Credit Cards

The Chinese are credited with coming up with numerous inventions including gunpowder, umbrellas, chopsticks, paper and paper money.

Lamentably, (from Chinese point of view) the honors of coming up with plastic money went with early American capitalists.

From the time John Biggins, the inventor of a first bank issued card, had his first eureka moment in 1946, credit cards have evolved to become one of the most versatile ways of paying, and this is why. Once issued with one, the need to carry around unsafe, dirty and bulky cash is significantly diminished.

I say diminished because some small scale merchants (who perhaps are scared of technology) will still insist on being paid in cash. Further, credit cards enables you to build up a credit history, but only if you always pay on time.

In some countries such as UK, if you buy goods using a credit card and the goods turn out to be faulty, they are usually insured for a period of time, say two months, and you can be indemnified even for total loss.

Credit cards are safe, and even if gun-totting miscreants help themselves to your wallet, you can make hit back by simply calling the credit card company and canceling the stolen card.

Another thing going for credit cards is that you can keep track of your transactions, and it's thus easy to keep track of your expenditure. I could go on and on, and whatever the doomsday prophets say, plastic money is here to stay.