The Card

In September 1958, Bank of America launched the Fresno Drop by mailing sixty thousand activated credit cards to Fresno, California residents without prior requests or credit checks. This initiative resulted in immediate widespread fraud and delinquency rates exceeding twenty percent, causing significant financial losses. Meanwhile, a separate report highlights growing concerns among teachers, parents, and education experts regarding the declining reading abilities of American students, suggesting a broader global trend of academic struggle within school systems.