Here’s some news for you: apparently, they’re redesigning the penny for 2010. Who knew?

My question is, why bother? There have been efforts in the past to phase out the penny; it is, after all, worth less than any other coin that has ever been in circulation in the US. There is no real reason to keep it in our currency, except for sentimental reasons and, apparently, zinc lobbyists.

But as far as I’m concerned, there are no real benefits to keeping the penny around. Vending machines and parking meters won’t accept them. You can’t really use them to pay for anything, so they tend to just sit around until you finally roll them and take them to the bank. Pennies now cost more to produce than they’re worth. Oh, and apparently they’re toxic.

So I say we as a country try to move beyond sentiment and realize that it would be of benefit to everyone (except the zinc industry) to move pennies out of circulation. Hey, at least I’m not alone in my thinking!

Death to the penny! Long live the nickel (so long as it still has value)!

**Random note: Once while Toby and I were dating, I went out of my way to pick up a penny on the ground. When he gave me  a questioning look, I replied, “Pennies are valuable tender.” How things change…**