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> bitcoin doesn't seem suited to handle the economic needs of the modern world. There's a school of thought that the expansionary fractional reserve system we'
by a8da6b0c91d 13y ago
> bitcoin doesn't seem suited to handle the economic needs of the modern world.
There's a school of thought that the expansionary fractional reserve system we've had for the last 100+ years has worked OK because more and more fossil fuel energy was available over that time. It's possible we're in a new era where total energy usage will be essentially static, and the current monetary and banking system won't work.
I'm not necessarily saying I buy the argument.
- saryant 13y agoI think the claim that future energy usage will remain static is largely flawed. For one, a few billion people are currently moving from an annual income of less than $10,000 to closer to $30,000. That's a huge, unprecedented global shift that will lead to a big increase in worldwide energy demand. Second, I think ingenuity will solve our future energy supply issues. A geologist once said "oil is found in the minds of men" and I think that claim holds true for all sources of energy. Look at shale gas: this is a huge energy source that wasn't even in anyone's radar thirty years ago. Moreover, effeciency increases over the next two decades, both in MPG standards, industry and electronics, could yield a savings equivalent to 13 million barrels of oil per day. That's like adding a new Norway and Russia to world energy supplies. Daniel Yergin's book The Quest coveres these future challenges quite well, I highly recommend it.