Saturday, May 19, 2012

It's the end of the economy as we know it



Yes, this is EXACTLY what our debt-ridden, impulse-buying society needs: A way to use our credit card to buy ANYTHING, ANY TIME we want to.

Remember back in the old days (also known as "yesterday") when you actually needed money to buy stuff?  When you realized you hadn't brought enough cash with you, so you put off buying that soda you didn't really need anyway?  Or when you saved up that fifty bucks you owed a friend by skimping on movies and meals for a while?

Remember when you told your friend that hey, sorry, I don't have that fifty bucks right now, but catch me next payday, ok?

Well, those days are gone forever.  Next time you pull that "hey, I'm short of cash at the moment" BS, your "friend" will pull out his phone, insert a little box into the headphone jack, and demand that you pull out your credit or debit card.  No kidding.  As this dopey woman tells us (when she isn't lunging at the camera- really, what the hell is that all about?) this box thing "makes us all merchants."  Oh joy.

A few questions- first, where is all the wonderful information concerning the transactions made with this device stored?  Can I assume that a copy is available to the IRS, which will eventually come knocking to ask why I didn't pay tax on that $1 can of soda I bought from a "friend?"  Second, how hard is it for someone to intercept these transactions and collect credit card numbers through them?

Finally- how FUCKING STUPID ARE WE ANYWAY???  Do we REALLY need another gizmo which encourages us to spend money we don't have simply because it's EASY?   Exactly HOW MANY TIMES do we have to blow up the economy before we figure out that what we really need is a device that encourages us to SAVE  (but really, where's the money in that?)


5 comments:

  1. I wonder when the pissy remark from the temp will come.

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  2. The funny thing is, when I criticized Angie's List, a very nice rep from that company dropped me a note to let me know that she was sorry I didn't care for the commercials, and hoped I would get to use the product one day. She couldn't be nicer.

    Some companies can't afford reps who don't come with massive chips on their shoulders, I guess. Not to mention a severe issue with the First Amendment.

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    Replies
    1. The rep also seemed to have a similar problem with linear logic. At what point did the poor, deluded monkey think "I doubt that this product could work and would probably cause horrible damage" meant that you were trying to shake the firm down.

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    2. Personally? I think that ORA-BAND could put a saucer of milk in the back alley and attract a better spokesperson than the one who "answered" my criticism. But hey, it's their company.

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  3. In another ad for "The Square," it's revealed that the charge is "only" 2.75% per swipe. That's how it's explained to us- this Amazingly Convenient Turn Your Phone Into A Card Swiper will cost you "only" 2.75% per swipe.

    One woman calls it a "super convenient way to control her checking account." Yeah, if "control" means "drain money out of it," I guess.

    We are all doomed.

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