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Strands in the Tapestry: the Business, Economics, and Tax Policy Thread

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Just because destruction is illegal (makes me wonder about those machines you see in service areas along the highway where you can take a penny and turn it into something commemorative) doesn't mean that it doesn't happen. The government understands this. They also understand that as much as "counterfeiting" coins is illegal, it still happens. Therefore, in order to account for a crime wave to make it less desirable, they need to make the coins be worth about the value of the metal used to make them.

http://www.coinflation.com/

I guess it depends on your definition of "about." The modern dollar coins contain about a nickel's worth of metal.
 
Re: Strands in the Tapestry: the Business, Economics, and Tax Policy Thread

http://www.coinflation.com/

I guess it depends on your definition of "about." The modern dollar coins contain about a nickel's worth of metal.

Knowing its makeup, if I were a counterfeiter (which, for the record, I am not, nor do I encourage this), I would forge a press, buy up the scrap metal, melt it to the appropriate mix, and start minting the coins. If it were the other way around, I'd hoard the coins, melt them to scrap metal, and sell it.
 
Re: Strands in the Tapestry: the Business, Economics, and Tax Policy Thread

Knowing its makeup, if I were a counterfeiter (which, for the record, I am not, nor do I encourage this), I would forge a press, buy up the scrap metal, melt it to the appropriate mix, and start minting the coins. If it were the other way around, I'd hoard the coins, melt them to scrap metal, and sell it.
Counterfeiters do best when they can keep quantities low enough to go under the authorities' radars. In order to make counterfeiting coins worthwhile, you would have to flood the economy with them. The risk would be too high. It's one of those risk/reward assessments that leads to the Feds not giving a great deal of worry behind the security of the $5 and $1 bill, and then all the coins minted.
 
Re: Strands in the Tapestry: the Business, Economics, and Tax Policy Thread

Counterfeiters do best when they can keep quantities low enough to go under the authorities' radars. In order to make counterfeiting coins worthwhile, you would have to flood the economy with them. The risk would be too high. It's one of those risk/reward assessments that leads to the Feds not giving a great deal of worry behind the security of the $5 and $1 bill, and then all the coins minted.

it probably doesn't work any more. years ago, those punchouts from electrical boxes were about the same size and weight as coins used in vending machines and we'd find them in the coin box occasionally. From time to time people can find foreign coins that are worth much less than US coins yet approximate the size and weight and use them in vending machines.

as you said, not worth the bother. It's like "investing" in Forever stamps. Sure, you can't beat the annualized risk-free rate of return, but the volume required to make any real money off it is quite daunting.
 
Re: Strands in the Tapestry: the Business, Economics, and Tax Policy Thread

it probably doesn't work any more. years ago, those punchouts from electrical boxes were about the same size and weight as coins used in vending machines and we'd find them in the coin box occasionally. From time to time people can find foreign coins that are worth much less than US coins yet approximate the size and weight and use them in vending machines.

as you said, not worth the bother. It's like "investing" in Forever stamps. Sure, you can't beat the annualized risk-free rate of return, but the volume required to make any real money off it is quite daunting.

Ever see that Mathnet case where Wayne Knight's character was chopping down parking metres (sorry if I spoiled the case)? Every little bit helps.
 
Re: Strands in the Tapestry: the Business, Economics, and Tax Policy Thread

Ever see that Mathnet case where Wayne Knight's character was chopping down parking metres (sorry if I spoiled the case)? Every little bit helps.
Also done by a very drunk Cool Hand Luke using a pipe cutter.
 
Re: Strands in the Tapestry: the Business, Economics, and Tax Policy Thread

it probably doesn't work any more. years ago, those punchouts from electrical boxes were about the same size and weight as coins used in vending machines and we'd find them in the coin box occasionally. From time to time people can find foreign coins that are worth much less than US coins yet approximate the size and weight and use them in vending machines.

as you said, not worth the bother. It's like "investing" in Forever stamps. Sure, you can't beat the annualized risk-free rate of return, but the volume required to make any real money off it is quite daunting.
In my teen years, I did that a couple times. :o The slugs we used were read as nickels.
 
Re: Strands in the Tapestry: the Business, Economics, and Tax Policy Thread

http://money.cnn.com/2013/01/13/news/economy/japan-yen/

I'm interested to see where this goes. How much of the Yen devaluation policy will impact the average consumer in the US? Will we see a drop in car or electronics prices? I somewhat doubt it for most car manufacturers, so many of them do much of the work here and use US made parts already. Still, it'll be interesting to see where this goes. It also feels like a very distinct parallel to what we've been doing here for the past ten or fifteen years - especially the last five or six.
 
Re: Strands in the Tapestry: the Business, Economics, and Tax Policy Thread

http://money.cnn.com/2013/01/13/news/economy/japan-yen/

I'm interested to see where this goes. How much of the Yen devaluation policy will impact the average consumer in the US? Will we see a drop in car or electronics prices? I somewhat doubt it for most car manufacturers, so many of them do much of the work here and use US made parts already. Still, it'll be interesting to see where this goes. It also feels like a very distinct parallel to what we've been doing here for the past ten or fifteen years - especially the last five or six.

I doubt it for electronics too. American components, Russian components... ALL MADE IN TAIWAN!
 
Re: Strands in the Tapestry: the Business, Economics, and Tax Policy Thread

You what's hilarious about any potential downgrade in credit? For every step the credit rating is downgraded, we'll see people flocking to treasuries because they are the single safest investment on earth.

We saw it last time and we'll see it again. Uncertainty drives down rates on bills and bonds.
 
Re: Strands in the Tapestry: the Business, Economics, and Tax Policy Thread

You what's hilarious about any potential downgrade in credit? For every step the credit rating is downgraded, we'll see people flocking to treasuries because they are the single safest investment on earth.

We saw it last time and we'll see it again. Uncertainty drives down rates on bills and bonds.

I'd flock to treasuries, too, but I'd travel three hours north to do it. Canada's still AAA. ;) You would think, with a credit rating downgrade, the rates would go up because people are less likely to purchase something where they don't trust they'll get something in return...
 
Re: Strands in the Tapestry: the Business, Economics, and Tax Policy Thread

Ah yes, because a 99.9999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999% chance you'll get it back going to 99.9999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999998% chance is really something that should give you pause.
 
Re: Strands in the Tapestry: the Business, Economics, and Tax Policy Thread

I think we have established that the GOP is staffed full of social-climbing loyalty-less morons who couldn't tell their navel apart from their *******
A strong navel presence is good for national defense!!

Oh, never mind...
 
Re: Strands in the Tapestry: the Business, Economics, and Tax Policy Thread

A strong navel presence is good for national defense!!

Oh, never mind...

This ain't the puns thread. :p:D

Of course, the dude you're quoting should replace "the GOP" with "MoveOn.org".
 
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