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Old 05-01-2014, 12:43 PM
 
Location: Central Florida
2,062 posts, read 2,533,637 times
Reputation: 1938

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What do you think of the visa gift cards you can buy in stores? Its not reloadable and they do charge a fee to put money on it but you can put up to $500 at a time and it might be harder to hack since it is temporary.
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Old 05-01-2014, 12:52 PM
 
Location: Central Florida
2,062 posts, read 2,533,637 times
Reputation: 1938
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hazel W View Post
Or was, until some stores (Barnes & Noble and a few others I've been in) took away the swiping machines so you have to let them handle your card. They do it credit but that doesn't mean shenanigans can't go on. Then there's the Target person who grabbed my card out of my hand and said "I'll do it". Oh? Why would he need to swipe my card for me when the machine was right there in front of me? Or the woman in Walgreens who kept reaching across the counter and punching buttons before I had a chance to. Funny. I've not seen her in a long time.

Cash they have to wait for me to count out to them. I'll do cash on the barrel head. Thanks.

An old fashioned check isn't too bad either. With those machines, your signature never looks like your signature. So, how do you prove you didn't sign? On a check, you write as you write and you have proof if you didn't write it. Not as safe as cash but better than cards.
You are so right those machine signatures are really awful.
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Old 05-01-2014, 01:00 PM
 
Location: Mount Laurel
4,187 posts, read 11,887,797 times
Reputation: 3512
Quote:
Originally Posted by vanguardisle View Post
What do you think of the visa gift cards you can buy in stores? Its not reloadable and they do charge a fee to put money on it but you can put up to $500 at a time and it might be harder to hack since it is temporary.
No need to add one extra step. I would never load my money into a card that charge me a fee for preloading.
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Old 05-01-2014, 01:01 PM
 
3,430 posts, read 4,234,514 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by vanguardisle View Post
What do you think of the visa gift cards you can buy in stores? Its not reloadable and they do charge a fee to put money on it but you can put up to $500 at a time and it might be harder to hack since it is temporary.
Unless it was hacked before you bought it. There was a news story some time ago about criminals going through stores and gathering data from those card and then going home to create duplicates of them.
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Old 05-01-2014, 01:11 PM
 
Location: The analog world
17,077 posts, read 13,293,583 times
Reputation: 22904
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lowexpectations View Post
Using cash isn't more efficient in terms of time to make payments and maintain cash on hand than using plastic. With plastic there is no counting at the pos either by you or the employee, there is no cash back via change. I never said using cash was dangerous though so you've made that one up on your own.
I didn't make that up on my own, but I should have been clear that while you did not portray carrying cash as dangerous, at least three other posters did. Here's a sampling...

Quote:
Originally Posted by KeraKera View Post
I think some people dislike the idea of carrying cash because it makes them feel more of a target for crimes.
Quote:
Originally Posted by sj08054 View Post
If you think about it, carrying cash around is dirty. This is why I dislike changes. No.. I am not a germs freak. Just consider the number of places that a circulated paper or coin currency has gone through.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mack Knife View Post
About 300,000 street robberies per year. Includes at gas stations, atms and so on.
Back to your last post...

Quote:
Originally Posted by Lowexpectations View Post
Your cash system might be better for you overall because of the lack of discipline among the spenders in your household. To that end it may be more efficient for you using cash as an expense management function but from a simple use standpoint plastic is far and away better
You know at first, I bristled at your use of the word discipline (and the not-so-subtle implication that our family is undisciplined), but on second thought I happily embrace the term. What I do does take discipline, not because we couldn't handle our spending another way (e.g., with one or more credit cards), but because I put time and thought into creating a system and then followed through. I think many people don't put much effort into determining needs, setting aside sufficient funds, and sticking to a budget. I've done a lot of hard work, and it's paid off. There's a lot of flying by the seat of one's pants when it comes to Americans and our money, and many are much the poorer for it.
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Old 05-01-2014, 01:16 PM
 
26,176 posts, read 21,441,832 times
Reputation: 22766
Quote:
Originally Posted by randomparent View Post
I didn't make that up on my own, but I should have been clear that while you did not portray carrying cash as dangerous, at least three other posters did. Here's a sampling...







Back to your last post...



You know at first, I bristled at your use of the word discipline -- lack of discipline is not my family's issue -- but in another it's a very appropriate term. What I do does take discipline, not because we couldn't handle our spending another way (e.g., with a credit card), but because I put time and thought into creating a system and then followed through. I think many people don't put much effort into determining their needs, setting aside sufficient funds, and sticking to a budget. I've done the hard work, and it's paid off. There's a lot of flying by the seat of one's pants when it comes to Americans and our money, and many are much poorer for it.


If the spenders in your family were more disciplined you wouldn't need to put in all the work that you do. Tracking spending and budgeting is much more accurate, easier and quicker to do with electronic transactions than cash. Another win for plastic
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Old 05-01-2014, 01:18 PM
 
Location: The analog world
17,077 posts, read 13,293,583 times
Reputation: 22904
Quote:
Originally Posted by vanguardisle View Post
What do you think of the visa gift cards you can buy in stores? Its not reloadable and they do charge a fee to put money on it but you can put up to $500 at a time and it might be harder to hack since it is temporary.
Not a fan. Lots of fees.
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Old 05-01-2014, 01:24 PM
 
Location: The analog world
17,077 posts, read 13,293,583 times
Reputation: 22904
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lowexpectations View Post
If the spenders in your family were more disciplined you wouldn't need to put in all the work that you do. Tracking spending and budgeting is much more accurate, easier and quicker to do with electronic transactions than cash. Another win for plastic
For the vast majority of us, budgets have to happen no matter how one pays. There's no getting around the work. That's what I meant by discipline. Using a credit card doesn't negate the need for creating and sticking to a budget. Even those in the much vaunted 1% have money managers who create and impose budgets. As for me, I don't fly by the seat of my pants with money, regardless of whether I pay with cash, check, or credit. Cash just happens to be my preferred method of payment.

My kids can apply for credit cards when they're older and entirely responsible for their own accounts. They're still children! At this point, their lives revolve around cash, and occasionally a birthday check.

Last edited by randomparent; 05-01-2014 at 02:08 PM..
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Old 05-01-2014, 01:29 PM
 
4,416 posts, read 9,106,062 times
Reputation: 4307
Quote:
Originally Posted by sj08054 View Post
If you think about it, carrying cash around is dirty. This is why I dislike changes. No.. I am not a germs freak. Just consider the number of places that a circulated paper or coin currency has gone through.

That is why you wash your hands.
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Old 05-01-2014, 01:44 PM
 
Location: Mount Laurel
4,187 posts, read 11,887,797 times
Reputation: 3512
Quote:
Originally Posted by loose cannon View Post
That is why you wash your hands.
Yes you can wash your hands but doesn't take away from the fact that money is dirty. Pay close attention to the next time you are out to eat getting served. See if you can ever spot a person who takes your money and serve you food. Do they wash their hands after each transactions?
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