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We can make untraceable electronic payment systems; in fact, there was a failed startup doing just that all the way back in 1989: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

We can make untraceable electronic payment systems; in fact, there was a failed startup doing just that all the way back in 1989: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digicash https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digicash That said, what makes you think having a cash-oriented society guarantees tipping? There are industrialized nations that still rely on cash but where tipping is not ingrained in the culture; my experience in Japan was that if I left a tip people would assume I had made an error in my arithmetic or forgot my change. I agree that privacy is a problem with going cashless. Let's ignore tipping and instead focus on an actual problem.

tomc1985 9y ago
Why must this be only about tipping? Cash provides for people in a lot of ways that digital money can't or never will. Tipping, getting paid under-the-table, drug purchases... can digicash benefit all these people? Those groups should stay with cash, the amount of OpSec required for digital alternatives is too much...
- betterunix2 9y ago
  Yes, digicash (more properly called "ecash" among researchers) is useful in every example you listed: it is anonymous and supports offline payments (i.e. direct payments between two parties).
  - CM30 9y ago
    Normal cash is also much easier to use, doesn't rely on any software needing to be installed (or a computer/network access in general) and offers a decent amount of deniable plausability too. Why the obsession with replacing everything with technology when sometimes the old system works fine?
    - betterunix2 9y ago
      Cash cannot be used to pay websites/etc., and having a single method of paying is more convenient than having two methods. So the growth of online ordering essentially pushes people to use electronic payments of some kind, and as the number of online purchases increases so does the pressure to use electronic payments generally. Don't confuse ease-of-use in specific situations with ease-of-use generally.
      - tomc1985 9y ago
        "having a single method of paying is more convenient than having two methods" How is that more convenient? You've a pipe dream if you think one option is more convenient for everyone
      - newen 9y ago
        > having a single method of paying is more convenient than having two methods Are you a GNOME UI designer?

tomc1985 9y ago

Why must this be only about tipping? Cash provides for people in a lot of ways that digital money can't or never will. Tipping, getting paid under-the-table, drug purchases... can digicash benefit all these people? Those groups should stay with cash, the amount of OpSec required for digital alternatives is too much...

betterunix2 9y ago
Yes, digicash (more properly called "ecash" among researchers) is useful in every example you listed: it is anonymous and supports offline payments (i.e. direct payments between two parties).
- CM30 9y ago
  Normal cash is also much easier to use, doesn't rely on any software needing to be installed (or a computer/network access in general) and offers a decent amount of deniable plausability too. Why the obsession with replacing everything with technology when sometimes the old system works fine?
  - betterunix2 9y ago
    Cash cannot be used to pay websites/etc., and having a single method of paying is more convenient than having two methods. So the growth of online ordering essentially pushes people to use electronic payments of some kind, and as the number of online purchases increases so does the pressure to use electronic payments generally. Don't confuse ease-of-use in specific situations with ease-of-use generally.
    - tomc1985 9y ago
      "having a single method of paying is more convenient than having two methods" How is that more convenient? You've a pipe dream if you think one option is more convenient for everyone
    - newen 9y ago
      > having a single method of paying is more convenient than having two methods Are you a GNOME UI designer?