[quote]BostonBarrister wrote:
On a completely practical note, I’ll point out that changing the size of bills is no small thing.
There is an entire infrastructure built around the particular size of a $US dollar, and around the fact that all US bills are identical in size. It will be quite expensive for a lot of people/companies if their ATM machines, cash registers, bill acceptors, etc. all need to be replaced. [/quote]
I am not sure if i like the size changing. I think separate colors and indentations / raised markings are the best way to go about changing the currency were it needed.
I am not sure if i like the size changing. I think separate colors and indentations / raised markings are the best way to go about changing the currency were it needed.[/quote]
I am not sure if i like the size changing. I think separate colors and indentations / raised markings are the best way to go about changing the currency were it needed.
Somehow, I fail to see how colors would help.[/quote]
well, colors are not for the blind people. I just happen to prefer money that I can differentiate easily.
[quote]thunderbolt23 wrote:
Who took it personally? I never expressed an opinion disagreeing with the court, so I can’t be taking it personally.
Seems like a difficult question on which reasonable people can disagree.
[/quote]
That was a joke.
Anyway, sometimes what look like plain english phrases have implications in the legal world.
Things like “time is of the essence” which appear to be simple and useless.
I’m thinking that “meaningful access” is such a loaded phrase. Nobody will argue that blind people haven’t found ways to work around their issues with handling money.
However, I suspect there is a reason the courts immediately assumed “meaningful access” was not being provided and did not spend time explaining it.
I think the issue here is the legislation - or alternately that there is no issue. However, the legal system has become a common scapegoat in the political landscape.
Having a standard color scheme helps the visually impaired, not the blind. Think grandma’s failing eyesight. Introducing colors would be relatively painless, retooling for raised patches would be more costly. Changing the size of the bills is a non-starter. Aside from the cost of replacing every machine which handles or accepts standard bills, changing the size ratio of bills would meet with significant resistance from the public.
For all the talk of a cashless society, the physicality of cash is very powerful thing. We enjoy the feel of cash in our hands, and we are bound by habit. Witness the failure of the dollar coin to enter common usage. Significant change would eventually be accepted, but the transition would be painful and I do not believe anyone currently in power has the political will to initiate such a disquieting change.