Goodbye, Penny! (1858-2013)

7 posts / 0 new

Mon, 2013-02-04 14:13

Catchfire

Penny Lane is in my ears and in my eyes
There beneath the blue suburban skies
I sit, and meanwhile back

In Penny Lane

CBC's Obituary

Penny, Canadian — Passed away peacefully on Feb. 4, 2013, when the Royal Canadian Mint stopped distributing the copper-coloured coin.

The penny's demise had been anticipated since March 29, 2012, when federal Finance Minister James Flaherty announced in the budget that his government had decided to phase out the smallest denomination of Canada's currency.

The Canadian penny traces its origins to 1858, when the then-province of Canada adopted the decimal system for its currency. Initially, it was struck at the Royal Mint in Great Britain. The 1858 penny had Queen Victoria on the obverse (or "heads") side and a vine of maple leaves on the reverse (or "tails") side.

Dominion of Canada coins were first issued in 1870, but the penny, then made from bronze, didn't join the family until 1876.

The Penny's mournful, self-pitying twitter account.

And a Google doodle

Issues Pages:

Economy

Regions:

Mon, 2013-02-04 17:41

Unionist

In the pouring rain...

So, how come no one suggested, say, life imprisonment for the penny with no chance of parole for, say, 25 years? The death pennylty seems excessive.

Mon, 2013-02-04 22:18

Catchfire

You know what's excessive? Charging 5¢ for three penny candies.

Mon, 2013-02-04 22:40

Unionist

Make merchants round to the [i]nearest[/i] multiple of 5. Then two penny candies will cost 0¢. Buy two twice, and laugh all the way to the piggy bank.

Mon, 2013-02-04 22:44

Catchfire

Obviously, the right play is to pay for anything that rounds down with cash, and anything that rounds up with debit/credit. Up yours, system! I'll game you yet. (Once I've got rich off my penny candy empire, of course.)

Mon, 2013-02-04 22:51

Unionist

You [s]stole[/s] borrowed that idea!!!

Jim Stanford ‏@JimboStanford

Arbitrage opp'ty: pay cash when bill is rounded down, credit when it would be rounded up. Boost yr disposable inc by 0.001%, lose yr friends

Jim Stanford ‏@JimboStanford

Mind you, that 0.001% income gain from arbitraging the penny is more than real hourly wages in Cda grew over the last quarter century!

Mon, 2013-02-04 22:53

Catchfire

Stanford wishes I stole that idea from him, that cad. I stole it from someone else (who may well have stolen it from Jimbo [that cad]).

(Nice point about the income gain/wage increase! My [s]source[/s] muse was not so forthcoming with context!)