Snapshots (Anti-pop, Blue Monday, cats, currency)
Curtailed commentary on current conditions: Against pop, the worst Monday of the year, paper money redesigns, and for feline companions
Canadian money woes: Penny will have us reaching deeper into our pockets
As of February 4, 2013, pennies—or the lack thereof—will begin to lighten the weight of our wallets in more ways than one. As new procedures come into play, transactions are going to become a question of how much extra cash is sitting in your pockets.
A tale of two twenties
Canadian $50 and $100 bills have been made out of this polymer stuff for a while, and, as of last week, the $20 bills also made the switch. I’ve got no beef with the plastic. My beef is with the focus groups.
Lighter coins drive Canadians loony
That’s right, your new money is useless in pretty much all the places you need loonies and toonies: parking meters, laundromats, vending machines and anything else with a coin dispenser. So what’s wrong? They’re lighter. Quick science fact: steel is lighter than nickel. And this is what is screwing up the machines.
Canada pinches pennies
In a surprising, but not unexpected move on March 29, as part of this year’s Federal budget, the Canadian government sent the order to the Royal Canadian Mint that in the month of April, it is to cease production of the Canadian one-cent coin – the penny.
Yes! Take the pennies!
What good are pennies? Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said in his 2012 federal budget release that the penny is “currency without currency.” As a result, the penny will soon be extinct, and rightfully so.
No! Leave the pennies!
People have been talking about it all week, some even celebrating. All I know is that I’m not particularly happy. I mean, the penny may have been more of an annoyance than anything, but it is the single digit, a necessary piece in any calculation. I can’t have two cents without the penny.
Iceland considering adopting loonie
Currently, one Canadian dollar converts to 126 Icelandic kronas. While there have been rumours of Iceland potentially taking on the Canadian dollar, the Canadian ambassador to Iceland Alec Bones spoke on the issue a couple weeks ago in a radio interview in Ottawa. Bones said that Canada would be open to such a proposal if Iceland decided to approach Canada on the issue, provided that Iceland had no input on monetary policy.
Canada unveils designs for new $50 and $100 bills
Counterfeiters will soon be faced with mounting new challenges in reproducing bank notes, as the Bank of Canada has officially unveiled the designs for their new $50 and $100 bills. The upcoming change – which has been in the works since it was announced in 2006 – is unique in that it will see Canada begin printing notes on polymer instead of cotton paper.
