Should We Lose the Penny?

Huh:

Representative Jim Kolbe wants to do away with the penny - and for a second time has introduced legislation that would effectively kill it.

The Currency Overhaul for an Industrious Nation (COIN) Act would force the rounding off of all cash transactions to the nearest 5 cents, making the penny coin useless for everyday transactions.

The move is in part a reaction to the rising cost of zinc - the penny's main ingredient - which at current prices brings the cost of making the coin to 1.4 cents each.

Kolbe introduced similar legislation in 2001 when prices for metals weren't as high. The bill failed to pass or even to make it to a floor vote. Since then, however, zinc costs have nearly doubled.

Personally I say good riddance, but then again I will be happy when we dispense with money entirely and conduct transactions with unique IDs embedded in chips in our heads. (I tend to lose small items like credit cards, wallets, cell phones, and other people's children.)