I get the sentiment, but I don't see how you can call something a joke, a waste of time, or something that is somehow being mostly influenced by Silicon Valley

I get the sentiment, but I don't see how you can call something a joke, a waste of time, or something that is somehow being mostly influenced by Silicon Valley culture that has managed to amass a >$1B market cap at this point, a very large chunk of which is from people outside the US. Bitcoin isn't really a Silicon Valley thing. The story of Bitcoin is still being written, and it is not going to be a cut-and-dried "Tulip Bulbs 2.0" story. It's going to be a genuinely new story, and trying to get out in front of it doesn't really make you look smart or clever, but as someone who doesn't really grasp the extent of what is happening with Bitcoin and how fascinating it is.