Category Archives: Messenger

Courier and Messenger Articles

Banks are scum

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So I wanted to get a copy of “Rubber Side Down“, a film about the 2001 Cycle Messenger World Championships by Tristan Verboven. I email Tristan and he’s more than happy to send a copy to me:

Thanks for your email. We have never gotten an order from Australia. If you don’t mind my asking, how did you hear about the film? I have some copies left and would be glad to send you one on DVD or VHS for CAD$25 plus $10 for shipping. Please send an international money order..

Well.. I just got back from the Post Office and the Bank. The international money order from the post office costs almost $10 and can only be written for $USD, which means I’d have to include extra money to cover the $USD->$CAD exchange at the Canadian end. The woman at the post office agreed that the cost was ridiculous and suggested I try the bank for an international bank cheque.

One of these cheques for Canadian dollars costs me $20!! $20 just for the frickin’ cheque paper!

She then tells me an international fund transfer (electronic) costs $30!! WTF?! How can altering a few digits on a computer cost $30? How can it cost more than a piece of paper that achieves the same thing? Totally bloody ridiculous if you ask me. So I pass up on the order, simply because the fucking banks make it too expensive to transfer money.

This means I have to go to Canada now.

What? You think I wont justify a holiday to the other side of the world just to buy a DVD?