I just Can't

[digitS']

make any Changes!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metrication#mediaviewer/File:Metrication_by_year_map.svg

Steve

the day Sweden moved from driving on one side of the roadway to the other ...

 

[Ridgerunner]

I can't say I remember Sweden specifically but I have memories of other countries switching like that. It generally went a lot better than people expected.

Steve, you might want to check you link. It took me to a metrification site, not a driving on the other side of the road site.

 

[digitS']

That's my point , @Ridgerunner .

The US is alone in carrying forward it's use of a system of measurement from the time it was an 18th century colony.

It is easy for me to remember the overwhelming flak the executive branch was hit with when a change was attempted in the 1970's.

Steve

 

[canesisters]

Hummm.... people make a stink about changing from yards to meters... but I have to press 1 to get service in english and have to scan every sign to find the info in english .....

 

[Ridgerunner]

Your photo led me off to the wrong track. That happens a lot with me.

I've worked internationally as an engineer and used the metric system. Some of that was before computers made it really easy to convert from one to the other. It took a while to get used to the system and there are still some of the measurements I don't have a good feel for, but it is a lot easier system to use. I do think our not being metric hurts our economy. It makes it harder for us to sell goods and trade with the rest of the world. How many of us have tool sets in both metric and in the English system? That's an extra expense and inconvenience the rest of the world doesn't need. Standard sized containers here are not standard there.

There would be disruption in the short term and people just don't like change. In the long term we would be better off switching to metric, as uncomfortable as it would make many of us feel. But how long has it been since Americans have been able to think long-term instead of just getting instant gratification?

 

[Smart Red]

That's my point , @Ridgerunner .

The US is alone in carrying forward it's use of a system of measurement from the time it was an 18th century colony.

It is easy for me to remember the overwhelming flak the executive branch was hit with when a change was attempted in the 1970's.

Steve

Steve, a change wasn't 'attempted', it was mandated by law. As time passed, the citizenry 'revolted' to the extent that the mandate was unofficially set aside. I would wager a guess that it is still in the statutes.

 

[digitS']

The map says it all.

We are with Liberia on this. Oh no, someone points at Burma. Nope, isolated Burma has its own system, different from both Imperial and metric.

The entire English-speaking world excepting the US has gone metric and many years have passed. It is resistance to change ...

Steve

 

[digitS']

There was a one cent coin lying in the road in front of my house yesterday. It must still be out there. Of course we see these coins in parking lots, all the time.

I did not go out to pick up the coin. I did pick up the trash that must have fallen from the garbage truck. You don't suppose that coin fell from the truck??

The most recent information from the US Mint is that it costs 1.8¢ to make a 1¢ coin. The 5¢ coin is also about double its value to mint. The WAPost says it costs us $105 million annually above value, to mint these 2 coins.

Steve

 

[thistlebloom]

I always pick up pennies when I see them. Maybe they're basically worthless but I can't just leave them lying there. I found a $20 bill in the surf at mom and dads beach one year. That I would have swam out into a rip current for!

 

[digitS']

I have a Coinstar account to count change and move it into Amazon credit.

However, the news story had it that many people essentially pay Coinstar to take their coins, losing over 10% in the exchange.

The story also said that Coinstar and the zinc mining industry hire Washington lobbyists to help put down any attempt to stop the minting of nickels and pennies.

Be careful in that salvaging, Thistle'. Parking places can be dangerous places.

Steve