Why the fuck do we still use cash?

[ranlo]

Nobody can hack you cash. Some business only accept cash. Do some gas stations still offer discounts on cash purchases? Some level of anonymity, I guess. Probably other reasons as well...

I haven't heard of any gas stations giving discounts, although I do remember they used to. I think credit card companies finally stepped in (as they aren't allowed to charge more for CC, and charging less for cash was just a way around that rule). And people can steal your cash and spend it; it's just like hacking.

ah, so did they outlaw gas stations from doing that? that would be too bad. i remember a store owner friend of mine telling me about how badly he gets screwed by credit card fees and policies. doesn't sound nice....

Technically it's always been against the rules; people just didn't report them. There was a place near me that accepts credit cards for car inspections (so there's the 3.9%+ fee). The thing to note about this is that inspections are $14.50 and is regulated by the state. For the place to take $14.50 on a credit card, they are losing almost 4% of the amount. They then still have to pay $14.50 back to the state, at a loss. To compensate for this, the place accepted credit cards, as long as the purchaser would pay the fee (which put the inspector at a net change of 0). Credit card companies got a hold of that and banned the entire shop from accepting them again (MC, Visa, and Discover).

[Jcw188]

You see this issue in movies all the time nowadays.  I was just watching Live Free or Die Hard and it's like people's money that is stored "electronically" you never know what can happen to it due to intentional actions or just a glitch.  Cash is something that you can have and not have to worry about it.  It cuts out the middle man too of credit card and bank fees.  So there are a lot of reasons to prefer cash.

[TedFromDead]

Problem with most kinds of virtual money is a middle man, except of cryptos of course, however those are extremely tied to technology. As someone mentioned in times of crisis people will tend to prefer something that have (or can have) some real value - and of course I'm not talking about "paper" (fiat) money, but gold and silver. Personally I'm not using cryptos yet, I'm waiting for the times when the "speculation fever" will fall, and I will be able to use it without any risk. I'm thinking about crypto money as convenient (and safe) way to exchange work, not as an investment. And black market - I'm thinking about it as "white market", black market is definitely a pejorative term, while it is most natural way for people to exchange

[gondel]

when we already have crypto currencies, master cards, paypal and other shit, why do we use cash?

Because some of us like the sound of them and way they smell
BR

[Slingshot]

Why do you ask?

 Are you yet another shill here to talk us out of using any cash at all?

 Are you attempting to make this forum appear vulgar to many with the F word?



 By all means let the door hit you in the butt on the way out.


Let this thread die already.
=================

[DolanDuck]

We will stop to use cash when bitcoin or other cryptos will be known and used worldwide.
Now we are still in the starting phase of crypto development, just let the word spread around and then you will say goodbye to cash.

[eauclaire]

It's just a matter of time before cash aint king no more..
Just look at Ulvaeus and the ABBA museum, a step in the right direction I think!
http://www.abbathemuseum.com/se/cashless

[Sacrilegious]

Well, personally I only use cash to pay for bus tickets.

[redwhitenblue]

when we already have crypto currencies, master cards, paypal and other shit, why do we use cash?

Cash is good for medium sized transactions in person. If you were to go to a hot dog vendor for example cash is likely the best way to pay for your food. The payment phase of buying a hotdog is very short, only ~30 seconds, less then the time it would take to show a QR code, scan it, broadcast it and the vendor seeing it register as a 0/unconfirmed tx on the network.

Cash also provides a greater level of anonymity then BTC as it is generally not feasible to track where individual dollar bills have been in the past.

BTC is good for smaller transactions when the time between when payment is made and when the product is delivered is greater. For example when you use BTC to buy a coffee from a coffee shop it will take some time to give the customer the coffee from the time that payment is received. So the process will be: Give customer QR code to pay, customer scans QR code, and broadcasts transaction to pay for coffee, vendor prepares coffee while verifying the 0/unconfirmed has been broadcast, vendor delivers coffee to customer at their table.

BTC is also good for smaller, high margin purchases. The above coffee transaction costs the vendor very little to create the coffee so they would lose very little in a double spend attack.

[lemfuture]

i dont use cash

[ranlo]

BTC is also good for smaller, high margin purchases. The above coffee transaction costs the vendor very little to create the coffee so they would lose very little in a double spend attack.

This is both true and false. Most companies base their prices on their overall cost of doing business. There is more than just the cost of materials; something people often forget about. There is a lot of overhead. If that overhead isn't met, it doesn't matter what the margin was; the business is going to crash.

[kerafym]

i dont use cash

What do you use?

Seashell?

[Light]

This is both true and false. Most companies base their prices on their overall cost of doing business. There is more than just the cost of materials; something people often forget about. There is a lot of overhead. If that overhead isn't met, it doesn't matter what the margin was; the business is going to crash.

Nonetheless, a lower merchant fee such as the one offered by Bitcoin would help to lower the overall cost of running a business (if only marginally). I have no doubt that more merchants would use Bitcoin for this reason - the only thing stopping them is the initial cost of implementation would cost them more than they would save as they don't have enough consumers using Bitcoin to save them that much money.

[FitnessRegiment]

Cash is a simple way of trading and you can't scam it can you

[nickenburg]

Cash is a simple way of trading and you can't scam it can you

Yes it was one of the simple way's of trading but also a very old one, that in my eye's is outdated.
And you say you cant scam it?
What about the Counterfeit money?
Or the banks that just shows some numbers on a screen that represent's your money but it's actually nothing.
The banks never have enough money to give everyone there money when they would withdraw at the same time.
So it's already the biggest scam in human history!

[kerafym]

Cash is a simple way of trading and you can't scam it can you

Yes it was one of the simple way's of trading but also a very old one, that in my eye's is outdated.
And you say you cant scam it?
What about the Counterfeit money?
Or the banks that just shows some numbers on a screen that represent's your money but it's actually nothing.
The banks never have enough money to give everyone there money when they would withdraw at the same time.
So it's already the biggest scam in human history!

It is easy to detect counterfeit money.

Banks are backed government. Whether it is a scam or not is not relevant if it is backed by authority.

[darlidada]

why the fuck would you spend your bitcoins?

[efreeti]

why the fuck would you spend your bitcoins?

If bitcoin is to succeed, it will have to be served as a medium of exchange. Not as an instrument of speculation.

[snaildvorak]

for daily transaction and small use, cash is still more simple and faster than bitcoin!

[Leina]

for daily transaction and small use, cash is still more simple and faster than bitcoin!

And cheaper.


Bitcoin usefulness lied on cross border trade where you can send to the merchant/seller fast without having to pay high currency conversion fee and higher than needed transaction fee.