because copper over time became too valuable to use in something as cheap as a penny, because most of what we use copper for now is conducting electricity. we use copper for wiring. there is a massive global appetite for copper. and the world's largest producer of copper is an american company. it's a company that used to be based in new orleans but now the mining company freeport is based in phoenix, arizona. and the freeport mining company of phoenix, arizona, they do still mine copper in arizona and they mine copper in new mexico and in colorado. but they are a gigantic firm. and they're a global operation. in south america, they mine copper in chile, peru. in indonesia, they operate the largest gold mine in the entire world, which is also the third largest copper mine in the world, which is also a huge