For birthdays and Christmas, people receive many assorted presents; however, when I was younger, I seemed to get wallets from relatives. Some were cool, and I liked them, and others not, trifolds, bifolds, etc.
Times change. We can still get regular wallets, even today. However, others can choose wallets that are slim for only a few cards that are needed, and others with RFID protection. Check that last link for what RFID is and if it should worry you or not…it does not bother me much, but I am laid back.
Then you have all the new “stuff” like Apple Pay (apple.com/apple-pay), Google Pay (pay.google.com), Samsung Pay (samsung.com/us/samsung-pay), and that ole favorite PayPal.com, etc. There are many ways to pay online on your phone. I have used the Google Pay app for a few items. Basically, I did it to test it out. I pointed my phone at the retailer’s scanner and paid using my app, which was linked to my debit card. It did as it was supposed to and collected the money for my purchase. However, after that was done, I continued using my old favorite, a debit card. I have done so for years and gotten used to it.
Then, thinking about the future, I thought we should be able to just load our Debit/Charge Cards on our smartphones. OK, basically that is the purpose of Google, but why not just turn that over to our financial institutions? You would not need a fat wallet for your cards. Even one of the new small wallets could be done away with (ghtech.site/wallet). You would only need your phone. Think about it a little further…your driver’s license, passport, social security card, insurance cards, TSA cards, and the many other types of cards you need from time-to-time all could be put into your phone. Easy to get to them all.
Consider all the Covid verifications that could be needed. I, for one, thought Covid would vanish more quickly than it had, and thought the vaccination “proof of purchase” would never be needed. So, I unwisely tossed out my vaccination card. But fortunately, I took a picture of it first. (Just in case.) Which is accepted by anyone that has needed it to date. Also, many states like Virginia can provide your vaccination and booster records online. If you are interested, check the Virginia Department of Health website at, vase.vdh.virginia.gov/recordrequest.html.
Another thing to think about. In 2021, the United States started to seriously consider e-money for the country. Maybe paper and coin money will disappear. This money will most likely be accepted for non-online/non-internet purchases, as some forms are now only for those. It is expected that some incentives will be offered to us to switch over to it. Acceptance by Asian and European countries will “encourage” the U.S. to adopt it as well.
It does not really matter what you or I think. It seems digital everything is ready to start up. Possibly soon. Not to be a conspiracy theorist, but Revelation 13:17 was written long, long ago. It sounds like we could arrive at that point sooner than later. Do not stop reading me just because I stated that but things, they are a-changing.
