It is time that we got rid of coins. What do we need them for? We always seem to be in a national coin shortage anyways, so let’s just eliminate the need for them altogether.
Coins literally haunt my nightmares. Imagine this terrifying scenario: You are at the front of a really long line at a register at a restaurant or store. You decided to pay with cash because your high school business classes taught you “Cash is King”. But of course, you did not pay in exact change because who does that and then the person working the register gives you a handful of coins. Then, because the line behind you is so long and you can feel the judgmental, piercing stares of the people behind you are scrambling to shove the coins back into your wallet or purse or pocket and you drop them literally everywhere. Then you either have to get on your hands and knees and pick them up or awkwardly decide to leave the change on the ground and walk out of the establishment, leaving a thick trail of shame as you go.
Maybe that is too niche of an experience, and I am just too clumsy to deal with coins, but there are other reasons to get rid of coins that everyone has to deal with.
First of all, they smell awful. I hate the metallic smell of coins and it is so hard to get rid of. You could wash your hands twice in a row and the coin smell will not be gone until a few hours later. Plus, they are so dirty. Who knows where they have been before they came to you?
Second, they are heavy. Sure one or two do not make a difference, but once you start shoving your purse full of coins every time you get change (let’s face it, you’re not ever using those coins), they get to be pretty heavy and weigh you down. Personally, I rarely use coins, so I do not want to be lugging around and extra 2 lbs. of coins in my purse. Almost everywhere accepts credit cards or debit cards now so why waste space with cash and coins? A lot of vending machines even take cards nowadays. In the state of New York, you no longer need coins to pay tolls either.
Coins are essentially useless. In very rare instances, you might pay in exact change with coins, but it is much more likely you will drop the coins on the floor while you are digging for them and end up paying with your card anyways.
The only time I enjoy coins and choose to pay with them is when they are foreign currency. While in Europe this summer, I used euros all the time because they are bigger values and are easier to pay with.
Icelandic Krónur are also acceptable. I LOVE THESE COINS. Just like Euros, they are bigger values making them easier to pay with. But what makes them even better is their designs. Krónur are the cutest currency I have ever seen. They have fish, dolphins, and crabs on the back of the coins.
So basically, if the United States is not going to redesign coins to hold much higher values and put cute little animals on the back, then coins should be eliminated. Let’s start a petition.