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Comment by rlv-dan | Hacker News Reader

I pay more often with cash today than some years ago, as a statement.

Interestingly, if you talk about cash in Sweden the comments you will get tend to be very hostile. It's like talking about meat in a vegan community.

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I pay cash too as much as I can, it freaked me out when my bank started classifying my expenses. That hostile talk you mention reminds me of when I talk about vehicular cycling, specially in northern european circles, where they are a lot into segregating cyclists. I think it is a similar paternalistic issue, hey this is good for you, resistance is futile!

An odd equivalent to make as I don't see the push to go cashless advertised as a similar public health benefit to cycling. There is data to suggest that segregating cyclists from traffic, if done properly, can reduce serious collision by 70% and deaths by 30%. Sometimes when somebody says something is good for you, it actually is.

Many people consider the surveillance that comes with electronic money to be a good thing, and they are suspicious of anyone who wants to opt out. Their emotional response to these examples is not that different.

Cynically I consider the people most interested in surveillance of money to be the tax office. (Note that I'm a believer of paying taxes and not avoiding them, and using taxation to fund public goods, voluntarily living in Norway and all.) The flip side is doing a tax return is very easy as the tax office already knows absolutely everything about your financial situation.

>it freaked me out when my bank started classifying my expenses

Through the MCC they already have that information - they just exposed it to you.

More people should, even if they don't go to the same extreme as me.

I've come to a point where I feel like it's my responsibility to do whatever I can, and getting a card or phone with Swish would make it too easy.

There's some serious programming going on, it's sort of a Swedish tradition to brainwash people into policing each other.

Can you say more about what you see as the Swedish tradition of brainwashing people into policing each other? Sweden has a reputation for extreme political correctness, which I guess could be framed as a more polite way to express the same thing, but the way you put it sounds far more exciting!

Well, the way I put it is how it works :)

Extreme political correctness is not something people are born with, it's conditioning via media and from observing how people who dare to question anything are treated.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Law_of_Jante

Makes me wonder how Nordic people behave anonymously, e.g. on online forums.

I get a lot of downvotes, which makes me sad. But I guess I have my real name on my account as well.

That is pretty interesting. Another one of these bad code of conducts.

> While the original intention was as satire, Kim Orlin Kantardjiev, a Norwegian politician and educational advisor, claims that the Law of Jante is taught in schools as more of a social code to encourage group behaviour.

If real life gets funnier than the original work, satire really gets into problems...

Interesting. There's a children's book published in America where the house of oddball people (sleep on the lawn! paint the house orange! Wear party clothes all the time!) are persecuted by 'the General' who won't allow any fun.

Can't quite remember the name, something about 'Libertyville' which was ironic I think.

Remembered! "The Araboolies of Liberty Street"

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0374303908?tag=duckduckgo-d-20&lin...

The only time I use cash, is when I take the yearly trip to Germany. Apart from that, it never happens. So yes, I'd get irritated if someone gave me cash because it is a hassle to use.

Though I must say Germany too is changing fast - 7 years ago most places didn't take cards, now most places do. And I've even heard of cash-less bars popping up in Berlin. So the change is coming there too, only a bit later.

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