The British pound stopped being convertible some years before that, and
I'm old enough to remember when Nixon took us off the Gold Standard, and
when Johnson before him stopped the average citizens converting to
specie, until then the Treasury was required to issue a number of silver
certificates. That's when the government started issuing "Johnson
slugs", instead of silver coins. That was 1964 by the way, by the way I
never called them that, but I had friends and acquaintances who did.
On 9/10/2019 1:35 PM, John wrote:
I think they still call it that.
The "dollar" used to be a specific silver coin, and paper currency US
dollars were "payable in silver" (or gold if you had gold-back
dollars), but the dollar hasn't been "convertible to specie" for more
than 50 years now (86 years for gold).
Interestingly enough, nowadays most specie backed U.S. currency is
worth considerably more than face value, as are gold & silver coins.
I don't collect, but there are certain items I wanted just for the
coolness factor ... I have an old "Greenback" dollar (even though "I
don't give a damn ...") https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TufDxRHetcI
... a Spanish (Mexican) Pillar dollar (pieces of eight),
a Saint-Gaudens Gold Double Eagle, the most beautiful coin ever minted
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint-Gaudens_double_eagle
... "Put a $20 gold piece on my watch chain so the lord will know I
died standing pat" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zpa7u4vKdQ
and a genuine, honest to god, U.S. Treasury Note $5 bill (says
something like "redeemable at the U.S. Treasury" instead of Federal
Reserve).
And, of course, I look at any change I get because occasionally a
wheat penny or a silver quarter will still show up in it. Since those
coins have been recalled and are no longer valid for use in commerce,
I do my duty and remove any I find from circulation.
On 9/9/2019 20:34:14, P. J. Alling wrote:
The "Pound Sterling" is Britain's monetary unit, thought I don't know
if it's still Sterling as it's no longer convertible to specie.
--
America wasn't founded so that we could all be better.
America was founded so we could all be anything we damn well please.
- P.J. O'Rourke
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