Alt Text: Apple App Apparently Apocalyptic | Underwire | Wired.com: Look at the facts here. The first networked ATM in America was installed in 1968. A major recession hit in 1969, and another in 1973. Money went from something you were handed by a human being wearing nice clothes to something a machine spit into your hand like a candy bar or really terrible coffee.
In 1986, American Express started allowing card owners to carry a debt balance. In 1987, Discover Card launched widely. In 1990, we hit another recession. As money shifts from sturdy green paper to plastic you can’t bring within 16 feet of a magnet, it becomes less real, and people go kinda nuts.