Dollars and Scents

If you were to see a headline like, say, "U.S. Court: Paper Money Discriminates Against Blind," you'd probably dismiss it as a piece from The Onion. Well, you'd be wrong:

A federal appeals court says paper money discriminates against blind people.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has upheld a ruling that could force the U.S. to redesign its money so blind people can distinguish between values.

Such changes could include making bills different sizes, including raised markings or printing oversized numbers for people who see poorly.

The appeals court ruled 2-1 on Tuesday that the U.S. didn't explain why such changes would be an unreasonable burden, especially since many other countries have done so.

How about scratch and sniff currency? "Say, do you have two gingerbreads for a licorice? Yes, a gingerbread and five peanut butters would be fine."

On second thought, maybe that wouldn't be such a good idea. You just know someone would complain that kind of currency would be discriminatory against people with colds or brittle fingernails. Or peanut allergies.