presidential coins are a dumb idea

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

u.s. history is so often portayed as nothing mbut a series of president, but let's face it-we've only had 15 or so who were memorable, and of that 15, i'd say only 5 or 6 were actually good.
there's a lot of mediocrity in the list of 43. does william henry harrison (to whom i'm distantly related) deserve a coin for dying in 30 days? do chester a. arthur's sideburns merit an appearance on currency?

and now they're talking about a first ladies series. other than dolly madison and elenor roosevelt are any worth remembering?
does millard fillmore's wife really deserve any commendation?

sure, the public will love the collectibility, but wouldn't it be nice if honored the real people who made history from outside of government with a series of american icons, like frederick douglas or mark twain?

but i guess maybe the good really shouldn't be immortalized on money.

[pinniped]

1. This one is a dumb idea because it practically guarantees those 2 * assholes will be on a coin.

F-that.

[Adenoid_Hynkel]

2. yeah, that, too

not to mention ronnie and dick.
some presidents are downright disgraceful and deserve no honors.

[Art_from_Ark]

3. They tried that once back in the '80s

The Mint started making semi-commemorative (not legal tender) gold bullion coins called the American Arts Series to try to compete with the Krugerrands in the gold bullion market. However, they were doomed from the start, since they carried no face value, they were introduced at a time when gold was high (but going mostly downward), they were available in only 1 ounce and 1/2 ounce sizes, hardly anyone knew about them, and some dealers wouldn't even buy them back.

People who were honored on these pseudo-coins included Mark Twain, Louis Armstrong, Robert Frost, Helen Hayes, Willa Cather, Frank Lloyd Wright, Alexander Calder, and John Steinbeck.