Oct 19, 2010 | Federal Reserve, legal, tokens
After receiving my copy of Numismatic News in yesterday’s mail, I immediately turned to the Letters and Viewpoint section to see what the readers are saying to find a Viewpoint article: “Private ‘Coins’ Should be Collected.” In the article, Will Gragg writes that Liberty Dollar issued by the National Organization for the Repeal of the Federal Reserve (NORFED) should be collected. Aside that the article seems like a thinly veiled support for the Liberty Dollar, I began to wonder what happened to Bernard von NotHaus.
Bernard von NotHaus was a co-founder of the Royal Hawaiian Mint. He served as the mint’s supervisor before leaving and founding NORFED under the premise that the Federal Reserve is illegal and devaluing U.S. money by issuing fiat money. Believing that he could create currency using precious metals that could be used in trade, von NotHaus created the Liberty Dollar. NORFED marketed their “coins” as “Real Money” and that their associated notes are “America’s Inflation Proof Currency.”
In 2006, the U.S. Mint issued a consumer alert warning that the Liberty Dollar is not legal tender. Von NotHaus and coconspirators were arrested in 2007 by the FBI. He was release on bond. A grand jury handed down indictments against von NotHaus and his coconspirators for primarily violating 18 U.S.C. § 486, for “Uttering [circulating] coins of gold, silver or other metal.”
Von NotHaus was arrested on June 30, 2010 for violating the terms of his bond. After appearing before Judge David S. Cayer, Federal District Court for the Western District of North Carolina in Charlotte on Wednesday, July 14, von NotHaus’s bond was revoked and is in federal prison pending trial.
It was difficult to find information on the status of von NotHaus. Reports about his arrest and incarceration did not appear in the “mainstream media.” This news was found by reading other sources that reported von NotHaus’s arrest at the beginning of August.
According to the court’s calendar, the case of USA v. von NotHaus, et. al. (5:09-cr-00027-RLV-DCK-1) was scheduled for a hearing today (October 19) before Judge Richard Voorhees. No public information about the hearing was available at the time this was written.
Justice moves slowly.
Oct 6, 2009 | fun, tokens
Matthew Hinçman is what some people call a guerilla artist. Guerilla Art, sometimes called Street Art, is unsanctioned art that is developed and displayed in public places. Guerilla art is more than graffiti. It is art designed to surprise and make the public think and sometimes participate.
One of Hinçman’s newest projects is the creation of Pomme de Terre (French for “Potato“) and Pomme en l’Air (“Apple in the Air“) tokens. Hinçman describes them as “loosely based on mid-19th century Hard Times Tokens.” He had 1,200 copper tokens minted and will drop them on the streets of Boston by the end of the year.
Those in the Boston are may want to follow Hinçman on Twitter @metchew for clues as to where he drops the token.
Hinçman also had 50 silver tokens minted but has not announced plans for those tokens.
Interestingly, this is the second time I found an artist making a statement about or with money using art. Rather than the existing bureaucracy, maybe we should include more of these artists in the process. They seem to come up with better ideas.
Image courtesy of Matthew Hinçman.
Apr 1, 2009 | Baltimore, coins, shows, tokens
If it was Saturday at the end of March, it was time to drive to Baltimore for the Whitman Baltimore Coin and Currency Expo. This show is a three-times-a-year ritual for the numismatic community centrally located on the eastern seaboard. For the last few years, the show has expanded to three large halls in the Baltimore Convention Center and made into a real numismatic happening by the people at Whitman. Whitman has done a good with the show and I hope their new venture into Philadelphia is successful. If there is one complaint, I wish they would use chairs without arms. Those of us with wide bottoms would appreciate this.
After completing errands, I left home at 11:30 and drove to Baltimore. Depending on traffic, the trip from home to parking near the Baltimore Convention Center can take an hour. I park near the convention center in the parking lot at the Sheraton Inner Harbor. I overpaid for parking and walked to the Convention Center.
Registration booths are expertly tended to by members of the Baltimore Coin Club. Sine many of the members are also members of the Maryland State Numismatic Association, it was nice to see friendly faces.
Once inside I started with my regulars. I wanted to talk with them to see how the show was going. The responses were mixed, but in the extremes. Some dealers said that they would not make the money they paid in fees and expenses for the weekend. Others said that the weekend could not be better.
Gold and silver seemed to be very hot. It was difficult to find 2009 Silver Eagles. I was able to find one from a dealer with three singles and two rolls left. Good date Morgan dollars were also selling well. One dealer said that early 20th Century commemoratives were also selling well.
There was a lot of gold. Gold was everywhere. Some dealers were advertising that they would buy scrap gold. I watched as a dealer bought scrap gold at spot less 5-percent. I also saw a dealer with one ounce gold eagles fanned across his case when I entered the hall and the pile was half the size two hours later.
At the show I met Sharon, a dealer from New York who travels with her husband nearly every weekend to shows. She was a fun person who convinced me to buy something I originally was not going to buy. Sharon mostly sells currency and said that the show was a disaster for her. Although she had some very nice National Banknotes, there seemed to be little interest in currency at this show. Sharon and her husband will be at the Dulles Coin & Currency Expo at the end of April. This year is the third annual show at Dulles. I will have to drop by.
Other currency dealers also said it was slow. I do not collect currency because of the costs involved, but I will browse their tables to look at the artwork of these wonderful notes. Currency dealers also love to talk about their products and I have learned a lot about economic history from their discussion of the notes. Nearly every currency dealer said that their sales were slow. Only one dealer gave me a shrug and said that it was “OK.”
Although I did not buy much, I continued my tradition to try to find something I consider “neat.” This show’s neat find did not cost anything. I was walking down the aisle and walked by the table for Abbott’s Coins. I forgot to ask who the dealer at the table was, he was not John Abbott, but he was handing out these copper-looking tokens. Looking at the token, there were the big letters “TUIT” on the front. I looked at the dealer and said, “I can’t take this. It means that I would have to get things done!” But it was so compelling, I had to take one.
Now that I have a “Round TUIT” I cannot complain that I will get things done when I get a Round TUIT. I have one. I guess it’s time time to get things done!
The June show will be bigger and will have a Sunday session. There will be speakers, club meetings, and more activities. It will be a real happening along with the usually buying and selling. If you are in the area, you have to attend this show. When you are done, remember that the Inner Harbor is right next door with shops and plenty of restaurants. If you want to bring your family and they are not interested in coins, send them to the National Aquarium while you check out the coins.
Nov 3, 2007 | fun, tokens
Although I had this token for a while, I was about to put it into an AirTite holder for storage. Since it was already imaged, I thought I would share it here. This is a token from the Trioboro Bridge and Tunnel Authority. The TBTA (now part of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority) is responsible for managing the bridges and tunnels that connect different areas of New York City. At one point in my life, I lived in New York and worked in New Jersey. To make the commute easier, I used to buy these token for $20 per roll to use in the exact change lanes. That lasted a week for crossing the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge into Staten Island.
With the introduction of EZ-Pass, tokens are no longer used. It is a relic of a bygone era of not so long ago when I commuted in and around New York City.
Let’s see if I can find more.
Mar 4, 2007 | counterfeit, currency, tokens
News reports out of New York City and Nassau County on Long Island reports that a 49 year old suspect has been passing bogus $50 and $100 bills in the area. Another suspect was arrested in Manhattan. Although suspects have been arrested, the New York Field Office of the US Secret Service is warning those in the metropolitan New York area that there may be more suspects and phony money in circulation. Secret Service has issued fliers showing the public what the fake bills look like.
- Click here to view the flier describing the counterfeit $100 bill
- Click here to view the flier describing the counterfeit $50 bill
In an unrelated story, a Buffalo man plead guilty to charges for his role in transmitting fake Toronto Transit Tokens into Canada. Tokens were made at an American token manufacturer and were to be sold in multiple shipments to Canadian dealers. These tokens have a face value of C$2.50. The real tokens were minted by the Royal Canadian Mint.
The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) estimates that 40 percent of its tokens were counterfeit. To prevent further counterfeiting, TTC introduce a two-toned token and stopped accepting the old tokens on February 1.
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