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It may displace the billionaires who run banks, hedge funds, etc... and replace them with billionaires who own huge mining farms. Bitcoin doesn't solve any of

It may displace the billionaires who run banks, hedge funds, etc... and replace them with billionaires who own huge mining farms. Bitcoin doesn't solve any of our problems. It just shuffles around who's in power.

byerobh 6y ago
That keeps the people in power wary from abusing it. What do you propose instead? Lulz
- ezekg 6y ago
  I personally really like alt coins like Nano, which don't require mining in the same way BTC does. But those usually have their own set of problems.
josefx 6y ago
> and replace them with billionaires who own huge mining farms. Aren't most crypto coins set up so that mining is only getting harder with time? The ones ending up rich are the old money, the guys that invested into it in its early days.
- krupan 6y ago
  And merely being rich gives you little to no power over Bitcoin
- JohnJamesRambo 6y ago
  Yes mining is a fool's errand. It was only great when you could do it on your computer. After that, it has just simply been a race against the difficulty and costs of mining. Almost every mining company would have come out further ahead if they simply bought coins rather than mined. Source: I was a miner and would be a lot richer if I had just started purchasing coins earlier. :) Also any history book on cryptocurrency such as The Age of Cryptocurrency by Paul Vigna and Michael Casey from WSJ. The miners profiled in it are just trying to keep the lights on in 2015 and nothing has changed to the hamster wheel.
krupan 6y ago
This is a gross oversimplification of how power to influence fiat and power to influence Bitcoin differ. Do better.
hajile 6y ago
Bitcoin solves a lot of the biggest problems. Fractional lending isn't possible because you can't make bitcoin out of nothing then charge interest on the nothing you lended. Inflation is out of government control and no longer works as an unofficial tax. Related, money can't be printed at-will. Large banks and corporations can't outright prevent transactions from happening. The money can have value as a universal reserve currency without any specific political ties. Removing big banks from the equation takes their hands at least partway off the politicians. Seems like at least a decent upgrade to me.
- imtringued 6y ago
  You need inflation to at least match productivity improvements. Otherwise your economy will slow down over time.
  - hajile 6y ago
    I agree on the importance of inflation, but with a difference in how it happens. Bitcoin currently inflates slightly. I think it should target a 1-2% steady inflation forever both to encourage spending and to replace lost coinage. At the same time, inflation should not be a spending power advantage. By distributing inflation among miners, you don't give disproportionate advantage to any one group like governments currently enjoy. I view this as more fair and it removes the incentive to attempt to change inflation rates in the future.

byerobh 6y ago

That keeps the people in power wary from abusing it. What do you propose instead? Lulz

ezekg 6y ago
I personally really like alt coins like Nano, which don't require mining in the same way BTC does. But those usually have their own set of problems.

josefx 6y ago

> and replace them with billionaires who own huge mining farms. Aren't most crypto coins set up so that mining is only getting harder with time? The ones ending up rich are the old money, the guys that invested into it in its early days.

krupan 6y ago
And merely being rich gives you little to no power over Bitcoin
JohnJamesRambo 6y ago
Yes mining is a fool's errand. It was only great when you could do it on your computer. After that, it has just simply been a race against the difficulty and costs of mining. Almost every mining company would have come out further ahead if they simply bought coins rather than mined. Source: I was a miner and would be a lot richer if I had just started purchasing coins earlier. :) Also any history book on cryptocurrency such as The Age of Cryptocurrency by Paul Vigna and Michael Casey from WSJ. The miners profiled in it are just trying to keep the lights on in 2015 and nothing has changed to the hamster wheel.

krupan 6y ago

This is a gross oversimplification of how power to influence fiat and power to influence Bitcoin differ. Do better.

hajile 6y ago

Bitcoin solves a lot of the biggest problems. Fractional lending isn't possible because you can't make bitcoin out of nothing then charge interest on the nothing you lended. Inflation is out of government control and no longer works as an unofficial tax. Related, money can't be printed at-will. Large banks and corporations can't outright prevent transactions from happening. The money can have value as a universal reserve currency without any specific political ties. Removing big banks from the equation takes their hands at least partway off the politicians. Seems like at least a decent upgrade to me.

imtringued 6y ago
You need inflation to at least match productivity improvements. Otherwise your economy will slow down over time.
- hajile 6y ago
  I agree on the importance of inflation, but with a difference in how it happens. Bitcoin currently inflates slightly. I think it should target a 1-2% steady inflation forever both to encourage spending and to replace lost coinage. At the same time, inflation should not be a spending power advantage. By distributing inflation among miners, you don't give disproportionate advantage to any one group like governments currently enjoy. I view this as more fair and it removes the incentive to attempt to change inflation rates in the future.