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> . I think people dramatically underestimate the likelihood that Bitcoin and all cryptocurrencies get completely banned. I expect this will be almost as effec

by eof 9y ago

> . I think people dramatically underestimate the likelihood that Bitcoin and all cryptocurrencies get completely banned. I expect this will be almost as effective as the banning of narcotics, pirated media, alcohol during prohibition, etc. It's far, far too late for this to have a lasting effect (though certainly a short term reduction is price is likely)

empath75 9y ago
It won't be effective at destroying bitcoin as an effective currency for illicit activity, but it absolutely would destroy the price, because you'd only be able to trade it outside of major exchanges, and without interacting with the american banking system, which would be hard.
- dragonwriter 9y ago
  The utility of Bitcoin for illicit activity is very much related to the fact that it can be then used in the legal economy. So, yes, an outright ban on its use and exchange would impact already-unnecessary uses.
notyourday 9y ago
Have you tried to move $100k in narcotics around recently? That's right. For an average person it is not worth the risk.
- Fjolsvith 9y ago
  The average person doesn't have $100k in narcotics.
psyc 9y ago
The government has more than enough power to prevent banks and investment firms from getting involved, which could significantly limit the pace of future growth in cryptoasset prices. In the big picture, a tension between mathematics and the law has always been near the heart of the history of cryptanarchy and cryptocurrencies. Sometimes-Satoshi-candidate Nick Szabo has written extensively on this for ages [0]. I'd summarize it like this: 1) The Constitution cannot ultimately protect the legality of any crypto-related activity against a motivated governement. 2) The government cannot ultimately stop P2P crypto-architectures from functioning, although illegally, short of shutting down the Internet. [0] http://unenumerated.blogspot.com http://unenumerated.blogspot.com

by eof 9y ago

empath75 9y ago

It won't be effective at destroying bitcoin as an effective currency for illicit activity, but it absolutely would destroy the price, because you'd only be able to trade it outside of major exchanges, and without interacting with the american banking system, which would be hard.

dragonwriter 9y ago
The utility of Bitcoin for illicit activity is very much related to the fact that it can be then used in the legal economy. So, yes, an outright ban on its use and exchange would impact already-unnecessary uses.

notyourday 9y ago

Have you tried to move $100k in narcotics around recently? That's right. For an average person it is not worth the risk.

Fjolsvith 9y ago
The average person doesn't have $100k in narcotics.

psyc 9y ago

The government has more than enough power to prevent banks and investment firms from getting involved, which could significantly limit the pace of future growth in cryptoasset prices. In the big picture, a tension between mathematics and the law has always been near the heart of the history of cryptanarchy and cryptocurrencies. Sometimes-Satoshi-candidate Nick Szabo has written extensively on this for ages [0]. I'd summarize it like this: 1) The Constitution cannot ultimately protect the legality of any crypto-related activity against a motivated governement. 2) The government cannot ultimately stop P2P crypto-architectures from functioning, although illegally, short of shutting down the Internet. [0] http://unenumerated.blogspot.com http://unenumerated.blogspot.com