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> D) Horseshit. I had my card stolen by the Target breach, there were charges on it all over Europe, and within a week I had every penny back.

Let's say that week happens to be the one when your rent/mortgage is due, your car payment is due, your student loan payment is due, etc. It doesn't matter that the money goes back into your checking account eventually, if it's not there when it needs to be, you get hit with overdrafts, bounces, late fees, marks against your credit history. Those aren't things you can just "opt out" of.

Using a credit card is a useful layer of indirection and buffer.




I don't live check to check, and I don't keep all of my cash in a single checking account.

edit: I guess keeping cash surplus to my immediate needs in a savings account is opting out?


Maybe I'm not expressing myself directly enough: when you overdraw your checking account, it's the latest mistake of a long series of mistakes. If having a paycheck delayed for a week causes you to have a negative net worth, you should reduce your expenses or get a better job.


Its very easy to say that when you are a software engineer who comes from an upper middle class background.

I'm not saying some people are not irresponsible but real financial strain is a tough thing to get out of, especially when you were born into it.




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