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Old March 22nd 05, 12:58 AM
Peter Stickney
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In article ,
Ogden Johnson III writes:

[Does anybody in the US military still get paid with checks [much
less {gasp!!!!!!} cash] nowadays, or has DoD gone mandatory
direct deposit? Saw on a recent cable show on carriers that all
their crew's cash comes out of an ATM.]


Funny that you should bring that up... I've just been working on a
piece of that, actually. It's more than just ATMs - Some ships are
part of NavyCash, which reduces the demand for hard money by
substituting programmable "Smart Cards" for geedunks & stamps & Mess
Dues and such. You can transfer funds from your Ship's Account, using
something like an ATM, and use the card in the Coke Machines & such.
The accounting for the DISBOs is a lot easier, and so are the
logistics. It seems that when they empty the cash boxes in the Coke
Machines every month, they're hauling about 1,000# of quarters around
the ship. (For a CV or LPH-sized ship). So, anyway, the effort is
there to eliminate hard cash on ships. (The cards can also be used as
Debit Cards ashore).

--
Pete Stickney

Without data, all you have are opinions