The king is dead? Credit card vs. Cash.

Apparently...

You don't need to carry wodges of cash with you anymore. Paying with a card just makes more sense.

I wonder if this kind of article is kind of just testing the water? You can read the readers' comments at the bottom. People aren't being fooled, yet there have been a few articles recently on MSM about how cash is "just not the done thing anymore"

Credit is king now?

This one claims that people who prefer payment in cash are "part of a deception that cheats society"...Don't they mean "part of the freedom movement that cheats the banks out of a lot of interest"?

I really do believe that we should work out a system of bartering inside our community, and let the big wigs have fun with their little bits of plastic...see who lives the longest?

And anyway...who (except the POTUS, apparently) still walks around with a "wodge" of cash? A wodge? WODGE...really?!

I don’t have a card credit and have no plans on getting one except when I travel overseas for emergencies. I don’t really see a point to them for general, every day spending?

I had one yonks years ago, and it got me into deep water because the communication between provider and client was [email protected]'m also lucky enough now to live in a small rural community where there is a lot of bartering going on anyway, so I'm not that bothered either way.
The only thing is that I am self employed, and for weeks after the second article was in the paper, I had to explain to people that I'm not a thief and that it really is ok to pay cash-in-hand, just like they have been doing for the past three years that I have done work for them. The article made cash payers feel like they were being "unlawful" when paying cash, like they were somehow breaking the law...

And then it'll be even easier to pay with your phone.

And then it'll be even easier to pay with your ID card.

And then it'll be even easier to pay with your implanted RFID chip.

reply to post by khimbar


Exactly.

That's why I said maybe they're testing the water - to see if the sheeple would mind. But looking at the comments on the first link, I think there are a few more people out there starting to wake up. Slowly but surely.

reply to post by 3Dplus

Every month there's a new lame stream/propaganda article about how cash is evil and how electronic money is great.

Its a lose/lose for the people. People will no longer be able to shield some of their income from government extortion ie taxes and banks will now make money on EVERY transaction.

The Death Of Cash? All Over The World Governments Are Banning Large Cash Transactions

In Sweden, Cash Is King No More

Originally posted by BlindBastards
I don’t have a card credit and have no plans on getting one except when I travel overseas for emergencies. I don’t really see a point to them for general, every day spending?

The most obvious benefit is that cash, if lost or stolen, cannot be replaced. If a credit card is lost or stolen, you lose nothing but the time it takes to get a replacement. In the US (I do not know about other countries), law and regulations place most of the fraudulent use risk on the issuing bank, so your money is rarely (if ever) at risk, only the bank's money is at risk. The law also provides a dispute process if you are not satisfied with your merchandise, and most issuers go above and beyond that with extended warranties, return protection, etc. Many issuers also offer cash back, airline miles, etc. A credit card provides a short-term interest-free loan, allowing you to keep your money in an interest-earning account until the end of the grace period, then pay for your purchases and keep the interest. Monthly statements and year-end charts give one a good breakdown of where all the money is going. And, of course, responsible use of a good mix of credit products gives you a good credit history, which translates to easier access to credit and lower interest rates on loans. Those who don't use credit but think it will be available in an emergency are fooling themselves.

Originally posted by BlindBastards
I don’t have a card credit and have no plans on getting one except when I travel overseas for emergencies. I don’t really see a point to them for general, every day spending?

The most obvious benefit is that cash, if lost or stolen, cannot be replaced. If a credit card is lost or stolen, you lose nothing but the time it takes to get a replacement. In the US (I do not know about other countries), law and regulations place most of the fraudulent use risk on the issuing bank, so your money is rarely (if ever) at risk, only the bank's money is at risk. The law also provides a dispute process if you are not satisfied with your merchandise, and most issuers go above and beyond that with extended warranties, return protection, etc. Many issuers also offer cash back, airline miles, etc. A credit card provides a short-term interest-free loan, allowing you to keep your money in an interest-earning account until the end of the grace period, then pay for your purchases and keep the interest. Monthly statements and year-end charts give one a good breakdown of where all the money is going. And, of course, responsible use of a good mix of credit products gives you a good credit history, which translates to easier access to credit and lower interest rates on loans. Those who don't use credit but think it will be available in an emergency are fooling themselves.

your money is rarely (if ever) at risk, only the bank's money is at risk.

The bank has very little money, in fact...most of the money in the bank belongs to the sheeple...people who feel they are not responsible enough to look after their own income. Losing cash is not nice, especially if it's a big bunch o doh, but losing money teaches you responsibility. Credit card takes everything out of your own hands. You don't need to budget (too much) because everything is on Direct Debit, you don't need to make basic sums (adding coin values makes for fun, if you're low on cash and have to teach your kids maths by counting the coins in your penny jar)

Also, I feel children don't realise the value of hard work and getting rewarded for it, because they don't see their parents payslip, they just see mom n pop go to the ATM, put in a piece of plastic and money comes out the wall...Magic!

Banks are taking away our ability to look after ourselves.

Originally posted by 3Dplus

I feel children don't realise the value of hard work and getting rewarded for it, because they don't see their parents payslip, they just see mom n pop go to the ATM, put in a piece of plastic and money comes out the wall...Magic!

I remember my son saying that when he was little, he wanted something... and said "all you have to do is put that card in, to get money out"

I don't think cash is evil or anything, just completely inconvenient. I generally have about $20 on me, in case of an emergency, but I'm 99% debit card for everything.

I consciously now avoid using it whenever I can Likewise with banks, keeping minimum there that I can get away with. The rest is safely sitting in a fireproof safe that is hard to find. No credit unions or none corporate banks near me.

It's 2012.

Most every establishment needs to get with the program. In my neighborhood there are very few places which don't accept plastic, but they lose business because of this. Everyone carries their bank card around. Get with the times, guys. Why are you willingly turning away business? Get the dam machine and wake up.


Posted Via ATS Mobile: m.abovetopsecret.com

Stores love cash. In fact if you ask for a moderate cash discount find out what percentage the credit card companies charge the merchant and ask for that amount off of the purchase and you will probably get it. They may need to call a manager but if you are buying a couple hundred dollars worth you will no doubt get it and it will be worth the time.

However if you are buying a car or something you may want to use a check or cashiers check, if you are buying from a dealer and you don't want to wind up on a list. Make sure that you get receipt, bill of sale or title signed over to you which you don't have to worry about with a credit card or check.

‘Square’ Earth - ‘Money' (no longer) makes the World go ‘round

And honestly - the focus should not be on the 'card' - that we no longer 'have to use cash' to pay.
The focus should be on - when TPTB decide to shut you OFF.

Obama Executive Order: Allows Seizure of Americans' Bank Accounts

So pretty much your thread is covered - BUT - it's always good to see MORE info! Keep up the good work!

peace

Originally posted by FurvusRexCaeli

Originally posted by BlindBastards
I don’t have a card credit and have no plans on getting one except when I travel overseas for emergencies. I don’t really see a point to them for general, every day spending?

The most obvious benefit is that cash, if lost or stolen, cannot be replaced. If a credit card is lost or stolen, you lose nothing but the time it takes to get a replacement. In the US (I do not know about other countries), law and regulations place most of the fraudulent use risk on the issuing bank, so your money is rarely (if ever) at risk, only the bank's money is at risk. The law also provides a dispute process if you are not satisfied with your merchandise, and most issuers go above and beyond that with extended warranties, return protection, etc. Many issuers also offer cash back, airline miles, etc. A credit card provides a short-term interest-free loan, allowing you to keep your money in an interest-earning account until the end of the grace period, then pay for your purchases and keep the interest. Monthly statements and year-end charts give one a good breakdown of where all the money is going. And, of course, responsible use of a good mix of credit products gives you a good credit history, which translates to easier access to credit and lower interest rates on loans. Those who don't use credit but think it will be available in an emergency are fooling themselves.

Wow that sounds all jolly and nice. Now how about we look at some cons of using plastic. First, it may be convenient to have a CC and as long as you pay it off each month theres no interest. However banks are waiting with eager anticipation for you to screw up once then they can slam you with interest and fines. Screw up enough and suddenly you are paying huge interest rates with no chance of ever getting a good rate reinstated. If you do manage to get the rate reduced it'll still be higher than what it was originally. Next these cards have poor management systems to decline purchases that exceed your credit limit or bank account. Heck why crack down on this when the banks can just fine you on every purchase that goes over. Then fine you again for not getting the your account back under the limit or at a positive amount. If you need to withdraw cash with your atm then you better hope you can find one for your bank cause theres another fee, nevermind the wasted gas going out of your way to an atm from your bank. By the way, depending on who you bank with these fines can be imposed by both the atm's bank and your bank, so you can pay twice.

These are just a few of the problems with using plastic. And believe me I know I used to work for bank of america's credit card department. Imagine how I felt when I was told an outright lie to repeat to customers about the bailouts or that despite decent payment history, there was nothing I could do for their 30% interest rate that they now had to pay.

i used to pay many bills by cheque until the banks and government (uk) ended the guarantee scheme. then entities insisted i pay with a card incurring a fee for example £4.80 for one regular transaction.
transaction fees ensure the middlemen get their cut and perpetuate the merry-go-round imo.
nothing wrong with cash and to the politicians in the uk who insist those that trade with cash are somehow suspicious and possibly defrauding hmrc,,, up yours sideways with a vim tin you bunch of low-life-scumbag-expenses-fiddling-buttock-kissing-corporate-excrement-snorters.

i do hope they don't legislate to the tune of adding a cash transaction tax on top of purchases paid in cash to deter us from using it.
f.

Originally posted by Krazysh0t

Wow that sounds all jolly and nice. Now how about we look at some cons of using plastic. First, it may be convenient to have a CC and as long as you pay it off each month theres no interest. However banks are waiting with eager anticipation for you to screw up once then they can slam you with interest and fines. Screw up enough and suddenly you are paying huge interest rates with no chance of ever getting a good rate reinstated. If you do manage to get the rate reduced it'll still be higher than what it was originally. Next these cards have poor management systems to decline purchases that exceed your credit limit or bank account. Heck why crack down on this when the banks can just fine you on every purchase that goes over. Then fine you again for not getting the your account back under the limit or at a positive amount. If you need to withdraw cash with your atm then you better hope you can find one for your bank cause theres another fee, nevermind the wasted gas going out of your way to an atm from your bank. By the way, depending on who you bank with these fines can be imposed by both the atm's bank and your bank, so you can pay twice.

Quite a bit of those "cons" fall under the category of personal responsibility. If one is unable or unwilling to keep track of when the payment is due, and is unable or unwilling to keep track of how much one ha spent, then you are correct, cash is the wise choice. However, I can readily see what the penalties are for missing a payment or overdrafting, as it is on the back of every bill I get. As for ATM's, I'm with a credit union so many of them are in an ATM sharing program, so I don't pay fees in the rare times I get out cash.

From personal experience I've found cash transactions to be far faster than using my debit card; its faster to hand someone a 20$ bill and get change than it is to swipe my card, hit the debit button, punch in my pin number and wait for the POS (Point Of Sale) gear to fire off the transaction data and get a response back from the card processing service. Furthermore every single time you utilize a debit card or credit card you put your personal data at risk, just today in fact I saw a story about PIN pads at a bunch of Barnes and Noble stores being compromised leading to a loss of data incident. Cards are necessary for online purchases but despite what these nonsense stories say most places are still more than willing to accept cash, sometimes its all that can be used for purchase when rocket surgeons with digging equipment knock out the line used by the card processing equipment.

reply to post by usernameconspiracy


You'd think that but the way the banks setup their repayments, they make it hard to pay on time by doing shady things like not posting your payments on weekends or holidays. Due date lands on a weekend? You better pay ahead of time. They also close phone payments for the day at 5pm eastern time (sucks if you live on the west coast), so all phone payments after that post the next business day. Ok, you can say, "Fool me once, yadayada" BUT, I've seen interest rates raised on people for missing as little as 2 or 3 payments by as few as 1 or 2 days.

Another scam the banks pull is by advertising their repayments by saying that you can pay 1% of the balance each month or some other low percentage plus interest. Never mind the fact that most of the payment you just paid was interest and if you even use the card a few times you've already exceeded that 1%.

Oh if you like paying your card off in full, don't be late even ONE day because you will get the full month of interest added to your bill. This goes back to my first point where they get you on weekends and holidays.

How do they get away with all this? They hide behind their confusing terms and conditions. I can't believe how many people I had to tell as an excuse for forcing them to now pay 30% on their credit card that all this was in their T&C. I've actually made a point of reading the T&C of many of the credit card apps I get in the mail (you should too even if you don't want to apply for it). These companies will do things like charge you multiple fees for OPENING the card which is "conveniently" added to the balance of the card. Oh boy, I just opened a credit card and I already have a debt, goody...

These companies rely on customers being dumb enough to not read the T&C of their CC's so that they can stick it to as many people as possible. And even if you are fiscally responsible they may still be able to get you with some loophole like not posting your payment on time.

Even the checking side of things isn't all rosy. Did you know that a bank will process all transactions from highest cost to lowest cost and NOT by date of transaction? They do this so that if you happen to exceed your checking amount they can bang you with as many $35 overdraft fees as possible.

I only have an ATM card and I really hate using that. Only really use it for online purchases and bill pays. I like using cash for everything else. People need to stop being suckered into the ease of use of plastic. It's just a control mechanism the banks use to control your money and make big bucks off of you.