Pay in Full vs. Paying after statement

[Anonymous]

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@Open123 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Open123 wrote:

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@yfan wrote:

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@Open123 wrote:

By whose definition of ethical?  Mine?  Yours?  The US Gov't?  The PRC?  The Brits?  

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By mine, which I think is a pretty common definition: ethics, at a minimum, requires one to abide - even when no one is watching - by conditions/terms/contracts one voluntarily subjects oneself to. Again, see speeding.

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The speeding is a limit mandated by State law.  There is no speed limit on the autobahn in Germany.  Are the Germans unethical?

Buying GCs are not illegal, nor are they prohibited the issuers.  So, according to you, though buying GCs are not illegal nor are they prohibited by the issuers, I shouldn't buy them because it's unethical, according to you?

This makes sense to you?

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Speed limit was regulated federally at one time.

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So was slavery...

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So was tea.

[yfan]

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@Open123 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Speed limit was regulated federally at one time.

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So was slavery...

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Ergo, speed limits are exactly like slavery. See? Also, Hitler had a mustache, some dude I know has a mustache, ergo they're the same person.

[Open123]

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@yfan wrote:

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@Open123 wrote:

The speeding is a limit mandated by State law.  There is no speed limit on the autobahn in Germany.  Are the Germans unethical?

Buying GCs are not illegal, nor are they prohibited the issuers.  So, according to you, though buying GCs are not illegal nor are they prohibited by the issuers, I shouldn't buy them because it's unethical, according to you?

This makes sense to you?

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Seriously? That's what we're going to talk about? Germans? Speeding was mentioned as an example that just because something isn't enforced all the time doesn't mean that it disappears. Which applies to the terms of service - just because your credit card happens to give you rewards for purchasing something which isn't actually eligible for the rewards. Nobody said you shouldn't be able to buy gift cards - or even that just buying them is unethical, just that profititing from that purchase by the means of rewards is unethical, yes.

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Ok, so, if I were to buy a $100 GC as a gift for my niece, then it's ethical for me to earn the rewards.  But, conversely, if I were to buy the same $100 GC for personal gain, then it would be unethical, and I should refrain.

Is that right?

[Anonymous]

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@Open123 wrote:

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@yfan wrote:

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@Open123 wrote:

The speeding is a limit mandated by State law.  There is no speed limit on the autobahn in Germany.  Are the Germans unethical?

Buying GCs are not illegal, nor are they prohibited the issuers.  So, according to you, though buying GCs are not illegal nor are they prohibited by the issuers, I shouldn't buy them because it's unethical, according to you?

This makes sense to you?

---

Seriously? That's what we're going to talk about? Germans? Speeding was mentioned as an example that just because something isn't enforced all the time doesn't mean that it disappears. Which applies to the terms of service - just because your credit card happens to give you rewards for purchasing something which isn't actually eligible for the rewards. Nobody said you shouldn't be able to buy gift cards - or even that just buying them is unethical, just that profititing from that purchase by the means of rewards is unethical, yes.

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Ok, so, if I were to buy a $100 GC as a gift for my niece, then it's ethical for me to earn the rewards.  But, conversely, if I were to buy the same $100 GC for personal gain, then it would be unethical, and I should refrain.

Is that right?

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Wrong. Rewards are always ethical.

It's my money and I want it now!

[Anonymous]

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@Open123 wrote:

There is no speed limit on the autobahn in Germany.

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Technically true but practically it's become an urban legend nowadays, unfortunately.

However, I still don't understand how a credit holder who pays his bills BEFORE they become due can be seen risky to a lender. Tweaking one's FICO score is something which just helped us greatly with the annual increase in rent.

I talked to the manager and she admitted that we were among the very few tenants with such high scores that we only got a 2% increase. Most others were upped in the 5% ballpark. The funny thing is we don't even strive to increase our scores. We just pay our bills on time, and in my case, most of the credit card borrowing is gone before the statement closes.

I'm putting only a few grands through my cards each month so I'd consider myself a toddler playing the MS game but I have yet to see a statement closing over a thousand dollars (which only happens due to bad timing or technical limitations). So how can I be a risk to a lender?

[Open123]

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@yfan wrote:

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@Open123 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Speed limit was regulated federally at one time.

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So was slavery...

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Ergo, speed limits are exactly like slavery. See? Also, Hitler had a mustache, some dude I know has a mustache, ergo they're the same person.

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The points is that at one time or another, each were viewed as "ethical" by some, which is reason enough to pay no heed to subjective morality.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Open123 wrote:

There is no speed limit on the autobahn in Germany.

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Technically true but practically it's become an urban legend nowadays, unfortunately.

However, I still don't understand how a credit holder who pays his bills BEFORE they become due can be seen risky to a lender. Tweaking one's FICO score is something which just helped us greatly with the annual increase in rent.

I talked to the manager and she admitted that we were among the very few tenants with such high scores that we only got a 2% increase. Most others were upped in the 5% ballpark. The funny thing is we don't even strive to increase our scores. We just pay our bills on time, and in my case, most of the credit card borrowing is gone before the statement closes.

I'm putting only a few grands through my cards each month so I'd consider myself a toddler playing the MS game but I have yet to see a statement closing over a thousand dollars (which only happens due to bad timing or technical limitations). So how can I be a risk to a lender?

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Your landlord HP's you yearly to see if you're due for an Increase? Yikes...

[Fico2Go]

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@Open123 wrote:

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@yfan wrote:

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@Open123 wrote:

The speeding is a limit mandated by State law.  There is no speed limit on the autobahn in Germany.  Are the Germans unethical?

Buying GCs are not illegal, nor are they prohibited the issuers.  So, according to you, though buying GCs are not illegal nor are they prohibited by the issuers, I shouldn't buy them because it's unethical, according to you?

This makes sense to you?

---

Seriously? That's what we're going to talk about? Germans? Speeding was mentioned as an example that just because something isn't enforced all the time doesn't mean that it disappears. Which applies to the terms of service - just because your credit card happens to give you rewards for purchasing something which isn't actually eligible for the rewards. Nobody said you shouldn't be able to buy gift cards - or even that just buying them is unethical, just that profititing from that purchase by the means of rewards is unethical, yes.

---

Ok, so, if I were to buy a $100 GC as a gift for my niece, then it's ethical for me to earn the rewards.  But, conversely, if I were to buy the same $100 GC for personal gain, then it would be unethical, and I should refrain.

Is that right?

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The moral police have forgotten that giftcards are ideal and recommended for people who use them as debit cards.  For example, immoral people like me use giftcards as debit cards to make purchases online.  I also use debit cards to pay bills.  I also use debit cards to replace writing checks. 

I've not once turned GCs into cash equivalents.

Speaking of cash equivalents I hope our moral police stop paying their credit card bills in full every month since that would be using credit cards as cash equivalents.  Heck, the moral police ought to set a good example and go all cash.  Even better, why not go back to the gold and silver standard. 

Do we need to discuss the meaning of cash equivalents? 

[Open123]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I'm putting only a few grands through my cards each month so I'd consider myself a toddler playing the MS game but I have yet to see a statement closing over a thousand dollars (which only happens due to bad timing or technical limitations). So how can I be a risk to a lender?

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The potential correlation with fraud and money laundering, where the potential costs of compliance far exceeds whatever a profit an issuer can earn.

[Anonymous]

I for one welcome the age of utilities and such taking credit cards. It's been about 11 months since I actually put pen to a check -- for our Income Tax liability.