Again, With the “Cashless” Thing….
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi wants us all to go to a cashless society. Should anyone be unfortunate enough to believe this is the way to go, well – it is not. Aside from the online ripoffs and outright theft of accounts, a cashless economy leaves out the larger, but less noticed, portion of the population that uses cash for the most part. Since Ms. Pelosi has never been ripped off at gunpoint in her own driveway, she forgets that the current crop of do-it-all phones and tablets, as well as those magic magnetic cards we all carry, make us far better targets than those who carry cash and have flip phones. (What’s a flip phone?)
https://fortune.com/2020/06/25/cashless-society-coronavirus-cash-america-fintech-unbanked-privacy/
That old harridan doesn’t have nearly the support and/or control of The People that she thinks she does.
From the article: While its use has certainly declined in recent years, cash will likely never disappear as those in the cashless movement would hope. Many cities like Philadelphia, San Francisco, and New York have recently passed legislation banning merchants from accepting only card and contactless payments. New Jersey passed a similar bill in 2019 on the state level, and cashless merchants have been banned in Massachusetts since 1978.
There are many reasons experts list in arguing that cash must remain a viable payment option: Going cashless excludes the millions of unbanked and underbanked people in America, most of whom are people of color; cash is the best way to pay while maintaining a modicum of privacy; cash is integral to many cultural practices like tipping and gift giving; cash is resilient in a way that digital payments are not; and finally, consumer choice is one of the most important tenets of the free market, and eliminating cash removes one of the key payment options available to consumers.
“The cashless movement is a dangerous movement,” assistant director of the National Consumer Law Center Lauren Saunders says.
Going cashless disadvantages the unbanked and communities of color:
Approximately 6.5% of U.S. households—14.1 million adults and 6.4 million children—are unbanked, according to the FDIC’s 2017 National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households, meaning they live in a household holding no accounts with formal, insured financial institutions. Another 18.7% of households are underbanked, which means they have at least one account at an insured institution, but they also use financial products or services outside of the banking system, like payday loans or cash-checking services.
“Any move to cashlessness is, by definition, exclusionary to those groups,” Christina Tetreault, senior policy counsel at Consumer Reports, says. – article
Unbanked and underbanked households are those with incomes at or below what is considered the poverty level in most states. Generally speaking, as the article says, banks will not support or cover those whose income is at or below what is considered the poverty level. If you’ve been to your local bank in the daytime, you may see a few people there making small deposits or withdrawals, but these are people whose income has fallen or will fall below what is considered the poverty level, and when you consider that the poverty level now, with inflation included, is 150% higher than it was 20 years ago, that makes it scary for people who have no resource other than pension plans that may be playing out and/or SSRI.
Cashless also means that everything you purchase, whether it’s a loaf of bread and a gallon of milk or a new pair of shoes with a hat and mittens to match it, or a load of uncut dope coming in on one of those smuggler subs – in short, everything, period – can be traced and tracked to you, the purchaser, even if your card is reported as stolen.
And frankly, I prefer cash. It is tangible. You know how much you can spend immediately and have to limit your purchases accordingly. Your card? Not so much. It’s just too easy to spread the good will without running your account dry and then wondering what happened when you check your balance.
Category: "Your Tax Dollars At Work", America
It’s all about control… anyone who doesn’t like it is an evil “racist,” of course.
Yep. Cashless implies every financial transaction can be monitored, either in real time or after-the-fact. And remember: whatever can be monitored can be controlled.
And did I mention that in a cashless marketplace, the customer will have zero realistic expectation of privacy? Your complete financial history will be there for the monitoring.
And make no mistake: it WILL be monitored. The only question is whether by commercial entities, by the government – or by both.
In short: it’s the proverbial “wet dream” for those in favor for central control and planning of the economy. Those who want central control over all financial transactions are similarly enraptured by the concept.
move to a cashless world and you can leave your enemy’s “unbanked” making it impossible for them to live. I’ve already read one story of a “far right activist” being repeatedly doxxed and the banks he and his wife did business with being harassed into closing their accounts. Try living today with out electronic payments or deposits. The last 3 jobs I have had over the years wouldn’t even give you a physical check to go cash unless you made a fuss and jumped through hoops.
The most salient part, it disadvantages those at or below the poverty level. Just another proof Piglosi et al do not and never did care about the poor folk, beyond their usefulness to the cause.
But, as soon as you make the privacy argument, that is what it becomes all about, with an able assist from the Leftist media.
Oh it won’t affect the poor at all. Part of the “cashless” approach is that those poor oppressed colored people will get Free Cards paid for by other people.
Give me my pre-paid unlimited debit card now! I wants me some of that food stamp card too…and an oblowme phone…or three. And so more of that free housing…utilities…and while you’re at it, where is my replicator?
I wants ALL of my free sh^t and I wants it NOW! We’ll start with the key to Granny Pigalousy’s ice cream freezerator.
They are Borg…they want us to be assimilated…the resistance is futile.
We in the Commissariat need to make sure that there is “equitable” access to all foodstuffs that you need to survive. We will be coming by to “redistribute” to those “less fortunate” soon…
A Cashless economy is in the same catagory as voting by mail.
Phony money…phony ballots.
The proud but humble woman owned business that sells software to the Federal Government has been a cashless business since Elaine Ricci took a leave of absence to deal with her placebo addiction. The company also was a pioneer in working from home, social isolating and wearing masks, though that latter one had more to do with the personal hygiene of a senior executive.
Well, if they go to a cashless society, I guess I’ll end up shaving my head, as the barber I go to once a month works on a cash only basis./s
Speaking of that, I regret to inform Green Thumb that “Look at the AAM tattoo on my arm” Beck once again failed to make an appearance at the Rigby Barbershop this past Wednesday while I was there.
When civilization disintegrates into woke anarchist zombie apocalypse, the best currency are loaded guns.
I would prefer a Nancy Pelosi-less society.
Now Hack Stone will have a legitimate excuse not to give to panhandlers. “Sorry, amigo, no spare change. If you don’t like it, write your Congresswoman. What, you don’t have $0.55 for a stamp? That’s a conundrum.”
I’m all in favor of cashless.
You can’t open an account without ID. Once everyone has ID no more voting without ID. You will find the same people who don’t have banks are the same people who vote without ID. Wonder why that is? I dont.
Crime will plummet. Nearly all street crime is cash based. There are ways around it but when you get to large numbers either the bank is in on it or you are burying loot in the desert.
As it is now I carry about $1000 around in my wallet every day that I never spend because it makes no sense. I can get 1-6% rebate using my credit card. Whatever I buy is warrantied for a year. Someone cheats me? Charge back and dispute it. I want to know where and what I spent my money on? Statement. Someone taps my card or steals the number? Only happened twice in last 30 years and the bank removed the charges immediadon’t. In fact the bank texts me whenever something suspicious shows up to make sure it is me. Never have to worry about correct change or having enough money on me. I could go on and on and on. The truth is there is almost never a good reason to use cash.
I was waiting for someone to use the inane ‘in a cashless society, street crime will plummet’. Yeah, sure. You know what else will work?
Killing all the undesirables in society. So will permanently locking up everyone who commits a crime.
Not only can we realize these goals, we can eliminate all diseases that can result from poor lifestyle choices like diabetes, obesity, alcoholism, smoking, high blood pressure… All we need to do is disallow a person diagnosed with those conditions or at risk for them from purchasing the items that contribute to those conditions.
And because we are a cashless society, we don’t have to worry about guns anymore either.
I’m not inferring 5JC is saying an enforced cashless society is a good idea or even what they want. I’m saying, in what those who do propose this is a good idea don’t get is, you already have the opinion of living a cashless life. Why is that not good enough for you? Why do you have to enforce your choice on everyone else?
This is a serious question. Why? Why do you demand everyone else make the same choice you do, and if they don’t, force them to do so? Why do you have the right to live as you choose but others can’t make the same choice?
Answers of “the public good” or appeals to authority (your superior morals, intellect, etc.) will be treated accordingly. And around here, probably in an amusing (to me and us) way.
-crap. I have two fingers taped together after a Thanksgiving meal prep mishap and my typing is suffering.
* not, “I’m saying, in what those…” Should be, “I’m saying, is what those…”
still not eloquent but better
Has she considered the negative impact that a cashless society would have certain businesses, such as the Independent Pharmaceutical Distribution Industry and Rent To Own Companionship franchises? And what about aspiring rappers? Has she thought how aspiring rappers are supposed to show their street crew when they now longer have a stack of Benjamins to wave in their homemade videos that nobody watches and now must resort to flashing a plastic debit card?
It’s easy to think a “cashless” society will work when you live in the ranks of the 5%ers. We don’t carry much cash because there is no need to.
Debit card got stolen? No prob…just use the other one.
Credit card lost? No sweat, we pay for lifelock and just use the other one/s.
Even the places they shop are often already basically cashless.
It’s a first world “solution” seeking a problem.
And the most important reason to use cash? So you don’t get stuck in a line behind people who need to use a card for their $2.98 purchases! Cash should be mandatory for all purchases less than $20!
And have it ready when you get to the register. Don’t act like you are surprised when the cashier asks you for payment and fumble around with your wallet or purse trying to find a card/cash while trying not to spill your #$^*(^% coffee.
AND DON’T FUMBLE AROUND LOOKING FOR EXACT CHANGE!! (“I know I have a penny here somewhere”).
I hate people. On Thanksgiving I give thanks that I am no longer in the “hospitality” industry. “The customer is always right”?. Bah! The customer is the lowest form of life.
The same lady that is fumbling in her purse for her Visa card will be hunting for five minutes for 8 quarters to buy that $1.98 soda
I hear you Brother. In the short time I had to work retail, I came to the conclusion that, “if it weren’t for the customers, this would be a great job”.
I’ve been WAY ahead of the crowd for years.
It always seems I get paid every couple of weeks and I pay bills and BOOM!!!!…
I’m cashless.
ANYWAY, I hope everyone here had a nice Thanksgiving. I know me and the kids and the Pup did and we’re thankful for all of you being my family for lo these many years.
So back to it BITCHES……F5F5F5F5F5F5F5F5…(lol)
See ya around this weekend.
Skippy…
Just Nancy showing once again how out of touch she is the people she is supposed represent. A Cash economy would put the most imposition on those the far left of Normal Distribution Curve. She needs to have her husband do more insider trading so he can buy her more $10k freezers and $15 quarts of ice cream. She can’t go away fast enough.
Criminals will always find a way around any kind of cashless society. Commodities will become the new cash – just as smugglers and their ilk have adopted methods like exchanging a painting with an established value over carrying a suspicious wad of cash, so could they use valuable items like white truffles or beluga caviar that can later be converted to legitimate credit as a form of pre-laundering.
All a cashless society does is enable government overreach as it further enables the tracking of the law-abiding citizenry.
^This^ is the answer to the “reduce street crime”.
Respectfully, madame, a practiced trigger finger is the answer to “reduce street crime.”
If we go to a cashless society, tire stores would go out of business, cause that’s where you can always get those little plastic squeeze open coin purses.
Speaking of those little purses, here’s the helpful hint of the day:
Always keep 3 quarters, 1 dime, 2 nickels and 4 pennies in it and you’ll always be able to make exact change for any cash transaction./s
The whole reason I like to use exact change is so I don’t have to carry that much change on me.
Call it a self-licking ice cream cone, or redoubling your efforts while losing sight of the goal… the end result is a lot of wasted math and a weighty annoyance.
Some people keep fishooks in their pockets. We all know someone.
So that purse would be a great gift for them.
Use only cash. Use only cards. Use your phone. I don’t know why I should care what YOU decide to use to pay for your stuff. But, how I pay for stuff isn’t anyone else’s business either. Certainly it’s not the business of any politicians or bureaucrats.
FFS Nancy, think of all the single moms working outside the military bases trying to make ends meet.
Are they supposed to put a card reader on the pole?
No, you swipe your card in the slot.
More than 90% of our printed currency circulates outside our borders, keeping afloat the economies of bad-money places that would otherwise crash.
That paper use is part of “reserve currency” status. That status confers major economic advantages. Huge.
No cash? No world reserve status. Period.
The Chinese Communist Party
wants theirs to replace ours as the world’s reserve of choice. They are trying very hard.
Now does “go cashless” make sense?
(Yes, reserve currencies both trade and facilitate electronically too, bigly. Paper is still essential to that status.)
Back in the 70’s the local hippies all went to bartering.
Worked great in the communes……until someone wanted
to return something for a refund.
“Strip down, facing towards me.”
And because of those instructions, I’m not allowed in Home Depot anymore.
Let the market decide.
‘Cashless’ = ‘A black-market’ for EVERYTHING’
But they never think that part through, or what it means for real crime rates. See: ‘Prohibition I’ and ‘The War on (Some) Drugs’ and ‘Gun Control’…
Know this is well after the post, but have recently been chastised for the “Pelosi wants us to go to a cashless society” comment that leads off this, as the person I referred this to said she could find no reference or substantiation to that claim and raked me across the coals for not verifying before passing along.
Sure could use some help in clearing this up.
thanks