Credit

[mrsl]

Someone please tell me when it became mandatory that you must have a credit card to exist? Driving to a certain destination the other day, I was on the road for over an hour, never leaving a 30 mile distance from Chicago. While driving I thought what I would do if something happened to my car while I was in this strange area where I knew nothing and nobody. So when I got home, I looked up a couple of cell phone places to see what kind of deal I could get. Having the new U-Verse package which I thought was put together by AT&T, I tried them first. After they took all my information, including my birth weight (I think), they asked for my credit card number. I started to give them my debit card number but NO - - - they needed a REAL credit card. Sorry, I don't have one, so the girl said to wait on hold while she ran a credit check SURPRISE - - - None of the three credit checkers ever heard of me. That is because I have never had a credit card. I go cash all the time. If I want something, I save up until I have enough money for it. When my kids were little, Visa and MC did not exist, but I used layaway a lot. Later, when I heard about finance charges, I figured the actual price was enough, I wasn't going to pay 18% more. When I was working both in Vegas and here, I was always amazed at people who pulled out 5,6,7, or more credit cards to buy something. How do these people live? What hole have I been living in that I was unaware of how foolishly dependant people have become on credit? I knew the U.S. was in financial trouble, but I didn't realize a lot of it can be directly blamed on credit cards. I thought the problems came from people buying a lot of stuff they didn't need and couldn't afford, and now I realize it's because all their stuff is purchased on credit, so nothing is really paid for, the payment is a bunch of dollar signs floating around in cyber space that nobody actually puts their hands on.

I did get the cell phone from another company, but I resent AT&T EXPECTING me to have a credit card and refusing me because I do not have one. How do they think I pay bills, and buy groceries, etc. I recall years ago going to the airport to pay for tickets for a trip, Mr. L and I laughed about it later, but since we didn't have a credit card, and the airline did not accept checks, the girl at the counter was perplexed as to where to put the $489.00 Mr. L. gave her in cash to pay for our tickets. Her drawer was not equipped for cash, only credit card receipts. He has been gone more than 15 years now, and he was in good health at the time, so I'm now realizing how long this nonsense has been going on. I now have a cell phone but it is firmly placed in my purse to be used ONLY in emergencies. I have not, nor will I give the number to any member of my family or friends, because I do not want to become one of those idiot people who do everything will that stupid little phone in their upraised hand holding it to their ear. Is there anyone else out there who does not have a credit card, and who has a cell phone only for emergencies?

Anne

[bryce]

SSO is down for a lengthy period and the first post I see is this one. Whilst I agree in principle with both of your points, Anne, that credit cards shouldn't be necessary for a functioning lifestyle and that cell-phones should return to their original purpose (emergency use and for quick chats with family and friends), I'm not sure if I like coming back to SSO and this being the first thing I see. This is not an attack on you, your post or even your points, Anne. I am merely musing that on a film site we rarely discuss film (myself included).

It only bolsters my feelings about this community having only become a glorious form of e-mail.

[knitwit45]

Anne, I went from using a gazillion credit cards to none. I have a debit card and use it for almost all my bills. The change over from credit to debit was excruciatingly painful, but I survived. When I look back on my credit card use, I realize how addictive it was.

Bryce, I agree that this THREAD is chatty about a lot of subjects, but the BOARD is still about movies. I'm not trying to criticize a COUSIN.....but why did you start here, instead of one of the film threads?

It is great to be back, even if we all fuss and feud a bit...that's what families do

[bryce]

Well, I've had my top 25 essential films list sitting on this hard drive ever since I joined the site a year and a half plus ago, so the "post your own essentials" thread is out. I thought about writing something about "Once a Thief" but was afraid I'd hurt Arkadin's feelings by accusing Ann Margret of overacting (actually, not really, I like the film, but mainly because it is so painfully aware of its own shelf life that everyone involved seemed to lunge themselves at the production). Then I thought about writing a mean-spirited, scathing review of the trailer for G-Force but realized I don't have the energy to take down mind-numbingly stupid, insipid, intelligence-insulting children's productions anymore. Then I thought I'd start a thread about Mike Judge (and his new film Extract, which doesn't look like a Judge flick at all, because, really, a Mike Judge production without social commentary is like Beavis and Butthead without the outside world for comparison) but quickly realized that would alienate a good chunk of the posting populace.

I sat around for a bit, chewing on my safety blanket, mesmerized by the sound of my own voice in my head, thinking about good times and great oldies, before realizing that what SSO needed most was another snarky response from Yours Truly to a fairly innocuous thread.

This is sarcasm, and I will indicate it so (and indemnify myself against retaliation) by a well-placed emoticon chosen from amongst thousands:

[Mr. Arkadin]

I thought about writing something about "Once a Thief" but was afraid I'd hurt Arkadin's feelings by accusing Ann Margret of overacting (actually, not really, I like the film, but mainly because it is so painfully aware of its own shelf life that everyone involved seemed to lunge themselves at the production).

You won't make me mad. Bomb away!

I don't want to take over Anne's thread, but let me say that every film or topic listed here is definitely open to conversation and scrutiny. I have never had a problem with anyone's choices that are different from mine and welcome the opportunity to compare notes or points of view on what each of us might see on any subject (in a non-personal friendly fashion of course).

[charliechaplinfan]

Anne, I work in finance and I realise that when you apply for anything if you don't have a credit card they never think that it's because you've never wanted one. Here is a crazy example, a girl who has a very good job and has never taken any form of credit in her life cannot get a mortgage even though she is putting a hefty amount down because she has no history of credit.

It is partly what is wrong with the western world, what indeed is wrong with saving for something for something you want.

Bryce, I don't mind these off topic chats, if I didn't like them I just wouldn't look at the thread.

[bryce]

Bryce, I don't mind these off topic chats, if I didn't like them I just wouldn't look at the thread.

[charliechaplinfan]

Well what can I say, a little friendly advice

[Ollie]

MrsL, your points are items that I wonder about, too. How far will they' go with this - "No credit means does not exist"? I can hardly wait. We recently worked for an extended period overseas, and were furnished credit cards for our time in that economy's expenses. During one long weekend with no commitments, we fled the giant megapolis into vast rural stretches. We continually found every vendor accepting those credit cards. Some of those places barely had running water, but they had dial-up connections and a card-swiper, and scanners for each item coated with bar-codes.

I kept looking at the fruit, individually labeled with tiny spot-codes, thinking "What happened to a sign that said, 'Apples 5-cents' rather than a clerk needing to flip around the apple to find that one little bar-code and then scan it. And all the time to label them individually? All that glue, paper for the labels?"

CCFan, good advice. It clearly says GENERAL CHAT and clearly says CREDIT.

Thanks for the topic, MrsL.

[bryce]

Yes, and ignoring what you don't like is what lead to Hitler! And the Nazis! And the deaths of millions upon millions of people! Also, Stalin/Purge, Bush/Iraq, etc, insert your choice of hyperbolic comparison here.

"If you don't like it, don't read/watch/listen/participate/etc it" only pertains when folks are trying to dictate what other consenting adults can and cannot do - ie., Mary Whitehouse trying to take down Pink Floyd, you know what Ms. Whitehouse, if you don't like it, don't listen to it. On the flipside, if we're talking about Rush Limbaugh spewing off garbage and someone taking a stand against him, "don't like it, don't listen" doesn't apply.

What I said to Anne was by far the tamest thing I've ever written regarding her and I even agreed with her, as I have before. Not that that will stop the peanut gallery from complaining about me ruining anyone's good times now, though, will it?

General chat's for the coffee shop and credit's for the loan sharks.

[mrsl]

Interesting, how people react to different threads.

CCfan, I'm an old hand at being denied credit. I do it laughingly though because I know I'm going to be denied. When Sears bought K-Mart, the cashier had to ask if you wanted to apply for a Sears card and I always said no until I got a particularly nasty cashier, then I asked her to fill out the form for me, so she took all the info and it was my turn to be irate when I was turned down - ha-ha. Ordinarily I attribute nastiness to that time of month, or the boss or whatever, but my daughter and I both tried to get just a civil remark from this woman by being extra friendly, but she just was not going to be nice.

Ollie, I agree the idea of credit card usage in remote villages is absurd but, although I have no idea where you were, could those awfully tedious spots with codes have possibly been an attempt at providing a job opportunity?

Anne

[knitwit45]

Bryce, as Patricia (Meg Ryan) says to Joe (Tom Hanks) at the end of "Joe Vs. the Volcano", "It's always going to be something with you, isn't it Joe?"

[charliechaplinfan]

Ollie, I think that's really bad, going to remote places and finding places to take your cards but not the creature comforts that we take for granted. One can only hope that being able to accept credit will eventually lead to the profits being poured back into these places and they get necessities like running water.

Mrsl I can imagine that saleswoman was just waiting for her commision, miserable thing. I've found when selling financial product a smile goes a long way Good thread

[Ollie]

One can only hope that being able to accept credit will eventually lead to the profits being poured back into these places...

This was actually an 'infrastructure foundation' being laid for the oncoming technological onslaught, and all the workers who'd be doing more infrastructure work. So it is a welcome, farsighted insertion into that part of the world. Frankly, it's a great test-case scenario that easily gives digital feedback on line breaks, link weaknesses, etc.

Of course, a month before we got there, Central China had a massive earthquake that reminded everyone (who paid attention) that Mother Nature could easily wipe out any technology humans erected - despite the sloganism and idol-worshipping of any regime, Mother Nature remains impressive.

[Hollis]

Let my humble voice be added to the mix.

Bryce, this is in fact, an "off topic" queue. It is meant for the discussion of non film related subjects. It is dwarfed by the number of film related threads. If you want to talk about nothing but film and film related issues, may I suggest TCM.com? That would make everyone happy. You'd get to discuss film 24/7 and we wouldn't have to listen to you whine!