Rick Mercer is no fan of Canada’s new plastic bills.
“Our new money — the new plastic bills — they’re stupid,” Mercer said during his latest rant on the Rick Mercer Report. “I can’t think of another word for it.”
Mercer’s main issues with the new bills are that they won’t fold in your pocket, and that they tend to stick together.
“If you reach into your pants for your car keys, when your hand comes out the money tends to fly away, but that’s great because the polymer bills have the magical flight properties of miniature hang gliders,” Mercer quipped.
Mercer’s complaint about the bills sticking together is not new; some news reports have claimed the bills melt in extreme heat. (The Bank of Canada recently asserted that releasing details about the potential melting bills could endanger national security.)
Plastic currency, or polymer banknotes as they are technically known, aren’t a Canadian invention. They were first developed by the Reserve Bank of Australia, and have been in circulation down under since 1988.
But Australians, who live in a much hotter climate than Canada, seemed surprised by allegations that plastic bills melt. (Canada's bills may be produced differently.)
All the same, Mercer hopes — but doubts — the bills will prove to be a passing fad.
“Look, I'm not against progress, but this is progress run amok. I only hope that someday we will look back and say, do you remember when ... we had plastic money? Boy that was stupid. Thank God those days are over.
“No such luck. We are powerless here. It’s not like you can boycott money. The future is here and it is plastic. And sadly there's no cure for stupid.”
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