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>Second, proof-of-work currencies are negative sum You could have just said currencies are negative sum. Your argument doesn't pertain exclusively to crypto.

>Second, proof-of-work currencies are negative sum You could have just said currencies are negative sum. Your argument doesn't pertain exclusively to crypto. It cost electricity and resources to print and wire transfer dollars and yen, for instance.

arcticbull 4y ago
I suppose so, but currencies aren't investments. There's a big difference in how they're marketed. Your goal is never to hold dollars for a long period of time - after all, average case the dollar goes down at minimum 2% per year. Your goal is to productively allocate that capital into actual investments. On the other hand crypto is marketed as an investment that you are to hold for long periods of time. Crypto is sold as something that goes up over time, and should be compared to other things that are marketed that way.
- notch656a 4y ago
  I suppose it depends on how you use the underlying instrument. Some people use currencies or their derivatives as investments, particularly forex traders. Some may use crypto essentially as a currency. The 'marketing' isn't unified and depends on who you listen to. For instance, the bitcoin whitepaper itself doesn't promise real returns on 'investment.' >On the other hand crypto is marketed as an investment that you are to hold for long periods of time I'm with you that this is probably not a good viewpoint to take, but I don't think that's the only viewpoint out there on how to use crypto.
  - arcticbull 4y ago
    In Forex trading, you're short-selling one currency and buying another. It's not an investment, it's a pair trade. Nobody buys USD or NZD or any other currency expecting to walk away with more value in the currency itself. You're making money on the divergence or convergence in purchasing power of a currency in one country vs. another. Your goal is to walk away with more units of your currency than you had to start, not that each of those units will be worth more.
    - notch656a 4y ago
      >you're short-selling one currency and buying another >It's not an investment, it's a pair trade. So borrowing USD and selling it to buy BTC means you're not investing in BTC?
      - arcticbull 4y ago
        Hm, that's fair. I guess I could say you're not investing in the currency but rather in the convergence or divergence of their relative purchasing power in their domestic economies. I'm not trying to be nit picky, I'm open to being wrong here.

arcticbull 4y ago

I suppose so, but currencies aren't investments. There's a big difference in how they're marketed. Your goal is never to hold dollars for a long period of time - after all, average case the dollar goes down at minimum 2% per year. Your goal is to productively allocate that capital into actual investments. On the other hand crypto is marketed as an investment that you are to hold for long periods of time. Crypto is sold as something that goes up over time, and should be compared to other things that are marketed that way.

notch656a 4y ago
I suppose it depends on how you use the underlying instrument. Some people use currencies or their derivatives as investments, particularly forex traders. Some may use crypto essentially as a currency. The 'marketing' isn't unified and depends on who you listen to. For instance, the bitcoin whitepaper itself doesn't promise real returns on 'investment.' >On the other hand crypto is marketed as an investment that you are to hold for long periods of time I'm with you that this is probably not a good viewpoint to take, but I don't think that's the only viewpoint out there on how to use crypto.
- arcticbull 4y ago
  In Forex trading, you're short-selling one currency and buying another. It's not an investment, it's a pair trade. Nobody buys USD or NZD or any other currency expecting to walk away with more value in the currency itself. You're making money on the divergence or convergence in purchasing power of a currency in one country vs. another. Your goal is to walk away with more units of your currency than you had to start, not that each of those units will be worth more.
  - notch656a 4y ago
    >you're short-selling one currency and buying another >It's not an investment, it's a pair trade. So borrowing USD and selling it to buy BTC means you're not investing in BTC?
    - arcticbull 4y ago
      Hm, that's fair. I guess I could say you're not investing in the currency but rather in the convergence or divergence of their relative purchasing power in their domestic economies. I'm not trying to be nit picky, I'm open to being wrong here.