The Liberty Dollar Bill Act

Galvatron · Post by **Galvatron** » 2004-08-12 02:31am

I think this is a fantastic idea, although I can already see the abridged versions of the Amendments causing much controversy...

The Liberty Bill Act

A bill before Congress, H.R.1785 and S. 244, initiated by students, to put an abridged version of the Constitution on the back of U.S. currency.

Post by **Gandalf** » 2004-08-12 03:13am

I think this is a rather cool idea.

Though design wise, it does look a little cluttered.

Howedar · Post by **Howedar** » 2004-08-12 03:23am

It's a fun idea but the design doesn't work.

Galvatron · Post by **Galvatron** » 2004-08-12 03:28am

Even the Bill of Rights alone would be fine with me. The print could be larger and it would be far less cluttered.

On the other hand, how long before some redneck sees the Bill of Rights on the same piece of paper as In God We Trust and concludes that it's part of the Constitution?

Darth Garden Gnome · Post by **Darth Garden Gnome** » 2004-08-12 03:30am

Give ya something to do while you're waiting in line...

Iceberg · Post by **Iceberg** » 2004-08-12 08:01am

My suggestion would be to remove "In God We Trust" from the back of the bill, for the precise reason that it's not in the Constitution. Perhaps replace it with "We the People of the United States"?

Talon Karrde · Post by **Talon Karrde** » 2004-08-12 08:58am

Iceberg wrote:My suggestion would be to remove "In God We Trust" from the back of the bill, for the precise reason that it's not in the Constitution. Perhaps replace it with "We the People of the United States"?

Just curious, but I'm guessing that In God We Trust has been on our bill since the beginning of this country? Maybe I'm mistaken. And yes, it's not in the constitution, but just because something isn't there doesn't mean we can't do it.

Iceberg · Post by **Iceberg** » 2004-08-12 09:24am

The point, which apparently passed over your head, Talon, is that if the Constitution is to be on the back of the 1-dollar bill, then "In God We Trust" should not be. To put "In God We Trust" on the back of a dollar bill on which is supposed to be printed a summary of the Constitution would (incorrectly) imply that those words appear in the text of the Constitution.

Iceberg · Post by **Iceberg** » 2004-08-12 09:26am

According to the Department of the Treasury, "IN GOD WE TRUST" did not appear on American coinage or printed money until the beginning of the Civil War.

Talon Karrde · Post by **Talon Karrde** » 2004-08-12 09:54am

Iceberg wrote:The point, which apparently passed over your head, Talon, is that if the Constitution is to be on the back of the 1-dollar bill, then "In God We Trust" should not be. To put "In God We Trust" on the back of a dollar bill on which is supposed to be printed a summary of the Constitution would (incorrectly) imply that those words appear in the text of the Constitution.

Ok Ice, but now al currency is printed with the text In God We Trust. This is something that is placed on all the bills, why take it off?

Iceberg · Post by **Iceberg** » 2004-08-12 10:01am

Talon Karrde wrote:
Iceberg wrote:The point, which apparently passed over your head, Talon, is that if the Constitution is to be on the back of the 1-dollar bill, then "In God We Trust" should not be. To put "In God We Trust" on the back of a dollar bill on which is supposed to be printed a summary of the Constitution would (incorrectly) imply that those words appear in the text of the Constitution.
Ok Ice, but now al currency is printed with the text In God We Trust. This is something that is placed on all the bills, why take it off?

Don't necessarily remove it entirely - a move of that text from the reverse to the obverse may be in order, however.

And honestly, I'd like to see "WE THE PEOPLE" on our currency.

Asst. Asst. Lt. Cmdr. Smi · Post by **Asst. Asst. Lt. Cmdr. Smi** » 2004-08-12 10:09am

Talon Karrde wrote:
Iceberg wrote:The point, which apparently passed over your head, Talon, is that if the Constitution is to be on the back of the 1-dollar bill, then "In God We Trust" should not be. To put "In God We Trust" on the back of a dollar bill on which is supposed to be printed a summary of the Constitution would (incorrectly) imply that those words appear in the text of the Constitution.
Ok Ice, but now al currency is printed with the text In God We Trust. This is something that is placed on all the bills, why take it off?

Well, it was only made mandatory in the 1950's by Congress under the same premises that put "under God" in the Pledge of Alliegance.

As for the bill itself, it sounds good on paper, but I can imagine that it would be far too cluttered and the text too small to read. Now a dime with the Constitution on the back, that just might work.

Iceberg · Post by **Iceberg** » 2004-08-12 10:10am

Asst. Asst. Lt. Cmdr. Smi wrote:
Talon Karrde wrote:
Iceberg wrote:The point, which apparently passed over your head, Talon, is that if the Constitution is to be on the back of the 1-dollar bill, then "In God We Trust" should not be. To put "In God We Trust" on the back of a dollar bill on which is supposed to be printed a summary of the Constitution would (incorrectly) imply that those words appear in the text of the Constitution.
Ok Ice, but now al currency is printed with the text In God We Trust. This is something that is placed on all the bills, why take it off?
Well, it was only made mandatory in the 1950's by Congress under the same premises that put "under God" in the Pledge of Alliegance.

Actually, no. "IN GOD WE TRUST" began on American currency in 1864.

As for the bill itself, it sounds good on paper, but I can imagine that it would be far too cluttered and the text too small to read. Now a dime with the Constitution on the back, that just might work.

PLEASE tell me you're kidding.

A DIME!?

Glocksman · Post by **Glocksman** » 2004-08-12 10:16am

A refinement of the idea might be to print each of the 10 amendments that make up the bill of rights separately on the back of the bill. 10% of each run for the 1st, 10% for the 2nd, and so on.

That way the text would be much easier to read.

DPDarkPrimus · Post by **DPDarkPrimus** » 2004-08-12 11:18am

Talon Karrde wrote: now al currency is printed with the text In God We Trust. This is something that is placed on all the bills, why take it off?

Durrrh.... BECAUSE IT IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL!

And as a note about WHEN "In God We Trust" was added... it was on some coins (don't recall which, exactly) back during the Civil War, and was officially added to all forms of legal tender, including dollar bills, in 1954.

DPDarkPrimus · Post by **DPDarkPrimus** » 2004-08-12 11:19am

Oh, and here is my original post idea, before I saw Karrde's idiocy.

I don't like the idea, because it is abridged, and as such, it will give people false impressions about what the Constitution/Bill of Rights actually does.

Iceberg · Post by **Iceberg** » 2004-08-12 11:21am

US Treasury Fact Sheet on "IN GOD WE TRUST"
All US coins bear the inscription from 1938 onward. Between 1883 and 1938, it was missing from the nickel. It was phased in on US coinage from 1864 to 1873.

The motto first appeared on US currency in 1957, and on Federal Reserve notes in 1964.

The More You Know(sm).

Wicked Pilot · Post by **Wicked Pilot** » 2004-08-12 11:27am

I would just get rid of the one dollar bill completely and replace it with dollar coins. You could always put the Constitution on some other note, such as the one hundred since it's from Franklin's era.

Iceberg · Post by **Iceberg** » 2004-08-12 11:36am

Wicked Pilot wrote:I would just get rid of the one dollar bill completely and replace it with dollar coins. You could always put the Constitution on some other note, such as the one hundred since it's from Franklin's era.

The problem with dollar coins is that they're too hard to make distinct from quarters, and people seldom like them; see also: Sacajawea dollar, Susan B. Anthony dollar.

Post by **Darth Wong** » 2004-08-12 11:38am

Iceberg wrote:
Wicked Pilot wrote:I would just get rid of the one dollar bill completely and replace it with dollar coins. You could always put the Constitution on some other note, such as the one hundred since it's from Franklin's era.
The problem with dollar coins is that they're too hard to make distinct from quarters, and people seldom like them; see also: Sacajawea dollar, Susan B. Anthony dollar.

Wrong. We have one and two-dollar coins, we like them, and it's ridiculously easy to distinguish them from other coins because the one-dollar coins are gold-coloured while the two-dollar coins are two-tone (not to mention both of them being substantially bigger than quarters). You can easily pick them apart at dusk underwater.

Joe · Post by **Joe** » 2004-08-12 11:48am

The difference is, you guys have been on Loony coins for years, right? We've not had dollar coins as regular currency for years, and when they're released they're usually snatched up too quickly by collectors to become common currency. It would take a pretty huge effort to completely replace dollar bills with dollar coins.

Iceberg · Post by **Iceberg** » 2004-08-12 11:49am

Darth Wong wrote:
Iceberg wrote:
Wicked Pilot wrote:I would just get rid of the one dollar bill completely and replace it with dollar coins. You could always put the Constitution on some other note, such as the one hundred since it's from Franklin's era.
The problem with dollar coins is that they're too hard to make distinct from quarters, and people seldom like them; see also: Sacajawea dollar, Susan B. Anthony dollar.
Wrong. We have one and two-dollar coins, we like them, and it's ridiculously easy to distinguish them from other coins because the one-dollar coins are gold-coloured while the two-dollar coins are two-tone (not to mention both of them being substantially bigger than quarters). You can easily pick them apart at dusk underwater.

Sorry, I should have qualified it in the case that my context wasn't exquisitely clear:

IN THE UNITED STATES, dollar coins have historically seldom been popular.

Compounding this is the fact that the Sac dollar was a poor design. It varies too much from the "dead presidents" theme of American coinage by choosing a figure who has relatively little historical (but much sentimental) value, and the alloy was chosen poorly - they chose a manganese bronze for the "gold" dollar, which it turned out tarnishes easily and takes on a very unattractive green-black color in a very short period of time. Unfortunately, many of the poor design choices of the Sac dollar grew out of a perceived necessity to retain compatibility with the extremely poorly-received Susan B. Anthony dollar (which was virtually indistinguishable from a quarter from a distance or when handled briefly, as in a bank or retail environment).

A better-designed coin probably would have been more popular, granted. However, historically, in the United States, bills have been more popular than coins when the two have been offered side by side.

Iceberg · Post by **Iceberg** » 2004-08-12 11:51am

Wicked Pilot wrote:I would just get rid of the one dollar bill completely and replace it with dollar coins. You could always put the Constitution on some other note, such as the one hundred since it's from Franklin's era.

I strongly disagree. You want it on a bill that will be handled frequently, in the United States that would make the best choices the $1, $5, $10 and $20.

Post by **Darth Wong** » 2004-08-12 11:51am

Joe wrote:The difference is, you guys have been on Loony coins for years, right? We've not had dollar coins as regular currency for years, and when they're released they're usually snatched up too quickly by collectors to become common currency. It would take a pretty huge effort to completely replace dollar bills with dollar coins.

No it wouldn't. Simply stop printing dollar bills. There, done. They'll be out of circulation soon enough, and you can start saving money because coins last a lot longer than bills. Of course, as Ice points out, it's always possible to fuck up dollar coins with a shitty design, but incompetence of execution can fuck up any idea; it doesn't make it a bad idea.

Post by **Vympel** » 2004-08-12 12:03pm

Australia uses one and two dollar coins, both the same color, but different size and thickness- same principle, they can easily be told apart simply by touch.