Who's idea was it to redesign U.S. quarters so they're easily confused with Canadian ones? Now that the value of the currencies is approaching parity, this is getting tricky.
Anyone who travels between countries and then tries to use a vending machine or operate a coin laundry is in for a surprise. Newer U.S. quarters have an individual state's design on the tail side. While Canadian quarters are slightly thinner, who can tell between a coin with a Canadian caribou and one with, say, Kansas bison?
With the greenback tanking, the dollars are closer in value than at any time since the early 1980s. Considering Canada's economic fundamentals and the Bush Administration's apparent desire to devalue the U.S. currency, it's possible that the dollars could match again, a change that would affect everything from trade to Whistler bar tips. Maybe Cascadia should take the lead by rejiggering its coin machines now.