liberty in an Indian headdress.
The 1859 reverse had a simple wreath, but in 1860, a Union shield was added, symbolizing national unity. Due to wartime hoarding, the coin’s composition changed from copper-nickel to bronze in 1864.
Lincoln Cents” (1909) marked the last major shift in the penny. Commissioned for Lincoln’s 100th birthday, the Lincoln Cent, designed by Victor David Brenner, debuted in 1909 with a wheat reverse. In 1959, Frank Gasparro’s Lincoln Memorial reverse replaced the original design. In 2009, four special cents honored Lincoln’s 200th birthday, depicting key stages of his life. In 2010, the Union Shield reverse, designed by Lyndall Bass, symbolized Lincoln’s legacy of preserving the nation. The Lincoln cent remains the longest continuously minted U.S. coin and a favorite among collectors.
The coin’s composition changed over time: bronze (1909–1942), zinc-coated steel (1943, due to WWII copper shortages), then back to bronze (1944–1982). In 1982, it switched to copper-coated zinc, still in use today despite rising production costs. Pennies have been more expensive to produce than face value since 2006. The US Treasury stated that the penny cost 2.72 cents to produce as of 2023, but DOGE reported last month that costs rose above 3 cents. The mint spent $179 million to produce 4.5 billion pennies in FY2023, which would be above the 3 cent mark. For FY24, the US Minth said it cost 3.7 cents to produce and distribute a penny, a 20% YoY increase.
“For far too long the United States has minted pennies which literally cost us more than 2 cents. This is so wasteful!” Trump wrote over the weekend. “I have instructed my Secretary of the US Treasury to stop producing new pennies.” Later, adding, “Let’s rip the waste out of our great nation’s budget, even if it’s a penny at a time.”
Instead of altering the metal content, the decision is to eliminate the penny. Existing pennies will continue circulating, but we can expect people to begin hoarding. They eliminated the penny in Canada years ago and consumers simply round to the nearest 5 cents. Speaking of 5 cents, the nickel is also far more costly to produce than its face value, so there’s reason to believe this administration may consider the costs of minting coins in general. The government would not shock public confidence by discontinuing all US coinage at once. The penny, the lowest denomination of our physical currency, is the most digestible way to ease into the concept of no longer minting coins. Pennies will still be regarded as legal tender and can be used in transactions the same way that the $2 bill can be exchanged. But the ultimate goal is to push us into a cashless society.
Trump signed an executive order titled “Strengthening American Leadership in Digital Financial Technology,” prohibiting the central bank from creating a CBDC. The executive order also offers a framework for the US government to begin regulating crypto, with David Sacks appointed as the AI and Crypto Czar. Trump plans to boost US holdings of bitcoin and would also like to boost the production of “Made in America” bitcoins. Again, the government has always had backdoor access to blockchain.
I have stated for some time that the Federal Reserve will not create a CBDC as that would violate the 4th Amendment. Instead, individual banks will be encouraged to create their own currencies, which can then be tracked, traced, and reported to the government.
“MoneyBack and TG is the same person...”
If that were true you would have banned both of us.
MoneyBack and TG is the same person...
————
That add nothing to Armstrong’s excellent monetary posts. His life long collection of “ money” is considered to be one of the world’s finest collections.
Mankind’s monetary failures can be seen through his 5,000 year collection, which he shares. I am grateful he posts coinage that is rarely seen.
Armstrong:
Grant Kuyak Upload:
Excellent post!
So are you saying I wrote "retread" but should have written "retard?"
I don't have the power to ban you.
I can only point out that you two showed up on the same thread, and posted within seconds of each other...
Well, here ya go, LOL
Half penny, two penny, gold Krugerrand
He was exceedingly rich for such a young man
Sad story, old story
Bring out the band
Another divorce just a few hundred grand
Half penny, two penny, back of the queue
Yes mister poor man this means you
Justice for money what can you say
We all know it’s the American way
Yes, I’m gonna shake myself loose
Back home across the sea
Where I know that I will be free
For the last few decades pennies were only good for squishing in those penny squishing machines...
C’est la vie.
They have captured my habit and made it a weakness. I dont like dealing with change at all now.
Gee I just spent $500 with my cell phone and was so convenient it scared the sh!t out of myself!
When did this idiot get the zot, and how did I miss doing a zot ping?!
(Also, I suspect he has a new retread ID here. The timing is about right, and he has a hard-on for Armstrong...)
Not sure when MoneyBack got the zot.
But glad he did. We sure don’t need two of ‘em.
Check out the posts (and timing) of https://freerepublic.com/~nearlydone/
Yeah, NearlyDone is the new MoneyBrokeBack.
Yeah, NearlyDone is the new MoneyBrokeBack.….is the old gaytor.
He can’t be any more obvious, with his alter ego(s) posts. 🙃
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