Each time somebody hands me a plastic card to pay for their one, small coffee, or anything under $20 for that matter, part of me dies. Why has everyone become such slaves to electronics? Is it laziness?? Go to the fucking bank and get some real fucking money and stop wasting my time, your own, and that of all the caffeine-hungry people behind you.
This article appears in Jul 10-16, 2008.
Money is money. For some people it is easier to budget when they put things on a credit card…. and sometimes I may not have 3 bucks… but I want a coffee and a bagel!!!!!
Geesh… spoken like a Tim Horton’s minimum wage employee! (get an education and you can get a better job)Laziness? I don’t think so. Using plastic makes good economic sense for the consumer by spending only, and to the penny, what is required. If I walk around with money in my pocket YOU might ask to borrow it. If I don’t have it you may never ask and if you do I have a convenient excuse to keep it in the bank. If I lose my bank card my money is safe. You cannot say the same of lost cash. I also tend to spend money faster when it’s cash in my pocket. I think a lot of readers suffer this same strange phenomenon.Just the fact that nearly all retail businesses provide payment options across the PLANET should tell you how necessary and appropriate and NOT LAZY the consumer is.Get with the program and process that card a little faster because YOU have customers lined up behind me 😛
I can’t understand why anyone would want to pay a service charge for something less than $5. 50 cents here, 50 cents there adds up. Betcha these are the same people who bitch about gas prices yet they’ll pay a fucking fee every time the yearning for a bagel and coffee hits them.
I don’t like carrying cash – I buy one thing and all of a sudden I’m carrying 2lbs of change. Plus I like the points and miles I get using plastic.
Debit cards are also a lot more secure (cant do much with a stolen debit card) and its my fucking right to pay for my coffee how i want to. The statement about it taking more time is bullshit anyway. How about the people that dig through their pockets or purses for change? I bet the op’s major gripe is not being able to get a tip. Well for starters, I dont tip coffee servers. Im not sitting at your establishment for an hour while you serve me a $20 meal, so no tip for you!! Anyway that was off topic but bottom line is if the option is there, swipe my card and smile while doing it…
I have the smallest fee possible for my banking, because I only get like 5 debits a month, and I barely use them, unless I really need cash. I can pay for everything with my credit card, go home and use online banking to pay it off, and I don’t get charged a cent by anyone. This makes far more sense to me than paying like $13 a month just for my bank account so I can debit everything, or get out cash every time I need to.
Cash ain’t nothin but trash… Get outa here boy…
Heameg: if you don’t have 3 bucks…you don’t deserve a coffee or a bagel.Budgeting your money is understandable…but if you’re spending such a significant portion of your income on coffee that you need to really concern yourself with monitoring your coffee purchases, than you have bigger issues than an addiction to electronics. It’s negligible…unless you’re a Starbucks yuppie who spends the equivalent of an average university student’s yearly tuition for a cup of burnt poo water capped with what resembles, but probably tastes worse than, soap bubbles.kay: You’re an idiot.TTFN: Thank you for understanding…I wonder how many people out there don’t realize how much they’re forking out in service charges…that thought scares me.Qwerty: Pay with bills and then leave your coins at home at the end of the day in a good ol’ fashioned piggy bank . Roll your coins as they accumulate. Trade your rolled coins for more bills. Easy.BRoc: Yeah, sure it’s your right to pay for your coffee how you want to, but it doesn’t change the fact that you’re a douche bag. People holding up the line up because they’re counting out their change happens a hell of a lot less often than people holding up the line up because they put in the wrong fucking pin because WHOOPSIE DAISY- they used their spouse’s debit card without realizing it; or there was a communication error; or the debit machine is just being slow; or it won’t read their magnetic strip; or they’re sorting through a stack thicker than a pack of playing cards to find the right piece of plastic.Also, my problem with plastic has nothing to do with getting a tip. I don’t expect a tip. A tip should be considered a bonus and a reflection of the quality of service. Don’t apologize to me because you don’t have enough for a tip. And don’t tell me we should get a tip option on the debit machine because that’s insulting. I don’t want your fucking tip. I’ll take a handful of exact change over a plastic card any day.Also, I beg to differ that debit cards are “a lot more secure” than cash. Have you seen all the shit in the news about people getting their cards read, cameras at atms, faulty pinpads and people getting money taken right from their account? The scariest thing about that is some people might not even notice. I can’t recall when’s the last time I was jumped and mugged of the wad of cash in my wallet…oh wait, that’s because it has never happened. And if it did, at least I’d notice my money was missing.People are stupid: You seem to have a good system, but your username rings trueFloyd: kBack to you kay:a) I’m not a Tim Horton’s employee (which is by the way not an imaginary job) and if I was, maybe I wouldn’t want another job. Maybe it would suit me just fine. There are probably a lot of Tim Horton’s employees with a higher level of education than you.b) Here’s a wild scenario: You’re walking around with real money in your pocketI “might ask to borrow it” You say “No”…or better yet lie and say you have noneLearn to stand up for yourself you cowardly push over.c) Money is not safe in the bank. The more often you swipe your card the more at risk your money is. It’s pretty hard to track transactions where goods/services are exchanged for paper money.d) I feel there are perhaps just as many people out there who tend to spend more money with swiping plastic. I know personally I used to use debit for most purchases and I would end up swiping my card here and there, guiltlessly shopping and naive to how much money I was spending because I couldn’t physically see it leaving my hand. “Free money” was almost how I subconsciously looked at it. To each his own though.e) Retail businesses have adopted electronic payment options because they have been forced to by consumer LAZINESS. Just like car manufacturers have been forced to install Grand Canyon-sized cup holders to cater to fat asses who insist on having giant cups and massive portions. The point is consumers have become dependent on electronic methods of payment and I’m merely pointing out that trend and trying to shed light on all the security, stress and time issues it causesf) YOU have the customers lined up behind you, not me. Don’t you think I would make the dumb fucking electronic machine process your plastic insult a little faster if I could and get you out of my fucking site a little sooner if I could?
uh Coast.. Great post… But FYI it’s kind of poo-poo’d around here to post during the 1AM witching hour….
Coast: Easier still, I’ll leave my money in the bank and pay with plastic. Because I can, and because I prefer it. Don’t see why I, the customer, should bend to accommodate you, the “service” provider. Suck it up, princess.
Using a credit or debit card is MUCH easier AND SAFER then paying cash, havent you seen the commerical? jeez.. People dancing and swirling around, paying for their stuff, cause its so fast and convienient, then that fella paying cash messes it all up and slows the line down! the TV is ALWAYS right.. dontcha know?I dont pay services charges on my debit card.. nor do I with my credit card (which collects me points, which I cash in regularly to get free stuff, like gas certificates! -Smart eh?) cash doesnt do that… no sirreee bob! Fraudulent charges you say? the banks will put that money BACK in your account if there is activity on your card that you didnt authorize (Thanks Visa!)If you lost $20 bucks, and someone picked it up and spent it.. you CANNOT go back into the bank and say, whoops, I need another $20, someone else spent the first one…So suck it the fuck up, Coast! If I come in and buy my bagel and drink with my visa card, that just got me a couple cents closer to another gas certificate!
I wouldnt call it laziness it is alot easier to keep track of debt or credit card.
Hey Coast… “Learn to stand up for yourself you cowardly push over.” You likely learned that from reading MY posts on this board! hahahahahahaRealize your employer offers debit card payment options not only for their convenience but for PROFIT. Merchant fees DO NOT equate to per/transaction fees, it’s a percentage of monthly sales so every time someone charges a nominal amount to their card your employer sees PROFIT… and they don’t mind if people line up to pay up as long as they stay lined up.These days bank accounts offer a serious number of transactions before they start charging for extras and we get to pay the monthly fee anyway so we might as well use them up. I have yet to “go over” and I use the card all the time. Oh, and get this, I still know how much money I’ve spent, on what, where and… to the penny. Using the debit card does not create a ‘mystery bank balance’ just as writing a cheque does not. Not when you have a 3 digit IQ. Sorry for your luck.Tell me Coast, how many highly educated professionals earn their primary income as a Tim Horton’s employee? Huh? It’s rocket science, I know, so better do your research.First you say, “Money is not safe in the bank.” and in the next breath you say, “It’s pretty hard to track transactions where goods/services are exchanged for paper money.” WHAT exactly is the point you’re making here? Never mind… that was a rhetorical question anyway (dictionary.com if you find this confusing).Your education level shows you’d be quite happy earning minimum wage, refusing tips and thinking with that pea sized brain… the biggest worries you’ll ever have are processing debit purchases fast enough to keep your customers happy. Power to ya but don’t bitch about it. It’s the job of your dreams!!!Suggestion: provide a “cash only” sales station but please please please choose and employee who can actually add and subtract in their heads otherwise that line could be slower than the debit line when the (2 digit IQ) employee enters the payment amount wrong and actually has to do the math to count change.I’m far from stupid, Broc offered some sound advice and said nothing to warrant your bullshit insults… who’s the idiot here? You’re complaining about how 99% of people do business and have completely ignored the fact that this part of commerce has been adopted around the PLANET. Not only is it convenient for consumers but also for businesses… they don’t need an armored guard to watch the night deposit, serves bank reconciliation well (duh, what’s that huh?), they don’t need to worry so much about cash disappearing into the pockets of all the “highly educated professionals” who work the till for a food and beverage server’s wage… less than minimum wage (insulted by tipping… yeah, sure.. probably a real bitch to figure when you’re cashing out, eh?)You said, “I beg to differ that debit cards are ‘a lot more secure’ than cash. Have you seen all the shit in the news about people getting their cards read, cameras at atms”… blah blah blah… have you ever read the news? Have you ever walked alone at night with a pocket full of money? Try it sometime then try it again another night with only your debit card in your pocket.Idiot? Me? People can be stupid, indeed!
“Retail businesses have adopted electronic payment options because they have been forced to by consumer LAZINESS. Just like car manufacturers have been forced to install Grand Canyon-sized cup holders to cater to fat asses who insist on having giant cups and massive portions. The point is consumers have become dependent on electronic methods of payment and I’m merely pointing out that trend and trying to shed light on all the security, stress and time issues it causes”Hmmm are we, the customer, the only one’s that depend on technology to make life easier?Why do they have scanners at most retail checkouts? Don’t tell me it is entirely for speed because the cashier and the store benefit from their use as well. The cashier no longer has to memorize or look up various prices/codes. The store has a much way of keeping track of inventory (granted this doesn’t account for shoplifting, but at worst they get a ballpark figure of what is in their store). Perhaps we should do away with scanners because they make the stores/cashier too lazy.And you do not have a point about credit/debit cards slowing things up at coffee shops. I have seen cashiers struggling to make correct change more often slow up the line.Also, if people want a good, no-fee debit card/bank account/credit card, you can’t go wrong with President’s Choice Bank.Free cheques, unlimited free use of atm and debits machines, plus you get 10 points for every dollar spent at any store (10 points for credit card, 5 points for debit card). Then you can redeem the points for free groceries. That makes my money go further, which is something spending cash can’t do.
TIM you really aught to manage the time portion of the date stamp in these posts. It’s really confusing when the biggest bullshit post (posted in the wee hours) stays at the top and all of the before noon replies come after it in seemly reverse chronological order. Come on, man! It’s not THAT big of a change to make. Email me and I’ll tell you how.
ok this if off topic but Kay’s been driving me nuts, so I may as well post this here:LOTS of people, well educated, intelligent people, have worked and will work at places like Tim Hortons. most are just passing through. it’s a fact- most university students will, during their tenure at school, work at a place like this. and after school? Many will do it too, to help offset some of that crippling debt they’ve accumulated,w hile looking for another job that will pay them enough to subsist. it’s the boomerang generation, baby, and there is NO SHAME in working one of these jobs. it doesn’t make you stupid, or in any way less intelligent than the judgmental twat on the other side of the counter, with their holier-than-thou attitude (psst that would be you).
Quoting myself from another thread I replied to just for you, hedgyhog:”If you bitched about some mundane aspect of a dead end job and I encouraged you to set the bar higher, take no offense. If it seems like I’m talking down to you take solace in the fact that I walk the talk the best I can. I’m also a kind person who regularly stands up for the underdog. If it seems like I understand details of the blue collar career be happy knowing I’ve done my share of shit work for shit money for shit management too (I bitched for a while then I set the bar higher. Much higher.) “
Debit will always be my preferred method and always will. Nothing to do with budgeting (I will spend the same amount as always). It’s more convenient. And to connect laziness to convenience is a long shot.However, if this is such an issue (Its not going to change) perhaps debit machines should be made faster. A quick swipe of the card (or one of those wavy types like at the gas stations) and a biometric fingerprint reader coupled with a connection to the register (so the cashier doesn’t need to key in numbers twice) and a faster connection speed. But that’s costly.There are really fast debit machines out there though. It’s almost instantaneous. Either way I think everyone is whining over 30-seconds at the most (unless there is an error with the machine or pin). It takes about the same time as a cashier who counts change slow.So sit back, take it easy, and enjoy the ride we called “freedom”.
The OP is out of touch. When more stores are able to adopt the “touch card” technology that lets you just tap your credit card on a sensor to pay your bill without a signature or PIN number it will be great – but agreed – some kind of biometric security attached would be most helpful!
I don’t go agree with the “touch” method. Unless its store specific. I would like some level of security as things like that are easy enough to lose.
“go agree”? Gotta lay off the drugs Bad Guy…
I think there are price limits on Touch Technology. If not, there should be. Also, the new Chip technology will still require a PIN, but will be more secure because you can’t copy it like you can a magnetic strip…so it should limit debit and credit card skimming.
I agree guys, that’s why I think it should have biometric back-up, like touch-n-thumbprint or something.