Of course 'the powers that be' want to significantly reduce the use of cash - there are many £millions lost in tax revenues every year because of the cash economy that they have no way of controlling.
EDC - Money
- Thread starter Tony
- Start date
Are you in general support of the financial direction then Broch?
I'll caveat from my question and state my general resistance to a cashless society as its a lot easier to subtly undermine through digital manipulation than without a yardstick.
I'm not advocating for large scale 'cash' hand changes thus avoiding tax revenue ( yes - things need to be paid for ) but i feel having hard currency is a better general principle ( and having penalities for those they try and choose to avoid paying tax ) as opposed to not having the option of cash.
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Oh, I agree, I feel better with a little cash in my pocket. One method would be to have nothing larger than a fiver in currency; that may dissuade some cash transactions 
I usually have some cash (£20 ish), but only because my kids give it to me and ask for a bank transfer!
I don't carry it for any specific reason (unless I'm getting a hair cut).
As a small business owner (well, the wife is), cash is a real pain in the bum (if you are doing everything 100% above board).
The time, energy and fuel it costs to get to a bank to deposit the cash significantly outweighs the small fee for card payments (or no fee bank transfers).
I don't carry it for any specific reason (unless I'm getting a hair cut).
As a small business owner (well, the wife is), cash is a real pain in the bum (if you are doing everything 100% above board).
The time, energy and fuel it costs to get to a bank to deposit the cash significantly outweighs the small fee for card payments (or no fee bank transfers).
I think cash is a good thing, especially when cash keeps it's value, you want £10 for something and I give you £10, you get £10, do it with a card and you only get £9.80 and so on and so on until the original value has gone, I don't like that. But my aim isn't to turn this into a political discussion. I think there's a place for cash and hope it lasts a long time yet.
I like having some on me, just for the convenience and security of it, although I have been places where they refuse cash and only take cards, but there again I've been to the supermarket when their system is playing up and I've had to abandon my trolly of food because they're only taking cash!
It's fair to say that quite a few of us still use it, that's cool. Cash is a EDC
I like having some on me, just for the convenience and security of it, although I have been places where they refuse cash and only take cards, but there again I've been to the supermarket when their system is playing up and I've had to abandon my trolly of food because they're only taking cash!
It's fair to say that quite a few of us still use it, that's cool. Cash is a EDC
I think this is the sort of idea I was talking about before, which for me personally (appreciate it may differ to others), the £10 cash isn't actually £10 cash.
It's probably much less than the £9.80 you may get from a card transaction when all said and done, because the time and fuel cost to get to a bank is going to be significantly more than 20 pence.
But..... I'm all for cash in lots of situations, and can 100% appreciate it's uses!
On keeping its value, a pound was so called because it represented a pound of silver, which is now around £400.I think cash is a good thing, especially when cash keeps it's value, you want £10 for something and I give you £10, you get £10, do it with a card and you only get £9.80 and so on and so on until the original value has gone, I don't like that. But my aim isn't to turn this into a political discussion. I think there's a place for cash and hope it lasts a long time yet.
I like having some on me, just for the convenience and security of it, although I have been places where they refuse cash and only take cards, but there again I've been to the supermarket when their system is playing up and I've had to abandon my trolly of food because they're only taking cash!
It's fair to say that quite a few of us still use it, that's cool. Cash is a EDC
And on taxation, I honestly don’t mind putting a bit of cash into someone’s pocket. Not large scale cash work, more like a barter. Many years ago I broke down in an overheating Transit in Swindon on a Sunday afternoon. In those days businesses were definitely shut on a Sunday. I wandered into a pub called The Gluepot and asked around if anyone knew a mechanic. I got sent off to meet some hairy biker who told me to limp the van round to his shop on an industrial estate nearby. He then opened up, got some tools, removed the thermostat, knuckled himself badly, lobbed his spanner in temper, and then took £15 off me as payment. I’d guess he didn’t run that through any books, and nor should he.
Ahhh - the good old days.
Zimbabwe launches new gold-backed currency - ZiG
The ZiG is the country's latest attempt to stabilise the economy following years of crisis.
www.bbc.co.uk
Nixon de-coupled the dollar from gold value in 1971, allowing the US to print as much money as it wanted, effectively destabilizing the global economy. I worry about paper assets held digitally and what might happen in the event of cyber attack, bank failure, or stock market crashes.Ahhh - the good old days.
Zimbabwe launches new gold-backed currency - ZiG
The ZiG is the country's latest attempt to stabilise the economy following years of crisis.www.bbc.co.uk
I’ll have to look up your linked article from another news source, I won’t create an account and sign in to the BBC for the same reasons I like to use cash, I don’t like my internet usage being tracked in the same way I don’t like my spending and whereabouts tracked.
Slightly OTT, but maybe not so much:
When covid hit and a few of my friends became lost to me, one of things I noticed was they started to talk about gold a lot. Buying it in ounces. Buying safes for under the bed. There were queues outside the gold dealers' places. it was a thing.
Of course, because there was a bit of an economic crisis, they (my friends) were buying gold at a higher price than it had ever been. So, gold wasn't much of an investment for them. Also ... again, of course .. when gold prices are at those high level, it is difficult to sell, too. So, the gold dealers won't be buying. And, gold turns out to be not much of an emergency resource then, either.
I still think I am missing a part of the picture. A sense of security might be entirely worth the price, maybe.
But, whichever way, one can't ignore the efficacy of a decent-sized roll of twenties in a rubber band.
When covid hit and a few of my friends became lost to me, one of things I noticed was they started to talk about gold a lot. Buying it in ounces. Buying safes for under the bed. There were queues outside the gold dealers' places. it was a thing.
Of course, because there was a bit of an economic crisis, they (my friends) were buying gold at a higher price than it had ever been. So, gold wasn't much of an investment for them. Also ... again, of course .. when gold prices are at those high level, it is difficult to sell, too. So, the gold dealers won't be buying. And, gold turns out to be not much of an emergency resource then, either.
I still think I am missing a part of the picture. A sense of security might be entirely worth the price, maybe.
But, whichever way, one can't ignore the efficacy of a decent-sized roll of twenties in a rubber band.
Getting very off topic now - But I do think there is merit in having a currency based/backed by something more than just the notion of FIAT promissary note confidence.
Always have cash just in case £40 at least. I can control what I spend by seeing it.
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My dads blind no bank thinks about those people. Cards are useless to him and I have to supply him in £1 coins and £10 notes.
Going into a bank asking for these is like being interrogated.
Going into a bank asking for these is like being interrogated.
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A cashless society is also dependent on infrastructure.
Damage to one or more of the electricity network, the internet, banking / finance servers or the mobile network - possibly by a bad actor - will cause a "hiccup" in the payment system, albeit possibly relatively localised.
Not having all one's eggs in one basket is a good approach, methinks.
I tend to carry cash and cards. Cash as I go to various legit places that seem to prefer cash and two cards as over the years I've had the odd problem with one, so one Visa and one MC is useful. As I don't go shopping often I carry also carry cash in case the cards don't work. It rare but I've known the various card systems to be down occasionally over the years.
Going off track a bit, I often wonder what to have if things turn very much for the worse. Cards and cash would be useless and has been said what's the point of gold. I tend to think bottles or wine or spirits might be a good currency along with long life food and other essentials.
Going off track a bit, I often wonder what to have if things turn very much for the worse. Cards and cash would be useless and has been said what's the point of gold. I tend to think bottles or wine or spirits might be a good currency along with long life food and other essentials.
Cash , all day everyday. Rarely use a card. I do a bit of shopping online with one. If a central bank digital currency comes into being it will be the end of privacy and a massive nail in the coffin for freedom. I am already starting to barter more, store goods and become more independent. I will not be using a currency that monitors, profiles and restricts choices for people. It is dystopian and the ultimate means of control. x
The main advantage of gold is that it is inflation proof. An ounce of gold in Roman times bought you 200 liters of wine and today, yep, you guessed it , it buys you the same. It is tangible and valuable. The reason we are about to witness a finnancial collapse is because the Gold standard was removed. This meant that all the paper money was backed by nothing and gave the bankers carte blanche to print as much as they wanted. It is a very good idea to protect your money and savings by buying Gold and silver. x
A resilient lifestyle in a community where people do, grow and make stuff. Have some skills to make or do things that others will barter for.
There's still a barter economy below the surface in some areas, and I suspect that will deepen and grow if cash gets even more difficult to obtain and use.
GC
I sort of do that, I don't barter as such but give stuff away such as plants, logs, honey etc and get given stuff in return.
I was thinking more along the lines that if we reach a point where cash is worthless would gold be any more use as you can't do much with it.
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