Things are changing too fast in the world for me

[Cravingahappymeal]

I don’t do well with change, discussions today with family about digital currency and a cashless society and what that may mean in the future are scaring me to death tbh.
Is it all true or is it conspiracy territory?

I haven't used cash at all, except to pay my cleaner once a week, for at least five years (seven years?). I live in the Netherlands.

OP you're not unreasonable and like many others I'm very uneasy about the speed of surveillance capitalism due to technological advances.

If we are headed for centralised digital control of every aspect of our lives, in some ways we're going to end up in a scarily dehumanised society.

I keep an eye on it all but honestly we're so far down the path in many ways that if things do start impacting day to day life negatively it'll be too late to do much about it.

Government and corporations are hand in glove, as was exposed during the height of the pandemic and very few people with power and money give a shit about we proles as long as they amass and ringfence their wealth.

Every bit of technological progress has upsides and downsides depending on the motivation of the people implementing them.

AI and all of the implications of that are complex and will need to be addressed and legislated for and whether that can be done in good time is debatable as TPTB can't organise a piss up in a brewery (unless it's a lockdown party or to their immediate benefit).

It is all happening very fast and I don't think feeling discombobulated by it all signals any failings in your mental health. I'm in my 50s and I just try to keep my self informed and live as simple a life as I can until I'm forced to do otherwise.

The one solace I do take is that global warfare is now highly unlikely as it would disadvantage too many people in authority due to loss of infrastructure etc.

It's a weird time to be alive.

I can assure you, wherever I went in Stockholm, not a single place took cash. Restaurant, coffee shops, taxis, everywhere - card only.

the hotel allowed us to charge to our room and pay cash at the end, but only because we were guests. Anyone else using the bar, restaurant, spa - card only.

but when I was out at meetings etc / dinner - most definitely card only. It was infuriating as I had currency from work

I believe you! It does sound very annoying. I'm just saying that cash still exists in Sweden. People keep using Sweden as an example of a "cashless society", but they still do have and use cash and the Bank of Sweden still thinks that cash is useful. They say that it's important to keep cash to increase resilience ( especially in an emergency situation )and for people who don't have internet access.

www.riksbank.se/en-gb/payments--cash/payments-in-sweden/

This is quite interesting, from the bank of Sweden's website:
Part of the population does not have access to digital payment methods and therefore has to use cash. Today, it is difficult for these people to pay their bills or to redeem payments, for example for pensions. This is something that the government and Riksdag need to address urgently. The ability to buy vital goods and services using cash must also be legally protected.

One hand with payment card and one hand with mobile phone
Preparedness and continuity plans in the event of disruptions are fundamental issues for the payment market. In order to increase the resilience of the payment system, there need to be better opportunities to pay by card or withdraw cash in the event of disruptions to the electricity supply or data communication. Several actors in the payment market are working on this issue, but it is important that work be prioritised by all parties involved.

Inn Eyam they put the coins in vinegar.

I suppose the modern day version would be hand sanitizer.

@Womencanlift I stand corrected.

Interest rates on those are extortionate

Our school has set up a QR code thing now and has contactless machines. I was actually really glad when they did it because it comes to something when the only reason you have for getting cash out is to use for school events and the tooth fairy…

Yanbu. I find lack of cash strange too. I still pay with cash as much as I can. I'm similar age. DH feels the same I know. We finding we unable to park the car now due to Ringo (which we don't have) so not visited local town since they introduced Ringo only. Must be others who similar as sadly from what I hear the shops are closing. Since covid there be alot of changes bought in. Love the isle of wight. I am very tempted to move there or Scotland for a better slower life.

@namechangeforthisbleep why would there be an interest rate on a payment system? IZettle is literally just an app on your phone and a card reader you connect with a usb cable.

You can buy a Sum Up reader from the Post Office for about £25.

Are you confusing them with payment plans like Klarna which are completely different things?

@Ginmonkeyagain haha I was half asleep I don't mean interest but it's a fact that it costs around 1.67 percent of each transaction! I have one, well a few in my cafes. Hence why I'm moving to another system right now. They seem great the sun ups etc but they're not if you're taking a lot of money like I do

When I was a young woman, before the internet was invented and it was all fields, I was told....
One day, they will make televisions the size of a picture that you can hang on the wall.
Don't be ridiculous, said me.

You will be able to order your groceries and have them delivered to your door.
Don't be ridiculous, said me.

You won't have to pay in cash anymore, you will just tap your bank card on a machine.
Don't be ridiculous, said me.

Years later, here I am, telly hung on the wall, ordering my shopping online for delivery and tapping my card with gay abandon.

My point is op, it might seem ridiculous, or even scarey, but as it evolves it becomes so normal that you forget you ever thought it was ridiculous or scarey.

Ps. I miss the fields though.

MistressoftheDarkSide I agree. Rarely use cash (slightly forced into it by shops not accepting cash) but hate the idea of not having the option. Look at what happened in Shetland a few months ago.

Everything web based has happened so very quickly (just over a generation). It's moved so fast there's been little grasp of the ethical impacts, and (dons foil hat), it gives not only our govt, but entities who don't necessarily wish us well (which tbh at present could apply to our govt ) opportunities to do us severe harm.

My point is op, it might seem ridiculous, or even scarey, but as it evolves it becomes so normal that you forget you ever thought it was ridiculous or scarey.

You might - not everyone does.

A cashless society would tackle organised crime, lower level crime and tax evasion. Huge organised crime would find some way around it but it would make everything much harder.

I am all for a society that tackles the black economy and anyone self employed that doesn’t declare their income and does cash in hand. People harp on about the likes of Amazon which is a legitimate complaint and their tax bill but the black economy is huge.

Overall on a personal level I’m not too bothered. I’m mid fifties but worked in IT when it was in its infancy as did quite a few of my friends so none of us find it a bother to use new systems. My only worry is if the systems go down or a system being hacked. My friend is really high up in a firm that manages security for a credit card system, he doesn’t like online banking for that reason but it’s because he can break systems easily.

'My friend is really high up in a firm that manages security for a credit card system, he doesn’t like online banking for that reason but it’s because he can break systems easily.'

You don't need to be 'high up' to break a system - teenage boys sitting in their bedrooms can do it.

Criminals use the online banking system to steal and move billions around the world, where it seems to be beyond the wit of government agencies to locate it.

They will, honest.
New things always seem scarey at first, then after a while you wonder what you were scared of.
Have you ever come across something new and thought, I'll never be able to do that? But you did it and then thought, what was I scared of?
I'm still too scared to try paying with my phone, but one day I'll grasp the nettle and probably never look back when I do.
Just like you will with cashless.

Even the same here on Norfolk! High six.

Cash may stop typ crimes around cash, but other types of crime are replacing the cash based ones