4 ms·

> So ultimately, all money is back 100% on faith. Interesting reply overall but per my other replies, it seems to me that a .gov's ability to tax and confiscat

> So ultimately, all money is back 100% on faith. Interesting reply overall but per my other replies, it seems to me that a .gov's ability to tax and confiscate wealth - not to mention enforce capital controls - to support a currency trumps pure faith. If the USD goes to hell I can count on the US .gov and taxpayer to ensure my USD are worth something. If Bitcoin does, I've still no idea who the payer of last resort is. Fiat money, at its pinciple, is debt first and foremost. Admittedly, some have given creditors a giant finger in the past. But still, crypto currency is, well... a financial UFO? :-)

Lazare 10y ago
> it seems to me that a .gov's ability to tax and confiscate wealth - not to mention enforce capital controls - to support a currency trumps pure faith. You misunderstand my point: That's still faith; you have faith that they will support it and not, say, devalue it, change currencies, just decide that a bunch of money is no longer valid[0], etc. That power to confiscate wealth - which you're quite right, they could use to defend the currency - could also be used to destroy it. > If the USD goes to hell I can count on the US .gov and taxpayer to ensure my USD are worth something. You are very likely correct, but it's not a guarantee. History is littered with examples of currency which is no longer worth anything to anyone except collectors, and maybe not even then. Which doesn't mean it's not a safe bet; I think it's clearly true that the USD is more likely to be a stable store of value than any crypto currency, and at least most fiat currencies. But if you think it's 100% safe, you're engaging in faith based thinking. :) [0]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2016_Indian_banknote_demonetisation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2016_Indian_banknote_demonetis...

4 ms·

> So ultimately, all money is back 100% on faith. Interesting reply overall but per my other replies, it seems to me that a .gov's ability to tax and confiscat

by ddebernardy 10y ago

Lazare 10y ago
> it seems to me that a .gov's ability to tax and confiscate wealth - not to mention enforce capital controls - to support a currency trumps pure faith. You misunderstand my point: That's still faith; you have faith that they will support it and not, say, devalue it, change currencies, just decide that a bunch of money is no longer valid[0], etc. That power to confiscate wealth - which you're quite right, they could use to defend the currency - could also be used to destroy it. > If the USD goes to hell I can count on the US .gov and taxpayer to ensure my USD are worth something. You are very likely correct, but it's not a guarantee. History is littered with examples of currency which is no longer worth anything to anyone except collectors, and maybe not even then. Which doesn't mean it's not a safe bet; I think it's clearly true that the USD is more likely to be a stable store of value than any crypto currency, and at least most fiat currencies. But if you think it's 100% safe, you're engaging in faith based thinking. :) [0]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2016_Indian_banknote_demonetisation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2016_Indian_banknote_demonetis...