Public service announcement for those living under rocks

Does the county government think that we are all stupid? After reading this bit about gift cards, I am really convinced that they do. I mean really, is there anything in this blurb that does not belong in the "no crap, Sherlock" category?

I despise gift cards, especially those that are merchant specific. They always have a lower value to the recipient than cash which contributes to the deadweight loss of the holidays (although maybe not as much as other types of gifts). If you saw a $50 bill on the ground next to a $50 gift certificate to X merchant, and you could only pick one of them up and knew that both were genuine, who on Earth would reach for the gift certificate? Plus, there is the obvious risk of the merchant going out of business, as what happened with my Bun Penny gift certificate last year. I ended up with the world's worst tasting bottle of wine from their well picked-through selection a few days before they closed. This scenario will be repeated all over the country with many other stores this year, for sure.