re: Cash? How much is too much?

quote:

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only poors carry any decent amount of cash

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I know a guy in his mid-80s who is very well off. He grew up in Nazi occupied Europe. One day I noticed that he had wad of cash in his wallet. I suggested that it was a bad idea to carry that much cash and that someone with bad intent might notice it and knock him in the head over it.

His response was nobody will have to beat me because I'll give it to them and send them on their way. I tried to tell him that it may not be that simple and asked why he was carrying a that much cash. He said, "If I learned anything from the Germans, it's that you never know when you might have to bribe some petty official (he was joking. I think...) It's always good to have cash if you need it. I always try to carry $1,000."

The reality is that he's an extremely generous man. I'm sure he gives a ton to organized charities, but he also runs his own little spontaneous grassroots charity campaign. The polite, yet harried, waitress might get a $100 bill on a $15 lunch tab. He might pay the bill for someone at WalMart or the grocery who looks like they're in a bad spot. If he hears about someone in financial distress over medical bills or an unexpected accident in his community, they might get an envelope of cash anonomously to help them through a difficult time.

He's definitely not poor, he's definitely not stupid, and he's definitely not a sucker or naive. He's a good person who has worked hard all his life and made plenty of money. I think he has a soft spot for people who are busting their asses, but having a hard time getting ahead.