# Cashier out of pennies **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 19, 2007, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cashier-out-of-pennies/404685 "2007-05-19T02:57:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cashier-out-of-pennies/404685/41 "2007-05-21T01:18:29Z")
[QUOTE=wheresgeorge04] Then what do we do when the cashier runs out of nickels? šŸ˜‰ Joe [/QUOTE] Exactly! I said nothing when they ran out of pennies and came after nickels. I kept silent when they burned through the nickels and went for the dimes. Now theyā€™re coming for the quarters, and Iā€™m a two bit guy. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2007, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cashier-out-of-pennies/404685/42 "2007-05-21T01:30:04Z")
[QUOTE=wheresgeorge04] Then what do we do when the cashier runs out of nickels? šŸ˜‰ Joe [/QUOTE] Got your debit card? Because business, and law enforcement, are hot to do away with money entirely. Credit and debit cards arenā€™t money, are they? From m-w; > [@](#): > > 1: something generally accepted as a medium of exchange, a measure of value, or a means of payment: as a: officially coined or stamped metal currency I wouldnā€™t call cards a ā€œmedium of exchangeā€ becuase you donā€™t trade then for goods, and they have no value. So theyā€™re not a ā€œmeasure of valueā€ either. Soon youā€™ll be able to transfer funds from your pda/cell phone to another individuals. Scary, huh? :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2007, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cashier-out-of-pennies/404685/43 "2007-05-22T13:25:39Z")
[QUOTE=mangeorge] Got your debit card? Because business, and law enforcement, are hot to do away with money entirely. Credit and debit cards arenā€™t money, are they? [/QUOTE] Maybe _some_ businesses, but not your basic small retailer. Do you think we _like_ losing 2% to 4% on each transaction when people use credit cards? Donā€™t get me wrong. Iā€™ll cheerfully accept credit cards. When people express surprise that my small-town store accepts their AmEx or Discover cards, I tell them that I like to make it as easy as possible to accept money from people. But given the choice, Iā€™ll take cash or a check every time. In almost six years in business in this small town, accepting checks from anywhere in a 200-mile radius, Iā€™ve gotten five bad checks, and four of them were paid back in full by the people who wrote them, including bank fees. Getting stiffed on one check every six years is a _lot_ cheaper than giving up a few percent on every transaction! ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2007, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cashier-out-of-pennies/404685/44 "2007-05-22T14:13:16Z")
[QUOTE=InvisibleWombat] Maybe _some_ businesses, but not your basic small retailer. Do you think we _like_ losing 2% to 4% on each transaction when people use credit cards? Donā€™t get me wrong. Iā€™ll cheerfully accept credit cards. When people express surprise that my small-town store accepts their AmEx or Discover cards, I tell them that I like to make it as easy as possible to accept money from people. But given the choice, Iā€™ll take cash or a check every time. In almost six years in business in this small town, accepting checks from anywhere in a 200-mile radius, Iā€™ve gotten five bad checks, and four of them were paid back in full by the people who wrote them, including bank fees. Getting stiffed on one check every six years is a _lot_ cheaper than giving up a few percent on every transaction! [/QUOTE] Debit cards are a creeping menace. Many people, espesially youngsters, think nothing of presenting their card for even very small purchases. Iā€™m talking like fifty cents! The financial institutions encourage it. Now they have those ā€œwave your cardā€ readers. Also cell phone readers. Some transit agencies are installing readers on their busses. You can easily get by right now without carrying any cash. Iā€™m wondering when panhandlers are going to get theirs? šŸ˜‰ ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2007, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cashier-out-of-pennies/404685/45 "2007-05-22T17:42:40Z")
[QUOTE=mangeorge] You can easily get by right now without carrying any cash. Iā€™m wondering when panhandlers are going to get theirs? šŸ˜‰ [/QUOTE] Iā€™d research this if I could get the study funded through micropayments on my Web site. šŸ˜‰ ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2007, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cashier-out-of-pennies/404685/46 "2007-05-22T18:25:50Z")
[QUOTE=InvisibleWombat] Iā€™d research this if I could get the study funded through micropayments on my Web site. šŸ˜‰ [/QUOTE] Wait till '08, when the Democrats _really_ take over. Then you can get a grant. I canā€™t wait. ---
**Author:** ![zamboniracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9a140/32.png) [@zamboniracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zamboniracer)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2007, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cashier-out-of-pennies/404685/47 "2007-05-22T19:32:09Z")
[QUOTE=Gus\_Handsome] On the other side of the coinā€¦ I had a customer last week who just flew in to give a lecture at Queenā€™s University, and he handed me a $50 bill for a fare that came to $4.82. I politley asked him if he happened to have anything smaller. The guy looks at me with a great big smile and says, ā€œoh thatā€™s ok, keep it, have a great day!ā€ He gets out of the cab and walks away! I was stunned. [/QUOTE] I donā€™t know if he was such a great customer or, more likely, he was traveling on some one elseā€™s money (ie an expense account or travel stipend). Either way, good for you! ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [May 22, 2007, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cashier-out-of-pennies/404685/48 "2007-05-22T20:08:07Z")
[QUOTE=zamboniracer] I donā€™t know if he was such a great customer or, more likely, he was traveling on some one elseā€™s money (ie an expense account or travel stipend). Either way, good for you! [/QUOTE] Iā€™ve done some travel on an expense account. If I were alloted $50 for transportation to the hotel from the airport (not unusual), the difference would have been mine. So the change given to the cabbie would have come out of my pocket. Sort of šŸ˜‰ . Some of just get pleasure out of spreading any windfall around. The guy probably liked Gus and his friendly service. I pumped gas (before the self-serve era) for a while when I got out of the Navy. Every once in a while a customer would give me an unreasonable tip. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cashier-out-of-pennies/404685.md?page=2)