Re: digital cc transactions, digital checks vs real digital cash

[Tim May <tcmay@got.net>]

At 11:08 AM -0800 5/3/97, Robert Hettinga wrote:
>At 3:10 am -0400 on 5/3/97, Bill Frantz wrote:

>> Carlsen Subaru in Palo Alto has signs in their sales offices notifying
>> people that their agreement with their bank prevents them from taking
>> credit cards in payment for cars.
>
>Hmmm. The operative concept in my paragraph was "peer-to-peer". I should
>have put "personally" in the last sentence, in between "you" and "sold",
>and it would have been much clearer.
>
>By the way, back when I was pond scum in Morgan Stanley's cage in Chicago,
>American Express Gold Cards had just come out. About the first month they
>were out, a commodities trader showed up at a local Rolls dealership and
>offered to pay for a brand new Corniche with one.
>
>The sales manager smiled, said "Yes sir", went to the phone, called Amex,
>and took the card.
>
>Probably apocryphal, but, hey, it's a great story.

I'm sure things like this happen every day.

As I mentioned just several days ago, I bought a Ford Explorer a few years
ago and put it on my VISA card. A Corniche costs a few times more, but the
principle is the same.

How large a purchase a user can put on his card depends on two things: his
credit line (and/or issuer policy) and of course the policies of the other
party. For some, their limit is $500, maybe even less. For others, like
"Gold" or "Platinum" or "Plutonium" card holders, the numbers are much
higher.

In my case, I can spend up to my maximum margin account borrowing level,
currently at about 50% of the value of my margin account (my stocks,
investments, etc.).

So, I could use my VISA card to buy a geodesic dome in this geodesic
economy. Not that I'd want to.

--Tim May

There's something wrong when I'm a felon under an increasing number of laws.
---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:----
Timothy C. May              | Crypto Anarchy: encryption, digital money,
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