Fwd: [Cryptography] Two articles on what is and isn't money

[grarpamp]

A patron tries to pay with cash at the West 40th Street location of
Dos Toros Taqueria, only to learn that only credit or debit cards are
accepted. The Two Forks chain also does not take cash. Visa recently
offered select merchants a $10,000 reward to switch away from cash
transactions. “I was shocked,” said David, a 66-year-old accountant
who popped into Dig Inn for lunch a few hours before Ms. Bryant. (He
declined to give his surname because “I’m a private person.”) “This is
very unusual to me.” “My reaction was ‘Jesus, a New York City
restaurant that records all its revenue? How can they stay in
business?’ ”the credit card companies, who make a commission on every
credit card purchase, applaud the trend. Visa recently offered select
merchants a $10,000 reward for depriving customers of their right to
pay by the method of their choice.He was told he could not pay with
cash. He handed over his credit card. There was a problem with the
card reader, or maybe the Wi-Fi. In any case, the machine was down.
The cashier apologized and said the ice cream was on the house.


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: John Levine <johnl at iecc.com>
Date: Tue, Dec 26, 2017 at 3:53 PM
Subject: [Cryptography] Two articles on what is and isn't money
To: cryptography at metzdowd.com


NY Times: Cash Might Be King, but They Don't Care

As restaurants in New York stop accepting cash, they are surprised how
few people care, or even notice.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/25/nyregion/no-cash-money-cashless-credit-debit-card.html

FT: Israeli regulator becomes latest to crack down on bitcoin

Israel bars bitcoin trading companies from Tel Aviv stock exchange
because "Nobody knows what stands behind this."  On the other hand,
they're considering a digital shekel for mobile payments.

http://click.notice.ft.com/f/a/Z3B0L0Bul4__oT5GvASd6g~~/AAAAAQA~/RgRcJTWpP0RaaHR0cHM6Ly9naWZ0YXJ0aWNsZS5mdC5jb20vZ2lmdGFydGljbGUvYWN0aW9ucy9yZWRlZW0vMTI5Yjk0MDgtOWFiNi00OGFjLWE4NTgtYmFlMTIyZDNkNzcxVwhmaW50aW1lc1gEAAAAAEIKAAGpsEJam7gDKA~~

R's,
John
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