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>As financial, economic, and political crises of all kinds continue to erupt >all over the planet from time to time, demand for Bitcoin as a currency or

>As financial, economic, and political crises of all kinds continue to erupt >all over the planet from time to time, demand for Bitcoin as a currency or >store of value of last resort should gradually expand from niche markets to >the broader population. I don't buy that argument. There are all sorts of measures that people take during crises (barter, for example) that they don't continue with when the crisis fades. A true test of Bitcoin would be to determine if Iranians are still using Bitcoin after the current crisis fades and the sanctions have receded somewhat. If they're still using Bitcoin then, you can make the case that Bitcoin is displacing the Iranian real as the currency of choice in Iran. But otherwise, all this proves is that Bitcoin is temporarily more convenient than the current currency system, which isn't a very strong assertion at all.

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joonix 14y ago
Well, I'm sure they can still convert to a whole host of other currencies, just not the major sanctioned ones. So, we can say Bitcoin is beating out the minor currencies.
cs702 14y ago
quanticle: If Bitcoin survives the present crisis in Iran, surely it will gain credibility in the minds of Iranians as a medium of exchange and store of value that can survive crises. That's undeniable. Next time there's a crisis, or even risk of crisis, more Iranians will turn to Bitcoin, just as they will turn to gold, silver, and the US dollar. Their thinking will be, "well, if it survived the last crisis, it will probably survive this new crisis too." As a decentralized virtual asset, Bitcoin not only can survive financial crises, collapsed economies, toppled governments, and military conflicts; it's also SUPERIOR to the alternatives - easier to subdivide, recombine, store, secure, and transport than precious metals and hard currencies. One cannot encrypt an ounce of gold or upload silver to a remote server, let alone hide a dollar inside a jpeg file! Over the coming years and decades, if Bitcoin successfully survives crisis after crisis, nothing prevents it from eventually gaining as much credibility in the public's mind as, say, gold.
- quanticle 14y ago
  >Over the coming years and decades, if Bitcoin successfully survives crisis >after crisis, nothing prevents it from eventually gaining as much credibility >in the public's mind as, say, gold. You unintentionally prove my point. How much bullion do you have under your figurative mattress right now?
  - cs702 14y ago
    quanticle: before I answer your question, I'm glad you're willing to compare gold to Bitcoin, because the world's total supply of gold, ~171,000 tons, is currently worth ~US$9.4 trillion,[1] whereas the total supply of Bitcoin is currently worth only ~US$130 million.[2] If Bitcoin ever gains anywhere near as much credibility as gold, the potential for appreciation is mind-boggling. As it turns out, I do own a bit of physical gold (as well as some bitcoins), but that's irrelevant, because I'm one of the lucky people in this planet who currently lives in an advanced economy, so I'm not constantly worrying about impending financial, economic, governmental, or societal collapse. I have the luxury of taking it for granted that things will continue to function normally every day. However, I have lived and/or worked in several so-called 'developing' economies, and have personally experienced hyper-inflation, and can tell you with certainty that when people lose faith in their government-issued currency, they turn to any alternative that can survive the crisis while retaining its value. -- [1] http://www.gold.org/about_gold/story_of_gold/numbers_and_facts http://www.gold.org/about_gold/story_of_gold/numbers_and_fac... [2] http://www.bitcoincharts.com/bitcoin/ http://www.bitcoincharts.com/bitcoin/

deleted 14y ago

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joonix 14y ago

Well, I'm sure they can still convert to a whole host of other currencies, just not the major sanctioned ones. So, we can say Bitcoin is beating out the minor currencies.

cs702 14y ago

quanticle: If Bitcoin survives the present crisis in Iran, surely it will gain credibility in the minds of Iranians as a medium of exchange and store of value that can survive crises. That's undeniable. Next time there's a crisis, or even risk of crisis, more Iranians will turn to Bitcoin, just as they will turn to gold, silver, and the US dollar. Their thinking will be, "well, if it survived the last crisis, it will probably survive this new crisis too." As a decentralized virtual asset, Bitcoin not only can survive financial crises, collapsed economies, toppled governments, and military conflicts; it's also SUPERIOR to the alternatives - easier to subdivide, recombine, store, secure, and transport than precious metals and hard currencies. One cannot encrypt an ounce of gold or upload silver to a remote server, let alone hide a dollar inside a jpeg file! Over the coming years and decades, if Bitcoin successfully survives crisis after crisis, nothing prevents it from eventually gaining as much credibility in the public's mind as, say, gold.

quanticle 14y ago
>Over the coming years and decades, if Bitcoin successfully survives crisis >after crisis, nothing prevents it from eventually gaining as much credibility >in the public's mind as, say, gold. You unintentionally prove my point. How much bullion do you have under your figurative mattress right now?
- cs702 14y ago
  quanticle: before I answer your question, I'm glad you're willing to compare gold to Bitcoin, because the world's total supply of gold, ~171,000 tons, is currently worth ~US$9.4 trillion,[1] whereas the total supply of Bitcoin is currently worth only ~US$130 million.[2] If Bitcoin ever gains anywhere near as much credibility as gold, the potential for appreciation is mind-boggling. As it turns out, I do own a bit of physical gold (as well as some bitcoins), but that's irrelevant, because I'm one of the lucky people in this planet who currently lives in an advanced economy, so I'm not constantly worrying about impending financial, economic, governmental, or societal collapse. I have the luxury of taking it for granted that things will continue to function normally every day. However, I have lived and/or worked in several so-called 'developing' economies, and have personally experienced hyper-inflation, and can tell you with certainty that when people lose faith in their government-issued currency, they turn to any alternative that can survive the crisis while retaining its value. -- [1] http://www.gold.org/about_gold/story_of_gold/numbers_and_facts http://www.gold.org/about_gold/story_of_gold/numbers_and_fac... [2] http://www.bitcoincharts.com/bitcoin/ http://www.bitcoincharts.com/bitcoin/