The clock strikes midnight here on the east coast...
Happy 5/24 day to all my fellow DISchurner friends!
Yes it was on this day in 2016 (wow was it really 3 years ago) that Chase extended their much maligned 5/24 rule to most of their co-brand cards.
*In truth this happened on May 23rd, 2016 but churners like to remember it as 5/24/16 with Chase flipping a figurative middle finger at the churning community...
Has any rule change ever affected our beloved game as much as 5/24? In my opinion, I'd clearly say no. Chase 5/24 is far-reaching, affects every churner, and becomes a factor in the strategy from day 1 of all those who choose to pursue the churner path. Chase is only rivaled by American Express in its depth and breadth of card line-up both in terms of their in-house Ultimate Rewards program and extensive co-brand lineup. When first enacted in June of 2015, the 5/24 rule was an instant game changer. However, the extension to co-brands killed dreams of future companion passes for churners far and wide and thus 5/24/16 is a sad day.
So why is it that I say "Happy 5/24 day..." Well my friends - it is still a happy day because the churning game is still alive and well. It is different than it was in 2015 no doubt...BUT it is not dead! Often the "churning chicken littles" of the world will come around trumpeting the demise of churning due to economic factors, data factors, etc. but time and again they are proven wrong because we are churners and we don't give up. I close with a short speech:
Good evening. In less than 8 hours, DISchurners here will join churners from around the world. And we will continue to churn cards in honor of all churning-kind. churning-kind -- that word should have new meaning for all of us today.
We can't be consumed by our petty differences over cpp anymore.
We will be united in our common interests to hammer card issuers with new accounts.
Perhaps its fate that today is the the 24th of May, and us churners will once again be fighting for our freedom, not from auto-denials, recon calls, or clawbacks -- but from annihilation.
We fight for our right to churn, to earn.
And when we win the day, the 24th of May will no longer be known as a sad churner holiday, but as the day when the churning declared in one voice:
We will not go pending into the night!
We will not be Bonvoyed without a fight!
We're going to churn on!
We're going to travel for free!
Today, we celebrate 5/24 Day!!