Comments on: Martin on the Money

Martin on the Money

Vidiot — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 17:56:18 -0800

Put MLK on the $20 Bill. Conservatives have clamored to put Ronald Reagan on the dime or the $10 bill. One outfit wants to name something after Reagan in each of the US's counties. Why not put one of "the greatest moral leaders of the 20th century" on one of our most commonly used pieces of currency instead? (Better to have King on the $20 than Andrew Jackson, whose unconstitutional Indian Removal policy created the "Trail of Tears.")

By: Frank Grimes

Frank Grimes — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 18:11:58 -0800

His son, Dexter Scott King, would probably charge the U.S. Treasury for each bill they printed with MLK's likeness. The King children have been criticized for "capitalizing" on their famous father's name and for not doing enough to further his legacy. [Links to his childrens' website are in the article] Here's the King Center's Terms of Service for using their website, just in case you were interested. For all of the wrongs that Jackson committed, I think he had something to do with establishing a national bank, so that may be why he's on the $20. Plus, Old Hickory has some awesome hair.

By: interrobang

interrobang — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 18:17:07 -0800

I would never use a bill with Reagan on it without defacing it somehow first.

By: adamgreenfield

adamgreenfield — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 18:19:35 -0800

It'd be great to have Reagan on a $20 bill...so I could wipe my ass with it. I don't even have the visceral hatred for GWB that I did for Reagan.

By: ColdChef

ColdChef — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 18:22:14 -0800

Dude. You wipe your ass with twenties? Ummm...can I borrow some TP?

By: davidmsc

davidmsc — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 18:37:17 -0800

First: nuts to you, interrobang and adamgreenfield. Even though I dislike Clinton - greatly - I would never suggest "wiping my ass" with currency featuring his likeness. Second: I like the idea of King on currency, too. Maybe we could mint some new money: $3, $4, $15 dollar bills.

By: mr_crash_davis

mr_crash_davis — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 18:39:07 -0800

I hope I'm not the only one that read that URL as pukingonthetwenty.com.

By: Vidiot

Vidiot — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 18:39:40 -0800

Actually, Jackson opposed the Bank of the United States. Alexander Hamilton set it up, which is a big reason he's on the $10. And yes, the family (especially Dexter) can be jerks. But that doesn't diminish what King himself accomplished.

By: weston

weston — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 18:45:31 -0800

Speaking of things that don't diminish what King accomplished.... does anyone know what evidence does (or does not exist) that he was not faithful to his wife?

By: adamgreenfield

adamgreenfield — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 18:54:24 -0800

weston, the FBI documented it rather extensively, if in a manner far beyond any legitimate purview and in total violation of any expectation of privacy. davidmsc, the day Reagan gets his due for all the suffering for which he was responsible, you can tell me off. Until then, he's just another white-collar criminal in my book.

By: jonmc

jonmc — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 18:59:25 -0800

One outfit wants to name something after Reagan in each of the US's counties. Perhaps Staten Island can rename Fresh Kills after him.

By: jmgorman

jmgorman — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 19:01:29 -0800

I had an old neighbor who said that he refused to use FDR dimes. He would trade you your nickle for his dime before he would ever use it. Seems like a good policy for anything with Reagan's shit-head face on it.

By: pjdoland

pjdoland — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 19:09:08 -0800

Why do we need to put politicians on our money? Why not Mark Twain? Edison? Duke Ellington?

By: Frank Grimes

Frank Grimes — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 19:09:20 -0800

Maybe Jackson can go back on the $10,000 gold currency bill to free up some room. Here's a nice gallery of U.S. currency throughout history. Vidiot, thanks for clearing up my foggy sense of history.

By: homunculus

homunculus — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 19:13:58 -0800

This would be a pretty superficial way to honor King, and I doubt he would have cared for it, but it would be nice to get Jackson off the bill.

Under orders from President Jackson and in defiance of the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Army began enforcement of the Removal Act. More than 3,000 Cherokees were rounded up in the summer of 1838 and loaded onto boats that traveled the Tennessee, Ohio, Mississippi and Arkansas Rivers into Indian Territory. Many were held in prison camps awaiting their fate. An estimated 4,000 died from hunger, exposure and disease.

That's more people than died on 9/11. Jackson is one of the most shameful presidents we've ever had.

By: amberglow

amberglow — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 19:14:00 -0800

I thought it legally had to be a dead president on the money, no? (reagan almost is, but I'd never want his face in my pants)

By: drinkcoffee

drinkcoffee — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 19:16:28 -0800

Hey, you all! Wasn't Reagan the Man Who Won the Cold War, thereby freeing the world from the fear of nuclear disintegration? Oh wait...never mind.

By: Vidiot

Vidiot — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 19:23:11 -0800

amberglow, there may be a rule that you have to be dead to be on money, but you don't have to be President. Ben Franklin is on the $100, and he was never President. Susan B. Anthony and Sacagawea are on the dollar coins. (and no problem, Frank Grimes -- I had to research it myself.)

By: namespan

namespan — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 19:26:21 -0800

Duke Ellington? I'd dig the Duke Dollar. This would be a pretty superficial way to honor King, and I doubt he would have cared for it. A-men. I met a number of people who've been offended by suggestions that MLK day be human rights day, but I see this the same way: King would likely have only wanted the attention for King the man insofar as it drew attention to the principles he sought to see more of in the world. Look at what Christmas and Easter have become and you get an idea of the problems. I thought it legally had to be a dead president on the money, no? Ben Franklin... not a President.

By: kindall

kindall — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 19:59:58 -0800

King County, Washington was named in 1852 after a man named William Rufus Devane King, a slaveowner. In 1986 the King County Council passed a resolution renaming King County in honor of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The county's new name is, of course, King County. I could not make this up if I tried. I like the idea of putting him on a common bill, like the $5 maybe -- a denomination that everyone, even white supremacists, regularly gets in change. The idea of a KKK member carrying around a picture of MLK, or else carrying around a huge wad of singles just to avoid his face, makes me chuckle.

By: gimonca

gimonca — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 20:21:20 -0800

I'd like to see a variety of people representing the U.S. on currency--Georgia O'Keefe...Walt Whitman....Vince Lombardi...put Eisenhower somewhere prominent again, too. A great banknote would have Edwin Hubble on one side, then an intricately engraved multi-colored galaxy on the other. But MLK ought to be a shoo-in: if you're big enough to have a holiday, you're big enough to be on a $20.

By: tapeguy

tapeguy — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 20:29:44 -0800

Pfff. Who cares what's on those crappy pieces of paper when we've got credit cards, internet banking, money transfers and paypal?

By: ROU_Xenophobe

ROU_Xenophobe — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 20:46:23 -0800

The way we can all get what we want is for faces on currency (or on a particular bill that's set aside for the purpose) to change every 3--5 years. King is obviously worth putting on money, though personally I'd rather name a university after the man. Not that the two are exclusive. Twain, Hubble (there's a German bill that had Gauss on one side and a graph of the normal-curve PDF and the equation for the normal curve on the other, or similar), yeah. But I want Elvis. I wanna slap me a king down on the counter and buy myself a peanut butter and bacon sandwich. And while we're at all this, can we rescue Mr. Jefferson from the $2?

By: angry modem

angry modem — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 20:49:54 -0800

I once drew Chuck Norris on one of my own dollar bills using Washington's visage. Pretty detailed too. But I lost the bill :(

By: amberglow

amberglow — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 20:51:05 -0800

Ok then : > I want King on the 100 (it should be a big bill), and Mr. Rogers on the 50.

By: WolfDaddy

WolfDaddy — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 20:58:48 -0800

I'm all for a $3 bill with Judy Garland! I'd say Barbra, but she's not dead. Yet. I'm waiting. I'm here to tell you this country will never have a three dollar bill.

By: amberglow

amberglow — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 21:00:34 -0800

Judy for the 5, maybe? (how much were cocktails and pills back then?) ; >

By: Civil_Disobedient

Civil_Disobedient — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 21:13:11 -0800

I thought it legally had to be a dead president on the money, no? No. Alexander Hamilton, much to the chagrin and denial of conservatives everywhere, was never president, but he was instrumental in forming the national bank, so we put him on the $10. Ben Franklin ($100), Susan B. Anthony ($1 coin), Sam Chase ($10,000), and Sacagawa[...] ($1 coin) are all non-presidents, too.

By: Armitage Shanks

Armitage Shanks — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 21:15:50 -0800

weston, the FBI documented it rather extensively, if in a manner far beyond any legitimate purview and in total violation of any expectation of privacy. I wonder how much of that witch hunt would have been permissible under Patriot I & II.

By: quonsar

quonsar — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 21:30:35 -0800

fee waybill.

By: chaz

chaz — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 21:37:36 -0800

King on the 20 and Reagen on the 10. I would support both.

By: pmurray63

pmurray63 — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 22:15:09 -0800

How about we leave all the money the way it is and spend our energy on something more useful? [Insert your favorite cause here.]

By: weston

weston — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 22:55:14 -0800

weston, the FBI documented it rather extensively, if in a manner far beyond any legitimate purview and in total violation of any expectation of privacy. Given that the FBI was also (so I've heard) encouraging King to kill himself and trying to discredit him, it would seem easy to speculate that the FBI wasn't an unimpeachable source, though.... other confirmations? It would seem like someone else within the movement would have to know if it were true...

By: Witty

Witty — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 23:13:27 -0800

Put him in the Hall already. Christ.

By: fatbobsmith

fatbobsmith — Mon, 19 Jan 2004 23:46:36 -0800

I once drew Chuck Norris on one of my own dollar bills The polls are now open for the Chuck Norris dollar. Also on the ballot, the Steve Urkel twenty.

By: nofundy

nofundy — Tue, 20 Jan 2004 06:13:07 -0800

So what did Saint Raygun ever do to deserve having his mug put on money? Was it the States right's speech at Philadelphia, Missisippi? Maybe it was the defense of the Nazi SS speech in Bitburg, Germany? How about the record budget deficits by a "fiscal conservative?" Perhaps someone else can make a suggestion here 'cause I'm baffled.

By: hama7

hama7 — Tue, 20 Jan 2004 06:30:35 -0800

Keep socialists off of American money, even if some of the things they said made sense. Yes, lollipop-licking sandal-wearing socialists.

By: hama7

hama7 — Tue, 20 Jan 2004 06:37:26 -0800

The Beast as Saint: "King privately described himself as a Marxist."

By: Ptrin

Ptrin — Tue, 20 Jan 2004 06:51:53 -0800

Keep socialists off of American money, even if some of the things they said made sense. hama7: too late. FDR has been on the dime for a while.

By: hama7

hama7 — Tue, 20 Jan 2004 07:02:25 -0800

FDR has been on the dime for a while. There's a solution for that: To Coin a Prez .

By: Ptrin

Ptrin — Tue, 20 Jan 2004 07:31:22 -0800

It should also be noted that King's time was a time of widespread socialism in both the Democratic and Republican parties. Really, Rev. King wasn't any more of a socialist than those on his right: How a Republican President instituted Communism in the USA.

By: hama7

hama7 — Tue, 20 Jan 2004 07:58:24 -0800

The Beast as Saint: "King privately described himself as a Marxist." It was a mistake to link to that article. I had no idea who the author was. Now I do. Consider it retracted. Please refer only to the "socialists" link.

By: thirteen

thirteen — Tue, 20 Jan 2004 08:34:44 -0800

I am sick of all their stupid faces. Plants and animals belong on money. Put a carrot on the dime, and a Wren on the $20 and be done with it.

By: jengod

jengod — Tue, 20 Jan 2004 12:32:20 -0800

Okay, this is the thread for this. Somebody help me. Does anybody remember a few years back, that the mint--or some similar entity--created sample versions of money that totally eradicated the greenback-president paradigm? There was a Frank Lloyd Wright bill and a Martha Graham bill and at least two others. I've been looking for copies of the designs for a long time. Does this ring a bill--er, bell--with anybody?

By: KirkJobSluder

KirkJobSluder — Tue, 20 Jan 2004 13:25:15 -0800

Or perhas the best way around it is to get the politics out of money all together and use natural treasures such as the Bald Eagle, the Bison, or perhaps even Utahraptor.

By: liam

liam — Tue, 20 Jan 2004 14:53:08 -0800

hama7: Please refer only to the "socialists" link. You'll stand by an article by Lew Rockwell? You're not helping your admittedly sketchy case there.

By: ROU_Xenophobe

ROU_Xenophobe — Tue, 20 Jan 2004 14:57:02 -0800

get the politics out of money all together and use natural treasures such as the Bald Eagle, the Bison, or perhaps even Utahraptor Combine them. I'd be chuffed beyond measure to go and buy something using a bill that had Abe Lincoln riding a Utahraptor on it. Or George Washington wrestling a bison.

By: davidmsc

davidmsc — Tue, 20 Jan 2004 20:12:24 -0800

Heh...love the use of the word "chuffed," ROU_Xenophobe. And what did Reagan do to warrant being on currency? Oh, there's the little matter of the fall of the Soviet Union and the discredit of communism. Yes, he IS deserving of credit for it. Not all -- but very much. "Evil Empire" and "Tear Down This Wall" come to mind, along with Reykjavik and SDI and a re-invigorated military. All combined to end the U.S.S.R, from our side.

By: Pressed Rat

Pressed Rat — Tue, 20 Jan 2004 20:42:53 -0800

spare me

By: Vidiot

Vidiot — Tue, 20 Jan 2004 23:37:26 -0800

Communism was discredited and basically tore itself apart because it didn't work. Not because an ex-B-movie actor called it names.

By: mcsweetie

mcsweetie — Wed, 21 Jan 2004 07:10:19 -0800

It'd be great to have Reagan on a $20 bill...so I could wipe my ass with it. the irony is, unless you were an intense reaganite, you probably can't afford to wipe your ass with twenties.

By: kindall

kindall — Wed, 21 Jan 2004 07:17:51 -0800

Not because an ex-B-movie actor called it names. He was also, I hear, President of the United States of America for eight years. I don't suppose that being the President of the United States of America would give him any influence in world affairs. I mean, after all, he was only the President of the United States of America. For eight years. Or so I hear. I'm glad to hear that the President of the United States of America has so little power. It means we've got nothing to worry about with regard to Bush.

By: mcsweetie

mcsweetie — Wed, 21 Jan 2004 09:02:51 -0800

so if not for that meddling Reagan, communism would've flourished?

By: kindall

kindall — Wed, 21 Jan 2004 09:32:36 -0800

True, America battled communism for decades, and the Soviet empire did have serious internal problems, but Reagan recognized that things were coming to a head and delivered the final blow. He didn't slay the Soviet Union singlehandedly, but he saw that it would topple if it were pushed hard enough. And so he pushed as hard as he could. Sure, it might have collapsed without that push, maybe in ten or twenty years. That doesn't mean it wasn't an accomplishment to bring it down sooner. Ten years of communism would feel like a long, long time if you were living in the Soviet Union. Jimmy Carter didn't do much pushing, you have to admit. If he had, maybe he'd be the one who got the credit. If Reagan hadn't, maybe Clinton would have been the one. I'm sure the left wouldn't be making noises about "it was about to fall anyway" if that had happened.

By: ROU_Xenophobe

ROU_Xenophobe — Wed, 21 Jan 2004 09:42:03 -0800

Jimmy Carter didn't do much pushing, you have to admit. If he had, maybe he'd be the one who got the credit That's simply false. With the exception of SDI, almost all of the "Reagan" defense buildup was just a continuation of changes begun under Carter.

By: furiousthought

furiousthought — Wed, 21 Jan 2004 09:56:25 -0800

Ten years of communism would feel like a long, long time if you were living in the Soviet Union. Ten years of Gorbachev? No Stalin, he. That Russians would have been less happy under softening communism or the mob anarchy of the Yeltsin era is not extremely clear. Eastern Europe is solid ground for that statement, but not the former U.S.S.R. As far as "the left" giving Clinton the credit in the ten-more-years scenario, that'd be a load of crap too.

By: darren

darren — Wed, 21 Jan 2004 10:39:24 -0800

I, for one, welcome our currency-changing overlords.

By: mcsweetie

mcsweetie — Wed, 21 Jan 2004 10:46:44 -0800

one of the ways reagan helped topple the soviet union was to train and finance osama bin laden in afghanistan. if you'll recall, osama bin laden is now the head of the terrorist network "al qaeda."

By: kindall

kindall — Wed, 21 Jan 2004 14:28:07 -0800

Yeah, it sure is a complicated world, ain't it?

By: mcsweetie

mcsweetie — Wed, 21 Jan 2004 14:43:23 -0800

you bet! thats why I like video games. I just got 35 stars in super mario 64. whats up now, world? whats gonna happen?