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I still have faith in our ability to escape the ill effects of capitalism that are slowly destroying our industry. See Bitcoin & Ethereum.

by awgneo 9y ago

fake-name 9y ago
Wait, you think bitcoin etc is going to reduce the harmful effects of capitalism?
SaltyBackendGuy 9y ago
I always wonder what a better solution than capitalism is. It's not perfect, and it's pretty broken when politics and corporate interests are in bed together. However, we're seeing the ill effects of socialism (Venezuela) like starvation and I prefer the former. Furthermore, the crypto economy might be the closest example we have to "Free Market" capitalism.
- arkades 9y ago
  Capitalism and regulatory capture aren’t the same thing. Hell, even Adam Smith sternly warned against an environment with too much power imbalance. The latter is just good old corruption, and it pays no respect to the form of your economy.
- adamnemecek 9y ago
  I was always intrigued by Georgism (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgism) but idk if it would really work in 21st century.
  - lend000 9y ago
    Georgism is a very interesting idea -- however, in its purest form, what is the incentive to invest in land? E.g. to build tall buildings, factories, invest in better farming practices/technology, etc. Would it not be better to have full property rights, except with externalities captured?
lstyls 9y ago
What do Bitcoin and Ethereum have to do with escaping capitalism? Capitalism is an economic system oriented around private ownership[0]. If anything, they epitomize the libertarian/capitalist ideal by providing an alternative to fiat currency, the latter being a statist construct. [0]: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/capitalism https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/capitalism
burntrelish1273 9y ago
Maybe, as part of an overall, integrated strategy. Cryptocurrencies needs pervasive/critical mass deployment and price/scarcity stability in order to be everyday useful. I think the greater issue is the "Russian roulette," billionaire-media-legislative corruption complex that has infected many countries to the point of gross inequality (which may lead to a similar repeat of the French Revolution) and ecological collapse (eg Holocene extinction).

I still have faith in our ability to escape the ill effects of capitalism that are slowly destroying our industry. See Bitcoin & Ethereum.

by awgneo 9y ago

I still have faith in our ability to escape the ill effects of capitalism that are slowly destroying our industry. See Bitcoin & Ethereum.

fake-name 9y ago

Wait, you think bitcoin etc is going to reduce the harmful effects of capitalism?

SaltyBackendGuy 9y ago

I always wonder what a better solution than capitalism is. It's not perfect, and it's pretty broken when politics and corporate interests are in bed together. However, we're seeing the ill effects of socialism (Venezuela) like starvation and I prefer the former. Furthermore, the crypto economy might be the closest example we have to "Free Market" capitalism.

arkades 9y ago
Capitalism and regulatory capture aren’t the same thing. Hell, even Adam Smith sternly warned against an environment with too much power imbalance. The latter is just good old corruption, and it pays no respect to the form of your economy.
adamnemecek 9y ago
I was always intrigued by Georgism (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Georgism) but idk if it would really work in 21st century.
- lend000 9y ago
  Georgism is a very interesting idea -- however, in its purest form, what is the incentive to invest in land? E.g. to build tall buildings, factories, invest in better farming practices/technology, etc. Would it not be better to have full property rights, except with externalities captured?

lstyls 9y ago

What do Bitcoin and Ethereum have to do with escaping capitalism? Capitalism is an economic system oriented around private ownership[0]. If anything, they epitomize the libertarian/capitalist ideal by providing an alternative to fiat currency, the latter being a statist construct. [0]: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/capitalism https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/capitalism

burntrelish1273 9y ago

Maybe, as part of an overall, integrated strategy. Cryptocurrencies needs pervasive/critical mass deployment and price/scarcity stability in order to be everyday useful. I think the greater issue is the "Russian roulette," billionaire-media-legislative corruption complex that has infected many countries to the point of gross inequality (which may lead to a similar repeat of the French Revolution) and ecological collapse (eg Holocene extinction).