Cash And Chaos

     This bit of news rang a bell for me:

     LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) – A Senate bill introduced on Tuesday would prohibit businesses from refusing cash-only payments.
     […]
     Senate Bill 306 has not been assigned to a committee yet. [Steve] McClain said the Kentucky Retail Federation will be closely monitoring it.

     There are several pressures on retailers to abandon cash payments. The rising tide of armed robberies is surely one, and possibly the most prominent. A thief can’t steal what you don’t have. But I can think of several others:

• Counterfeiting;
• Innumerate cashiers;
• The obligation to make change;
• The need to bring cash to the bank.

     And there may be more. But many customers today are rediscovering the great virtues of cash:

• It’s private;
• It needs no third-party guarantor;
• Your wallet will keep you aware of how much you’ve been spending.

     Even retailers who’ve chosen to refuse cash would like to be able to accept it. Among other things, cash transactions don’t leave an audit trail for the snoopy bastards at the IRS. So it’s by no means a happy decision for a retailer to decide not to accept cash.

     Add that today, cash is being attacked by the federal government, which would like to eliminate it in favor of a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). When the government decides to attack something, you can be reasonably sure that it’s something you’d like to keep hold of. But if it’s hard to spend, its desirability is reduced.

     This is worth watching, both in Kentucky and elsewhere. It will become supremely important should the social fabric of the nation suffer deep deterioration after the quadrennial elections. At this point, it’s probable that there will be riots and widescale disorder no matter who prevails in November.

     Oh, before I forget: It’s still a good idea to have gold, silver, and a hefty supply of ammo on hand. The prices of those things have been rising sharply. My hunch is that we ain’t seen nothin’ yet. Verbum sat sapienti.