Pocket Idols
Pocket Idols A nation's currency says a lot about its priorities and aspirations. Monarchies put the king's face on the money to show that, even as they publicize the human foibles of their rulers, they feel there is something important about loyalty to the crown. In our country, we have a rule against putting a sitting President on a coin, because that would be too much like monarchy. (Notwithstanding this rule, the current POTUS is planning a “commemorative” dollar with his own face. Many Americans interpret this as him trying to be a king. Or even an emperor?) But what images do our actual coins bear? Mostly dead Presidents. Those delightful dollar coins with women on them have never really caught on, which also says something about us. If you carry change, which I realize a lot of people don't anymore, take a coin from your pocket or purse and really look at it. What iconography do you see? What does it say about our own empire? My roommate Lauranne has a theory about...