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The root problem with conventional currency is all the trust that's required to make it work. The central bank must be trusted not to debase the currency, but t
by shdc 6y ago
The root problem with conventional currency is all the trust that's required to make it work. The central bank must be trusted not to debase the currency, but the history of fiat currencies is full of breaches of that trust.
- trisiak 6y agoIs there an unconventional currency (to contrast your statement) that comes with either inherent value or trustless system? I'm genuinely curious what you meant.
- aww_dang 6y agoAt this point gold and silver could be considered heterodox.
- ivalm 6y agoLots of crypto is trustless, they just don’t have inherent value.
- chrischattin 6y agoIf you consider Bitcoin unconventional (I would), it qualifies as a trustless currency.
- cle 6y agoWhat is meant by "trustless" here?
- solotronics 6y agoYou don't have to trust any counterparty, everything is able to verified checking a hash output or key pair.
- vatican_banker 6y agoFiat currencies are not ideal but are the best known currency tool to date. I commonly hear that blockchain-based currencies can be a good replacement for fiat currencies. But current examples of blockchain-currencies are either company-sponsored or community-based. This again puts a big weight on a single actor. I'd rather trust the admin of money to a government than a company or a community of anonymous economists/technologists. Finally, the ability go debase (I assume you mean devaluating) a currency is (arguably) a desirable characteristic. During crises, responsibly devaluating a currency can help a country's economy.
- logicchains 6y ago> Fiat currencies are not ideal but are the best known currency tool to date. By what metric? >Finally, the ability go debase (I assume you mean devaluating) a currency is (arguably) a desirable characteristic. During crises, responsibly devaluating a currency can help a country's economy. I'm skeptical that any benefit this brings outweighs the catastrophic damage it causes when misused. E.g. Weimar Germany, Zimbabwe.
- tupputuppu 6y agoAs described in the article, we are living in a period known as the Great Moderation, a previously unforeseen time of financial stability, low unemployment, and lack of Major depressions. Bringing up autocratic developing countries isn't a great counterexample to the level of welfare we've been privy to in the developed world.
- TheButlerian 6y agoFinally, the ability go debase (I assume you mean devaluating) a currency is (arguably) a desirable characteristic. During crises, responsibly devaluating a currency can help a country's economy. I've always seen this argument. But is there an example from the last 50 years when this actually worked?