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`100k puts the market at cap at a trillion, it’s not that crazy if you remember that Gold is several times that`. Similar things heard during every irrational

by dpweb 9y ago

`100k puts the market at cap at a trillion, it’s not that crazy if you remember that Gold is several times that`. Similar things heard during every irrational bubble. I believe people often trot out the 'actual worthlessness' of fiat currency, to support a misguided idea that btc must be the democratic antidote which will free countless millions from the financial enslavement of the global financial machine. Currency is currency BECAUSE its sponsored by government. And the payments system only works because you are indemnified. By the FDIC. By Chase Credit Cards. That is, the evil banks. How so for btc? BTC hits 10k while US readies to pass tax overhauls to increase an already alarming wealth inequality. Freedom fighters should pick the right battles.

aphextron 9y ago
>Currency is currency BECAUSE its sponsored by government. And the payments system only works because you are indemnified. By the FDIC. By Chase Credit Cards. That is, the evil banks. How so for btc? I'm not sure that's true. What makes a currency is it's usage. If enough people agree to the value of something, it's irrelevant whether a government sponsors it. You see this all the time with small towns using local "currencies" for specific usages [0]. It's the same idea. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_community_currencies_in_the_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_community_currencies_i...
- kamaal 9y ago
  That's only the positive side of it. For all this talk of inequality, why don't poor all over the world just throw their national fiat currencies under the bus and start all over from scratch? Sure doing this every few decades should ideally reset the wealth counter to 0 for most of the top 1%. That is where fiat currencies come in. Because you don't want extreme situations in either case. Do you seriously want a certain large section of world population holding the entire global financial ecosystem at gunpoint and dictate its terms? Pay x% taxes as we demand or we fork the blockchain and reset it all to 0.
- paulgb 9y ago
  I clicked a bunch of links from that list but couldn't find a single example that backs your point. Most of the local scrips seem to either be defunct/broken links or backed by a trusted institution who promises conversion back to the US dollar (BerkShares, Detroit Cheers).
beaner 9y ago
Currency is currency because it transfers value efficiently. Outlawed currencies are not very efficient at transferring value. Fiat (lawful) currencies are more efficient by default. The digitization and decentralization of currency allows for the introduction of a non-fiat, hard-to-outlaw competitor which is more efficient than fiat in many contexts. Maybe not all contexts, but enough to give it value.
HeavenBanned 9y ago
Freedom fighters always pick the wrong battles. They get sidetracked. See the identity politics during the last elections. Forgot about working class? Yeah, Trump is now President. https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/20/opinion/sunday/the-end-of-identity-liberalism.html https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/20/opinion/sunday/the-end-of...

by dpweb 9y ago

aphextron 9y ago

>Currency is currency BECAUSE its sponsored by government. And the payments system only works because you are indemnified. By the FDIC. By Chase Credit Cards. That is, the evil banks. How so for btc? I'm not sure that's true. What makes a currency is it's usage. If enough people agree to the value of something, it's irrelevant whether a government sponsors it. You see this all the time with small towns using local "currencies" for specific usages [0]. It's the same idea. [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_community_currencies_in_the_United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_community_currencies_i...

kamaal 9y ago
That's only the positive side of it. For all this talk of inequality, why don't poor all over the world just throw their national fiat currencies under the bus and start all over from scratch? Sure doing this every few decades should ideally reset the wealth counter to 0 for most of the top 1%. That is where fiat currencies come in. Because you don't want extreme situations in either case. Do you seriously want a certain large section of world population holding the entire global financial ecosystem at gunpoint and dictate its terms? Pay x% taxes as we demand or we fork the blockchain and reset it all to 0.
paulgb 9y ago
I clicked a bunch of links from that list but couldn't find a single example that backs your point. Most of the local scrips seem to either be defunct/broken links or backed by a trusted institution who promises conversion back to the US dollar (BerkShares, Detroit Cheers).

beaner 9y ago

Currency is currency because it transfers value efficiently. Outlawed currencies are not very efficient at transferring value. Fiat (lawful) currencies are more efficient by default. The digitization and decentralization of currency allows for the introduction of a non-fiat, hard-to-outlaw competitor which is more efficient than fiat in many contexts. Maybe not all contexts, but enough to give it value.

HeavenBanned 9y ago

Freedom fighters always pick the wrong battles. They get sidetracked. See the identity politics during the last elections. Forgot about working class? Yeah, Trump is now President. https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/20/opinion/sunday/the-end-of-identity-liberalism.html https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/20/opinion/sunday/the-end-of...