Economics and Investing:

Debasement and Debt Monetization are the last refuges of modern-day profligate spending governments: Geithner sees cash in coins’ metal. I’ve been warning about the composition change in nickels for three years. I hope that you have been methodically building your stack during this time. Once he composition changes, you will have to start sorting nickels. But for now, you can stack ammo cans or boxes full of rolls, painlessly.

New in the Nerd World: Societal collapse as a marketing angle. (Thanks to PNG for the link.)

Who Are the Nation’s Biggest Suckers? Lottery Players. (As the Late Memsahib was fond of saying: “Gambling is a tax on people that are bad at math.”)

It is official: The Canadian Penny is Dead. For now, prices will be bumped up or down to the nearest five cents. But can nickels be far behind?

G.G. flagged this: Four Numbers Add Up to an American Debt Disaster

FDIC closes Fidelity Bank in Michigan bringing total for 2012 to 16 banks. (Thanks to SurvivalBlog’s G.G. for the link.)