Common Cents

But Americans for Common Cents, the pro-penny lobbying group funded by the zinc industry and penny distributors, isn't too concerned. In fact, it has pushed through some serious pro-penny legislation. In 2009, the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln's birth, the U.S. Mint will issue pennies with four different backs, all chock-full of zinc.

Americans for Common Cents (also known as Mark Weller) says polls show that two-thirds of Americans are loath to let pennies go. Rounding to the nickel, Weller insists, would be manipulated by merchants to screw the consumer. Playing to our patriotism, he cites the coin's tradition. Playing to our guilt, he says penny drives bring charities millions. And playing to our fears, Weller says the penny is a psychological hedge against inflation, a consideration the European Union factored in when it decided to make a one-cent euro coin (though several countries have since effectively banished it): "If you take the penny away, that has a huge impact on how people view the economy and inflation." If you think Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's statements rock the markets, Weller says, wait till you see what happens if we lose the penny. Then Weller gets personal. "Kolbe is from the leading copper-producing state in the Union. And," he continues, "nickels are mostly made of copper." Kolbe counters that he's for de-copperizing the nickel, which also costs more than it's worth. Soon Kolbe may be coming for your dimes.

Weller, like all good lobbyists, has powerful friends. One of those is not Kevin Federline, husband of Britney Spears. Federline was hired by Virgin Mobile to spearhead its Save the Penny campaign. The British company's promotion exploits the U.S. debate to sell a deal in which text messages cost a penny, since you get 1,000 a month for $9.99 (Virgin has a little trouble with math). Last month Federline, standing next to an armored truck collecting pennies for charity in Times Square, yelled, "Man, I feel good about the penny!" In addition to math problems, Virgin has spokesman-choosing issues.

The penny killers would seem to have momentum on their side, since inflation makes the penny more worthless by the day. But the pro-penny lobby has a different kind of certainty. Millions of Americans may hate the penny, but they hate change even more.