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You can currently take physical possession of commodities including all the precious medals, one doesn't have to allow their stock certs to be help by others, c

You can currently take physical possession of commodities including all the precious medals, one doesn't have to allow their stock certs to be help by others, cash and other such methods still work but most people chose to let middlemen do it for them, just like most people do for Crypto judging by the market valuations of some of those companies.

gonehome 5y ago
You're right of course, but it's way riskier to take physical possession of commodities and it's harder to move them. These are things crypto is better at. For cash, the advantage is that crypto is independent of government action and global. The crash of the Russian currency is an example of why this is important. Crypto is obviously more volatile than USD, so there's a tradeoff depending on the government backed currency's stability. It's also harder to move similar amounts of wealth in cash or commodities (you could have self custody of a wallet with a billion dollars in it, can't really move a billion dollars in cash or gold). These advantages are real and people are relying on them: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29518181 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29518181
- JaimeThompson 5y ago
  As are the disadvantages as evidenced by all the ransoms paid in crypto, these ransoms are also evidence that the security required to keep your crypto secure isn't exactly all that common in some of the market segments the crytpo companies are trying to reach.
  - gonehome 5y ago
    I don't disagree with you and I don't pretend there are no risks with cryptocurrency. The security requirements are obviously harder, the UX is bad and even technical users fuck it up. Some of this will be improved by tooling, some of it is just what's required for self-custody. Still, the capability it provides is new and gives individuals more power even with these tradeoffs. That capability is valuable and shouldn't be dismissed imo. It's a lever against authoritarian control and increasing centralization of power.

gonehome 5y ago

You're right of course, but it's way riskier to take physical possession of commodities and it's harder to move them. These are things crypto is better at. For cash, the advantage is that crypto is independent of government action and global. The crash of the Russian currency is an example of why this is important. Crypto is obviously more volatile than USD, so there's a tradeoff depending on the government backed currency's stability. It's also harder to move similar amounts of wealth in cash or commodities (you could have self custody of a wallet with a billion dollars in it, can't really move a billion dollars in cash or gold). These advantages are real and people are relying on them: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29518181 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=29518181

JaimeThompson 5y ago
As are the disadvantages as evidenced by all the ransoms paid in crypto, these ransoms are also evidence that the security required to keep your crypto secure isn't exactly all that common in some of the market segments the crytpo companies are trying to reach.
- gonehome 5y ago
  I don't disagree with you and I don't pretend there are no risks with cryptocurrency. The security requirements are obviously harder, the UX is bad and even technical users fuck it up. Some of this will be improved by tooling, some of it is just what's required for self-custody. Still, the capability it provides is new and gives individuals more power even with these tradeoffs. That capability is valuable and shouldn't be dismissed imo. It's a lever against authoritarian control and increasing centralization of power.