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Can anyone explain how Bitcoin "removes vulnerability to human corruption"? Is it because you can see all transactions in the blockchain? Because I fail to see

by dreen 13y ago

Can anyone explain how Bitcoin "removes vulnerability to human corruption"? Is it because you can see all transactions in the blockchain? Because I fail to see how does that prevent corruption.

clarkmoody 13y ago
As long as a human controls access to something, that something will be vulnerable to corruption. Bitcoin removes the vulnerability if it takes the corruptible human out of the process.
- dreen 13y ago
  Yea ok but it doesn't do that. That is my point. So what do you mean?
  - jdreaver 13y ago
    Humans (banks, PayPal, other third parties) are not required to verify transactions. It means you and only you have access to your bitcoins, and you don't need a trusted third party in order to use your money. You don't need a trusted third party to create bitcoins, either (like when governments print fiat currency).
  - wavefunction 13y ago
    Accountability is sometimes enough to cause otherwise indecent acts to never occur.
gasull 13y ago
Corrupt politicians might inflate the currency and buy votes with newly printed money. Bitcoin prevents that.
- SilasX 13y ago
  Don't know why this was voted down: it is indeed a corruption mode Bitcoin can actually prevent, because the money supply growth is declared (way) ahead of time and immune to alterations except by getting the entire network to change the protocol. (Though this doesn't stop technocrat commentators from casually suggesting you could "fix" the supposed deflationary problem by just "tweaking" the growth rate ...) Now, some people will say that money velocity fluctuates freely so this doesn't do anything about price uncertainty, but that's a rather high bar to meet in the first place.
jkuria 13y ago
That claim is complete bunk. Does't seem like the op has much experience living in Africa. Frankly, he sounds like one of those highly paid world bank 'arm chair' consultants. They see mPesa working then scratch their heads and wonder: now how can I make it fit my beautiful economic theory? :) By the way for more articles of this kind check out: http://AfriTech.com http://AfriTech.com

by dreen 13y ago

Can anyone explain how Bitcoin "removes vulnerability to human corruption"? Is it because you can see all transactions in the blockchain? Because I fail to see how does that prevent corruption.

clarkmoody 13y ago

As long as a human controls access to something, that something will be vulnerable to corruption. Bitcoin removes the vulnerability if it takes the corruptible human out of the process.

dreen 13y ago
Yea ok but it doesn't do that. That is my point. So what do you mean?
- jdreaver 13y ago
  Humans (banks, PayPal, other third parties) are not required to verify transactions. It means you and only you have access to your bitcoins, and you don't need a trusted third party in order to use your money. You don't need a trusted third party to create bitcoins, either (like when governments print fiat currency).
- wavefunction 13y ago
  Accountability is sometimes enough to cause otherwise indecent acts to never occur.

gasull 13y ago

Corrupt politicians might inflate the currency and buy votes with newly printed money. Bitcoin prevents that.

SilasX 13y ago
Don't know why this was voted down: it is indeed a corruption mode Bitcoin can actually prevent, because the money supply growth is declared (way) ahead of time and immune to alterations except by getting the entire network to change the protocol. (Though this doesn't stop technocrat commentators from casually suggesting you could "fix" the supposed deflationary problem by just "tweaking" the growth rate ...) Now, some people will say that money velocity fluctuates freely so this doesn't do anything about price uncertainty, but that's a rather high bar to meet in the first place.

jkuria 13y ago

That claim is complete bunk. Does't seem like the op has much experience living in Africa. Frankly, he sounds like one of those highly paid world bank 'arm chair' consultants. They see mPesa working then scratch their heads and wonder: now how can I make it fit my beautiful economic theory? :) By the way for more articles of this kind check out: http://AfriTech.com http://AfriTech.com