The new Liberty Dollars are being produced by an organization with the unweildy name "National Organization for the Repeal of the Federal Reserve Act and the Internal Revenue Code," or NORFED for short. NORFED's goal, according to their Web site, is to provide an alternative currency to that which is issued by the Federal Government; a currency that is backed by gold and silver, and therefore inflation-proof. NORFED has manufactured these coins in various denominations, including $1, $5, $10, and $20 in silver, and $500 in gold.
What makes these new Liberty Dollars so dangerous is that they have been designed to look very much like the existing circulating U.S. coinage. These are the similarities and how to tell them apart:
- LIBERTY inscription - Genuine legal tender coins also bear the LIBERTY inscription
- TRUST IN GOD inscription - Genuine legal tender coins are inscribed IN GOD WE TRUST
- Value is stated in Dollars - Genuine U.S. currency is also given in Dollars
- Depiction of the Statue of Liberty - The new legal tender Presidential Dollars bear the Statue of Liberty
- The inscription "USA" - USA is widely understood to mean United States of America
- 1.800.NEW.DOLLAR on the reverse - The United States doesn't put a phone number on its coinage
- LibertyDollar.Org on the reverse - The U.S. doesn't put Web addresses on its coins either
Confusion About the New Dollars - The reason these Liberty Dollar coins are particularly dangerous is that the U.S. does have a new One Dollar coin going into circulation beginning in February, 2007, called the Presidential Dollar series. Any time there is a major change to the coinage, there is bound to be some confusion, and unfortunately these so-called "Liberty Dollars" are similar enough to genuine U.S. coinage that people might take them during monetary transactions without realizing that they're worthless as currency.
How to Report this Fraud - Although it is not against the law to own these Liberty Dollars as a collectible item, it is illegal to use them to conduct any commerce in the United States. If a merchant tries to give you one, politely refuse it. If they insist, claiming these coins are legal temder, you should cancel the entire transaction with that merchant and report them to your local Secret Service Field Office.
The New Presidential Dollars are Golden-toned - If someone tries to give you a dollar coin that you don't recognize or aren't sure about, just remember that the only dollar coin type is a Golden Dollar, the same size and color as the Sacagawea Dollar. The U.S. does not make any penny, nickel, or dime-sized dollar or multiple-dollar coins out of a silver-colored alloy.
