Originally Posted by
MojaveJack
This is because coinage has INTRINSIC VALUE. Back in the day, the gold, silver, and copper gave coins real value. ^^^
Banknotes are essentially IOUs from the FED that we freely pass around from one to another. Kind of like a game of musical chairs. If the government collapses, those holding banknotes will be out of luck. Those with coins will likely still find they have something with some value.
They aren't even IOUs any more. Once upon a time they were, they said they were exchangeable for gold or silver. They don't represent any obligation on the part of the government or the Federal Reserve and longer.