Thursday, May 22, 2008

Money

Should the US government change its paper currency in order to make it easier for blind people to use?

15 comments:

sonya26 said...

Of course I think the currency should be changed. This could better accomodate the sacred triangle of so many visually challenged individuals living in the US. Suggestions would be creating braile monetary, creating fairness, and it would help catch counterfeit money. I think this idea will be easily accepted but the only thing that will be wrong is the amount of money that will be used to implement this. But the cause is priceless.
-Sonya N

Jessica H. said...

Although creating new currency for the whole country is very costly, it is in the best interest of the nation and the people who are blind to create new money in order for them to provide a life for themselves without the assistance of other people. Blind people deserve the same respect that we do and should not be considered any less valuable just because some are afraid to take a bit of our taxes to make life better for the small percentage of people who need it. There are many blind who are trying to live alone and it is necessary for them to care for themselves. As far as how the country will take care of the old money, it is still in debate on what is the best way to go, but we could always recycle the paper which would create millions of pounds of paper that can be used daily to make up for lost trees. Creating a new currency will end up being for the good!

Hannah P said...

In class I voted yes for changing the currency to aid blind people but now I am not so sure. The Star Telegram says that it would cost 178 million to start this new program and it would cost 50 million extra each year to mint the new bills. The Star Telegram also says that the changes could actually make it easier to counterfeit and the change in the size of the bills would mean we would have to rebuild all of our vending machines, self-check-out machines at the grocery store, ATMs and more. Tommy Craig, the president of the National Federation of the Blind of Texas feels that this change is not absolutely necessary and the time and money would be better spent on fixing the low employment rate so that the blind people could earn cash in the first place. Because of the expense and Craig’s comments, I am now not so sure that this is a good idea.
Hannah P

Robert Gaspard said...

I think the if the government chose to do so, it wouldn't be a bad thing. I think they should. It doesn't affect me in a bad way or even directly. It won't take much change for me to get use to the change. But it would mean a great deal to many. The cost might be a contributing factor though. However, our treasury has changed out our bills numerous time in the past five to ten years, to help control fraud and counterfeiting. Look at the economic toll that has had on us. So to say that it would cost more money to help those who need it would be, in my opinion scapegoating. It would actually probably be better to create a plastic like bill with indentions or even paper bills with a laminate surface on it to help assist the blind.

Cristy said...

I think we should change the bills to make it easier for the visually disabled to distinguish dollar bills. Creating new bills will not pose a hindrance on anyone, only help some. The only reason I can think of to not go through with this is for economic costs. It may be a bit expensive (anyone have a guess how much?), but when you think about what we talk about in class and how the US is always helping other countries with soldiers and money, isn't it time we put our own people first and worried about their difficulties?

Cristy V

Arafath Islam said...

Arafath I.

I dont think the United States should have to change the bills just to be more easy on blind people. First of all it wojld cost a lot of money to do that, then the business have to update all those ATM machine, self-check and other self services.It would creatte more of problem then help. It think that those people can live the way they are living now. they can fold their bills different ways to know them.

jhering said...

The technology of today has given us the opportunity to leave the paper money system to a plastic card.
I think eventually everyone will be using plastic debit/credit cards and the confusion of paper money for blind people will be non-existant.
-Jake H

amber i. said...

I think i would be a good thing to make the money different for the blind people. It would be a help to the blind and mabye i could also possiabley help other people to. So that way nobody now would get money confused.

Faith Odemwingie said...

I definitely think the US government should change its paper currency in order to make it easier for blind people to use. It would be able to create their own monetary system, creating fairness and most of all helping counterfeit. It would not be that big of a difference, but that will enable the blinds to be able to differentiate the currency.

Unknown said...

No i don't think that the currency should be changed. I don't want to sound cruel or inhumane or whatsoever but blind people have their own techniques and styles to help protect their values. I don't think that society should depict blind people as such helpless individuals, and to change the currency of the whole country will cost a heap of money. I know blind people have rights too but they've been doing just fine so far.

shenley s. said...

As much as I agree that changing our US paper money to make it easier for blind people would be a good idea, I wonder why it was not addressed when we decided to change our money just a few years ago. When looking at the US deficit, I can't see how the governement could possibly afford to make this change anytime soon.

Anonymous said...

I do not believe we should change our entire monetary system for the bling. Granted, this sounds harsh and insensitive, but all bling people function just fine as it stands today. It does not violate their "sacred triangle" rights, as it has nothing to do with their life or liberty, and they di still have the right to attain and own property. If one wanted to argue that it has an effect on the property right, I would have to disagree. There is nothing stopping the blind from earning a living/property. They have their system for keeping what is theirs accounted for. Using EVERYONE's money,(taxes), to pay for this program which would cost hundreds of millions of dollars would simply not be worth it. Many blind citizens do not even want the change. Stevie S

GTT said...

I think that should change the paper currency, regardless of the cost. I
believe that if it would help even a small portion of Americans it should be
done. Since I myself am not blind I cannot imagine the difficulty of living
without sight but do know it must be difficult at times. As mentioned in
class it would help the cashiers or anyone from lying or cheating them out
of money. This would prevent that.

Molly L

Kevin Vandersall said...

Blind people should not be put in a difficult position when it comes to money. If they go into a store and pay cash they cannot be assured that they will get correct change as long as all bills are the same. The idea of "folding bills" doesn't apply when blind people receive money, it seems that people are forgetting that. Also, we can't assume that these people all have bank accounts and therefore debit cards- you can't force people to use "plastic". Understanding that, changing the paper bills is the only logical and ethical option left. The change could be minimal, should as adding a glossy area to a certain area on the bills. We change the print every few years anyway, so I don't see how it would be very expensive. Also, it seems as though some people think that the old bills would have to be replaced. That's not true- they would be phased out over time. Also, I don't meant to offend or single out anyone but the Star Telegram is not a reliable source for information. To sum up, changing the currency is the only courteous, logical, and ethical solution to the problem.
-Kevin Vandersall

ket7 said...

I personally don't have a very strong opinion on this issue though I think there isn't a negative effect of the change. Just like our government was set-up with checks and balances to keep corrupt people from harming us, I feel like we should offer similar protection to people with disabilities, such as blindness. In addition to helping the blind, I think the change could help the elderly and others who struggle with their eyesight and mental clarity (i.e. the grandpa who's a little slow in line at the grocery store).

Kristen T.