I think that gift cards in general are a total scam, because they allow the giver to dictate what physical place you have to go to in order to buy yourself a present and the buyer has to pay full cash value for something that then becomes store credit, with none of the protections of a credit card.

I was in the checkout line at Giant during lunch today and noticed a rack of American Express gift cards two lanes over. Just like cash, they said, but in a credit card. Then I noticed the fee disclaimer. Apparently AMEX adds fees at the register of $3.95 for a $25 card, $4.95 for a $50 card, and $5.95 for a $100 card. That's anywhere from 6.0% to as high as 15.8% for the privelege of coverting your legal tender into plastic.

Is there anything I'm missing about these cards, or is it as obvious a scam as it appears to be? E-mail me with your thoughts.

I also noticed that the price for a tiny bottle of Blistex at the register was listed as $151.62 per pound, which made me chuckle.

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