Thanks Diane, THIS is an AMAZING post. You teased out, clearly and brilliantly, all the unsettling questions. I've been afraid to admit all those confusions and suspicions.
How are you going to bash bitcoin and cryptos when in your first sentence you admit you dont understand how it works? Really discredits your whole argument
If 20% of bitcoin owners have lost their codes, that would be a very good reason for its value going up! If people continue to lose their codes, bitcoin will become priceless! There won't be any available for sale!
Sent this on to my #1 son who lost a few of his bc of a key “issue” and he knows his way around a computer. Even if I had the money I wouldn’t waste it on this stupid boondoggle.
Diane, as much respect as I have for you, your argument about bitcoin screams of ignorance.
An ounce of gold, at about $2,000, consumes about $1,200 to produce (energy and labor) for mining, operations, head offices, distribution and so on. Bitcoin is a fraction of that amount. Gold has no utility beyond a store of value, so how is that different from bitcoin? Gold is just really a rock.
And then, how is bitcoin any different from any other fiat currency which most governments have created out of the ether?
It isn't.
The Canadian dollar, USD, Euro, and so on, are pieces of paper and zeros on a ledger. The world has attributed value to those zeroes much in the same way as the world has attributed value to bitcoin. If there's a seller, and a buyer, then it has value.
Fact - All the Gold EVER mined in the history of Human existence would fit inside 3 Olympic sized swimming pools and it can be found, somewhere, counted, weighed and verified !
I could not agree more. I enjoy reading your work, Diane, however this article is poorly researched. 2 years to create a bitcoin? Don't believe supply will be capped at 21M? You should start by reading the 2008 white paper to understand that daily mining rewards, decreasing every 4 years, and a 21M BTC long-term inventory is coded into the software protocol. Yes, this inventory /supply can be amended through the consensus mechanism (again, coded into the protocol), however there is absolutely ZERO incentive amongst global participants to adopt such a change.
As for mining energy use, try drawing some comparisons to the carbon footprint and energy consumption tied to the administration of ~180 global FIAT currencies. And consider the fact that many of the world's largest miners are operating adjacent to stranded energy sources and powered largely by renewable, green energy. Energy consumption of the mining network, delivering the essential function of security and transaction validation, pales in comparison to aggregate FIAT alternatives.
We live in a digital world and the hyperinflation horizon is real. I choose to adopt a sovereign, digital cash as I look to protect the long-term purchasing power of my hard earned wealth. This article is merely intended to grab headlines as an uninformed adversary.
What you say about the Fed and banks around the world is mostly true but there seems to have been an agreement amount thieves as far as a few basic rules that govern all. BC doesn’t seem to be so governed.
It is a vital tool for criminals, terror organizations and Bitcoin promoters.I would consider Bitcoin ownership a ‘tell’ of criminal activity.
Thanks Diane, THIS is an AMAZING post. You teased out, clearly and brilliantly, all the unsettling questions. I've been afraid to admit all those confusions and suspicions.
How are you going to bash bitcoin and cryptos when in your first sentence you admit you dont understand how it works? Really discredits your whole argument
If 20% of bitcoin owners have lost their codes, that would be a very good reason for its value going up! If people continue to lose their codes, bitcoin will become priceless! There won't be any available for sale!
Sent this on to my #1 son who lost a few of his bc of a key “issue” and he knows his way around a computer. Even if I had the money I wouldn’t waste it on this stupid boondoggle.
Diane, as much respect as I have for you, your argument about bitcoin screams of ignorance.
An ounce of gold, at about $2,000, consumes about $1,200 to produce (energy and labor) for mining, operations, head offices, distribution and so on. Bitcoin is a fraction of that amount. Gold has no utility beyond a store of value, so how is that different from bitcoin? Gold is just really a rock.
And then, how is bitcoin any different from any other fiat currency which most governments have created out of the ether?
It isn't.
The Canadian dollar, USD, Euro, and so on, are pieces of paper and zeros on a ledger. The world has attributed value to those zeroes much in the same way as the world has attributed value to bitcoin. If there's a seller, and a buyer, then it has value.
Fact - All the Gold EVER mined in the history of Human existence would fit inside 3 Olympic sized swimming pools and it can be found, somewhere, counted, weighed and verified !
I could not agree more. I enjoy reading your work, Diane, however this article is poorly researched. 2 years to create a bitcoin? Don't believe supply will be capped at 21M? You should start by reading the 2008 white paper to understand that daily mining rewards, decreasing every 4 years, and a 21M BTC long-term inventory is coded into the software protocol. Yes, this inventory /supply can be amended through the consensus mechanism (again, coded into the protocol), however there is absolutely ZERO incentive amongst global participants to adopt such a change.
As for mining energy use, try drawing some comparisons to the carbon footprint and energy consumption tied to the administration of ~180 global FIAT currencies. And consider the fact that many of the world's largest miners are operating adjacent to stranded energy sources and powered largely by renewable, green energy. Energy consumption of the mining network, delivering the essential function of security and transaction validation, pales in comparison to aggregate FIAT alternatives.
We live in a digital world and the hyperinflation horizon is real. I choose to adopt a sovereign, digital cash as I look to protect the long-term purchasing power of my hard earned wealth. This article is merely intended to grab headlines as an uninformed adversary.
4% of Global electric supply comes from Renewable sources ( United nations 2019)
40% is Bio-mass from cutting down and burning trees. False propaganda abounds in environmentalist circles - unchecked !
I forwarded your paper to a friend . . . He says . . .
Law of Supply and Demand. I talked about this very topic a few days ago.
My point is: behind demand for bread is hunger, behind demand for bitcoin is greed.
This makes bread price relatively stable while bitcoin soars. :)
BTW. A few years back I thought about mining it. I read a few articles that persuaded me otherwise.
I should sue the authors for huge financial losses. :)
On the other hand any currency is just an agreement/understanding.
Is the money in your bank more real than the bitcoin? Just a number in a computer nowadays.
Jim
What you say about the Fed and banks around the world is mostly true but there seems to have been an agreement amount thieves as far as a few basic rules that govern all. BC doesn’t seem to be so governed.
Diane . . . As always, well researched, succinct, adroit, well written . . . You nailed it !
Long overdue full disclosure on a product that scams even 'The High and The Mighty' !!
Dovyou mean Paypal? (Wrote Palpal)
yes fixed thanks