I forgot to add. I buy precious metals via internet. They accept credit cards as well as personal checks. Checks will take up to 10 business days to clear, but you will eventually get the item ordered on the internet. Many vendors who accept credit cards will need to add this pay option to their sites. It also means the buyer must have the money in the account (savings) to pay for the ordered item. The internet and economy will not grind to a halt because less people have credit cards. It will not be as robust as it was in the past, but the economy of the past is based on an illusion of debt that collapses instantly into a nightmare in the first financial crisis. That type of economy is not worth it.
Actually, most people manage their credit card just fine with exceptions falling into the younger users category and those with bad habits - bad habits in all areas of life. Also, there is a percentage that genuinely have emergency needs come up that are overwhelming - for example medical events.
The problem is easy credit and too many credit cards - along with instant gratification that comes with charging anything and everything that one wants NOW!
Unfortunately, most people don’t do much planning for emergencies - that planning is the key. In other words, line up the cheapest rate of credit available to you ahead of events, just in case. Waiting until something happens can result in even people with excellent credit going south.