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  1. No wonder we're in a financial crisis. I was just accepted for a platinum credit card based on a 20 minute phonecall

    Friday, 04-Nov-11 19:01:31 UTC from web
    1. @ceruleanspark scam. I can get a card for 5% less from a bank, and much lower from credit union.

      Friday, 04-Nov-11 19:03:58 UTC from StatusNet iPhone
      1. @cabal It's largely irrelevant, as I don't intend to actually use it for anything other than instantly paying it off to boost my credit rating.

        Friday, 04-Nov-11 19:05:32 UTC from web
        1. @ceruleanspark best thing to use it for is buying a toothbrush with it every 3 months, that way when they do reviews, they see that you pay off your balance every time, not a inactive card holder, and actually boost your rating and actual credit.

          Friday, 04-Nov-11 19:08:28 UTC from StatusNet iPhone
          1. @cabal I was gonna use it to pay for petrol twice a month. It's a (more or less) fixed cost, and it plays into one of their reward schemes.

            Friday, 04-Nov-11 19:09:45 UTC from web
      2. @cabal Or online purchases where the protections afforded by credit law would benefit me

        Friday, 04-Nov-11 19:06:33 UTC from web
    2. @ceruleanspark Yes, it sort of like asking for a loan from the mob: they're more than happy to loan you the money, and have everything rigged in their favor as they hope you will fail to pay it back.

      Friday, 04-Nov-11 19:06:31 UTC from MuSTArDroid
      1. @astra I wasn't planning to borrow money. Just exploit my year's interest free credit to cheaply boost my credit rating and net whatever rewards I can accrue through their system. I wasn't planning to immediately go out and buy a £12K Mac Pro or whatever.

        Friday, 04-Nov-11 19:14:15 UTC from web
        1. @ceruleanspark £12K. With that money i could buy two Opteron x12, a motherboard to put them in, a radeon 6990, 32GB of ram, and 2TB.

          Friday, 04-Nov-11 19:17:57 UTC from web
          1. @nerthos I picked the Mac Pro because it's a retarded way to spend £12K, rather than a good computer. You could build a hellaciously powerful machine for that money.

            Friday, 04-Nov-11 19:20:33 UTC from web
            1. @ceruleanspark Normal users. The modern equivalent to the medieval religious zealots who payed gold for blessings. I could buy a hellaciously powerful one for half that price.

              Friday, 04-Nov-11 19:23:02 UTC from web
        2. @ceruleanspark Oh, I didn't figure that you were. Just that a dependence upon using those things can grow on even the most disciplined and well-intentioned people, and even small purchases can add up quickly on those things. As long as you stick to that plan, though, you should be fine. Sorry, I just have a huge aversion to those things now.

          Friday, 04-Nov-11 19:19:35 UTC from MuSTArDroid
          1. @astra I have a huge aversion to credit in general, which ought to keep me in line. Plus I am also very lazy. Paying with someone elses money is more work than paying with my own.

            Friday, 04-Nov-11 19:21:44 UTC from web
            1. @ceruleanspark Sorry, just doing what I do best: LECTURE YOU! ;) But, yes, as long as you maintain a healthy paranoia, it should be fine. :)

              Friday, 04-Nov-11 20:30:48 UTC from MuSTArDroid
              1. @astra It's OK. You can never be too careful.

                Friday, 04-Nov-11 20:32:04 UTC from web
          2. @astra @ceruleanspark Always better to pay with the money you have. Fastest, easier, safer. And you can't get into debts and things like that in that way.

            Friday, 04-Nov-11 19:26:22 UTC from web
            1. @nerthos Absolutely. However: I cannot conceivably save up enough to buy a house outright. For this, I need to borrow. To borrow in a way that doesn't involve sodomy, I need a good credit rating. To achieve this, I need to borrow and pay off small amounts in a timely fashion. I intend to exploit my natural laziness and routine to do this in a way that doesn't lead me into horrible, horrible debt.

              Friday, 04-Nov-11 19:30:02 UTC from web
              1. @ceruleanspark Yes, it's true that in the "first world" acquiring a house is almost impossible without credit. I for one am grateful of my luck, for my grandma had only one son, who bought two houses. I have ony a brother, so i'm heir to one house and my brother to other, while my parents keep the larger one. So at least, i will have a place to live with ease.

                Friday, 04-Nov-11 19:33:50 UTC from web
            2. @nerthos Problem is, the availability of cheap & easy credit has skewed prices to the point where it can be hard to afford things without charging them, as businesses have no motivation to keep prices within actual pay rates.

              Friday, 04-Nov-11 19:32:50 UTC from MuSTArDroid
              1. @scribus Credit is what causes all the first world crisis.

                Friday, 04-Nov-11 19:35:16 UTC from web
                1. @nerthos Eeyup. And we've built ourselves up to be completely reliant upon it.

                  Friday, 04-Nov-11 19:36:25 UTC from MuSTArDroid