Free stuff from the credit card industry

The up side, such as it is, of this country’s rapacious credit card
industry is if you’re careful you can get some decent freebies by
taking advantage of the enticements that the companies offer in hopes
that you’ll run up a balance.

A few months ago I signed up for the Amazon.com VISA from Chase. The
terms for anyone carrying a balance are fairly horrendous; if you
don’t pay up on time I believe the contract explicitly states that
they will send a man named either Vito or Butch to remove your pinkie.
Pay the balance on time, however, and it effectively prints money. By
money I mean Amazon gift cards. Which are effectively the same thing,
since you can trade them for pretty much any product on God’s green
earth.

Anyway, I just redeemed my first batch of points for a $25 gift card,
having paid exactly zero account fees. I highly recommend this
strategy to anyone who likes shopping at Amazon; but if and only if
you have the self-discipline and income to pay the card off every
month.

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