May 20, 2008
Banneker Likely to Grace D.C. Quarter
Still wondering what's up with the D.C. quarter that's supposed to hit the streets in 2009? Wonder no more -- we may have a winner.
Today the U.S. Mint's Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee met to review three proposed designs for the D.C. quarter -- Duke Ellington, Benjamin Banneker, and Frederick Douglass -- and propose their choice to the Secretary of the Treasury, Henry Paulson. And who did they choose? Benjamin Banneker. Short of Paulson overruling the committee, it looks like the astronomer, mathematician, and clockmaker will grace the city's commemorative quarter.
Today the U.S. Mint's Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee recommended this design, featuring Benjamin Banneker, to Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson as their first choice for D.C.'s state quarter. (U.S. Mint)
Maybe we're missing something here, but we're pretty underwhelmed by the choice. Beyond the somewhat awkward design, Banneker just doesn't seem to rival either Ellington or Douglass in local and historic significance. We may just still be sour on the U.S. Mint for rejecting the city's original proposals, which bore the message "Taxation without Representation," though. Banneker is an impressive individual for sure, but he just doesn't seem to scream "D.C.!" to us. Then again, not many things do that aren't one of the monuments or federal buildings. At least our design will be better than Florida's, though. What's with the Space Shuttle doing a fly-by on the conquistador ship?
What do you think? Flop or fantastic?
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Wait, so he kinda helped maybe survey part of the city? That's it? Did Banneker ever even live in the District? That's a pretty poor choice.
Lame. Tenuous connection to DC. Poor design. Uninspiring.
why not duke? who are these people deciding this crap.
I was pulling for The Duke, too.
booo. Banneker was my last choice. Duke has contributed so much not only to DC's culture but to the nation's. I don't understand why he isn't the clear-cut choice.
You know, this choice is more apt than I first realized. You have a Maryland-resident who was responsible for telling District residents where they could and couln't park their wagons. Plus he paid no taxes here. He's perfect.
Kidding aside, I think this choice is lame and has more to do with certain non-stated political agendas. The stated political agenda was to get across the idea that there is such a place as non-federal Washington. This does nothing to accomplish that. (in my opinion, showing a bunch of old rowhouses with an old PCC streetcar going by would've).
However, of the three designs, in my opinion this is the most aesthetically pleasing.
I'd vote for Douglass, but Banneker, ehh. At least it has the DC diamond in the background.
I'd prefer a generic map of DC to a specific person. At least then I'd know what "state" is being represented. And what's with "Justice for All?" Is that to make up for nixing Taxation without Representation?
Flapjack, Banneker was a die hard Metalica fan.
By the way, if the DC pols are all indignant about about the focus on federal-DC, why do we have a picture of the Capitol on our driver's licenses?
I was pulling for Marvin Gaye but will settle for George Washington.
Not being from DC (hey, but better than being an intern!), I have no idea who he is.
And thus, no one else in the country knows or cares.
Now Duke... how awesome would that be? If Louisiana passed up Louis, we better take the rebound and put Duke in a rotated square with a jazzy piano. Spice things up a bit, no?
Flop.
The DC flag, shape or the Capitol all would have been better, but boring choices. Cherry blossom in front of a row house would have been OK.
A better design would have celebrated the city's status as the Federal City, it's place in history and the city itself. A variation on this a photo might have pulled that off.
Oh well. It's better than a crackpipe.
In typical DC fashion our "elected officials" here push a political agenda. What a crock!
Nice to see the design includes the original boundaries of the District.
Does this mean DC gets to take back Old Town Alexandria and Arlington County?
Even though it has a poorly drawn map on the back, I think it's ugly. I vote for no quarter until a better one is drawn. It's already unfair that the first design was rejected. I prefer my 2004 DEMO quarter still--->
I for one will refuse to use, collect and/or carry any DC quarter that does not have "Taxation Without Representation" engraved on it. That is my vow!
At least the Federal government finally is seeing to it that Washington DC must be fully unified. Damn this nonsense of retrocesion of Alexandria and Arlington! Those secess bastards of "Virginia" should be brought back into the fold of a unified and strong Washington DC! A Square DC! It is time we right a 161 year wrong and unify the mothercity to it's true, historic, and Constitutional borders of 10 miles square!
Wow - not a single non-African American candidate among the nominees. I guess only one race has ever lived in, contributed to, or accomplished anything in this city. Pretty sad.
damn. no love for banneker in this thread. did anyone really think a pointless government committee was going to pick a controversial negro like H. Rap. Brown or Huey P. Newton? you just need to be glad they didnt pick Stepin Fetchit. and dont think they didnt think long and hard on that one.
anyone who wants a slogan engraved on their coinage need only spend $20 on a jewelry engraver from Michaels Crafts. and its also a felony to deface government currency. live life on that sweet edge, folks!
can i suggest monkeyrotica on the quarter? why didn't we think of this before?
Well, I'd already suggested the Pentagon/goatse mashup on the quarter, and that got nowhere.
I have the sneaking suspicion that the Pope was somehow involved in that decision, the Vicar of Christ being a noted peacenik and anti-fisting advocate.
It could have been worse, we could've been Wisconsin. I mean, it's almost like they didn't even try.
"Dude, people think we're nothing but cows, corn and cheese. Just put it on the quarter and let's be done with it already!"
Banneker even has a street named after him in DC! Well, kinda. It's a poorly maintained "circle" off of L'Enfant Promenade that overlooks the stinky SW Fish Wharf. You'd only drive through it if you were a tourist trying to find a parking place (or worked at L'Enfant Plaza).
The words "E Pluribus Unum" are required on the reverse of the quarter. "Justice for All" seems to be there to have someting under the SW border line.
"Taxation Without Representation" was rejected because it "is a contemporary political issue on which there presently is no national consensus and over which reasonable minds differ."
Apparently, the Mint interprets an indisputable fact and slogan upon which the nation was built as a "contemporary political issue" while the clearly illusory "Justice for All" is acceptable.
FAIL.
For the record: Justice for All is the District's official motto. Which isn't nearly as awesome as Virginia's "Sic Semper Tyrannis" (in English: "Thus always with the trannies") but it's certainly better than Maryland's "Manly Deeds, Womanly Words" (no joke here, that's really their motto).
I'm going to have to speak up in defense of Banneker. I like the fact that he's tenuously connected to urban planning. Yes, I am a single issue voter.
I thought DC's motto was, "At Least We're Not Herndon."
what about a dude puking on a metro train while someone is holding a gun to his head and the woman next to him is eating a snickers bar with a parking ticket in her hand?
Manly deeds, womanly words...I feel there's a really good joke there but I'm just not clever enough to think of it.
boo and hiss.