What is more American: Big Gulps or Credit Cards?

Big Gulps and using your credit card for everything are two pillars of the American way of life.  But a story in today’s New York Times reports that the companies that brought you the Big Gulp and promulgated no-fee (to the consumer) credit cards are at loggerheads. At issue: interchange fees. If you’re a regular [...]

An open letter to VISA about unscrupulous merchants

Earlier this week, after a particularly heated exchange with a local merchant about minimum purchase prices, I realized that I was spending on average about 30 minutes a week fighting for the right to use my credit card. So I decided to write VISA and plead with them to take action. Below is a copy [...]

ACTION ALERT: Senators aim to introduce European-style credit card fees

One of the great things about America is that you can use a credit card anywhere, for almost any purchase and merchants don’t charge you a fee. In fact, merchants are contractually prohibited from charging you either a fee to use your card or mandating a minimum purchase amount, though lots of treasonous types try [...]

#6. Chargebacks and credit cards

Maybe you ordered a new computer from a shady website that never came, or perhaps you donated $10,000 to the Presidential Inaugural Committee last year, but botched security prevented you from seeing Obama be sworn in. Either way, if you are in America and paid for your purchase with a credit card, you’ll likely be [...]