Is It Time to Kill the Penny?

Re:Is It Time to Kill the Penny? by bumby on Tuesday July 14, 2020 @09:42AM (#23831826)

I'm not wholly convinced the first statement is the case. It's probably true for some types of changes like Executive Orders than can be easily repealed. Others, like laws and judge selections, take much longer to revert. I wonder if this is due to the lobbying culture in combination to competing interests.

Somewhat humorous example: In response to the need for warm clothing in the Korean War, US lawmakers instituted an alpaca subsidy in 1952. This subsidy remained in place for over 40 years.[1]

I do think there’s evidence that your second statement is true. Bad policy takes a lot of political will to overturn.

[1] https://books.google.com/books?id=fV_SuDMHpOsC&pg=PA273&lpg=...

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Re:Is It Time to Kill the Penny? by throw0101a on Wednesday July 15, 2020 @07:03AM (#23843566)

> I'm not wholly convinced the first statement is the case.

Probably because you're only thinking about it from a US-centric POV.

As a Canadian who lives under a Westminster-style style system, there tends to be less gridlock here under majority governments.

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Re:Is It Time to Kill the Penny? by bumby on Wednesday July 15, 2020 @10:02AM (#23845324)

Correct, but as stated in the parent I was asking specifically about the characteristics of the US system.

I personally think it was deliberately put intended as a check/balance. Af the far end of spectrum, the most “efficient” form of government is a dictatorship. I’m not sure if what the US has is the correct balance, though.

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