Paper or plastic?

[SGOS]

Sorry I derailed the thread!

No problem.  You post had me laughing non stop.  I'm still laughing as I write this.

[Youssuf Ramadan]

I use cash because I like to.  I am less likely to spend too much when I carry cash, as I think twice about handing over a pile of notes.  Paying by card can feel like using someone else's money sometimes.  Plus I can limit my expenditure by taking only so much, quite useful when I'm out on the beer!  

I only really use plastic for large purchases where I got insurance cover or I don't want to carry that much cash.

Plus, if I'm buying something a bit dodgy, plastic isn't going to be a lot of use most times, nor would I want to leave a data trail....  

Fuck! I knew it! Look at his eyes.. He's on something.  :-k  8-)

[stromboli]

As a person who does a lot of traveling over long distances, I have found it is good to carry some cash. I've had a couple of times when the debit card didn't work in a gas pump but a credit card did, so it was good to have one. At Yellowstone they wouldn't take my debit card or a check in the gift shop (?) but would take a credit card or cash. sometimes cash is faster.

And if you are paranoid, credit and debit cards leave a very definite paper trail. If I were trying to move about incognito or on the lam, cash would be preferred.

[jumper]

...

[stromboli]

I use checks about once a week... To pay for my sons preschool  :-| They have a debit/credit card machine, but I prefer checks. I don't know why. And I'll use checks and snail mail to pay certain bills.

I hardly ever have cash on me. Use debit card mostly..

Yes, I write checks for some bills. Also bought about $50 in forever stamps before the price went up. Part of my survivalist mindset.

[Shol'va]

I am OK with debit-cards, it is free here too. My problem is with using credit cards only.

This is generally a very bad idea in the US, and here is why.
Pretty much almost all credit card companies do not hold their cardholder responsible for fraud. If you get your card details stolen, they block the fraudulent charges or reverse them on your account so you are not financially responsible for those tranzactions.
But if you use a debit card, it's your ass on the line if it gets stolen because your debit card is operating on the funds directly out of your bank account and you will have one hell of a time getting your bank to refund your money, if they will even do that. Most times they will not.

I get why people are skeptical of using credit cards. It is easy to bury yourself in debt. I use only my credit card. It's easy and convenient and I can be responsible. I typically only handle cash when we are chipping in at work for food day or a birthday gift, so on very extremely rare occasions.
I almost never write checks. I have automatic payments and electronic withdrawals set up with all the companies I do business with and that permit it. I pay all my bills that way.
I live an almost completely paperless and electronic financial life and it is effective and clutter-free.

[vincent]

I live an almost completely paperless and electronic financial life and it is effective and clutter-free.

I expected to see more progressive answers like yours here.

Cash is just so obsolete (it was the greatest invention centuries ago), it is like listening to phonograph records and 8 tracks in the age of iPods and iPhones.
At work I have to count cash and at the end of the day I feel like I have every germ in existence on me, I can definitely relate to Howard Hughes' germ phobia.
It seems to me that the only people who still use cash is the old, conservatives and criminals.
I think that the USA prints paper money only because it helps to perpetuate the illusion that the dollar is actually worth something when it is not. I think if you buy a 30 year US bond, you will get your money (printed paper) back, but the money will be worthless.
I just wonder when and what country will be the first to go all paperless and electronic. And how will such an economy be different than what we have now.

[PickelledEggs]

I use Koopa Coins, the official currency of Mushroom Kingdom.

And there is nothing like making an old fashioned mix tape on an audio cassette. Best sound ever IMO

[SGOS]

I use Koopa Coins, the official currency of Mushroom Kingdom.

My brother-in-law is big on security.  He uses some company on the net and he transfers money to them when he wants to buy something off the internet.  The company sets up an account and then in lieu of his credit card, pays the internet vendor with money from the account.  He feels this is safer, partly because there is a limited amount of money in his account, and a vendor cannot help themselves to more of his money than the cost of the purchase.  I think it's also supposed to protect his identity from being stolen.  If it is, the hacker is limited to the money in this special account, which he keeps empty unless he wants to buy something.  

He doesn't buy much off the net in the first place.  He seems to prefer stores.  I think he believes he has more control over the situation.  It seems terribly cumbersome to me, and if I were that worried about internet transactions, I would probably still worry about the company that provides this service.  It sounds like overkill to me, but then I don't worry too much about things like this.  I'm sold on buying things on line.  The convenience and speed is worth the risk to me.  I love my plastic, but I would dump it in a minute if I was unable to control myself.  If I ever have my identity stolen, I might have to rethink this.