“The crucial point is that purpose of Bitcoin is to allow people to conduct transactions among themselves without a supervising institution such as a bank...”
Every time I see that thought I think, “no government will ever allow that to remain established”.
how important trust is in commerce.
The irony of Bitcoin is that it is trying to correct a problem of trust that has already been solved. One of the best channels on YouTube with almost a million subscribers is “Itchy Boots”. The episodes follow the motorbiking adventures of Noraly Shoemaker, a woman who travels alone around the world. Here travels have included India, Near East, Northern Europe, Africa, and, in her current season, South America to Alaska.
One thing she always carries with her whether she is in Kazakhstan, Zimbabwe, or Panama is US Dollars. Whatever inflated local currency she encounters she can always get her supplies and lodging using USD cash which are accepted anywhere around the world. The reason is because the world trusts that the US will always be dependable and stable follow the rule a law. For how long this will remain the case is another story.
Despite the current inflation scare and dovish Fed policies the world has already spoken and the medium of exchange that is trusted everywhere is the USD. Bitcoin is only the choice of drug dealers, human traffickers, and arms dealers that need to launder large amounts of USD to pay for their illicit activities.
But, but, climate change!
A lie.
Bitcoin consumes almost zero energy.
It is MINING Bitcoin that consumes tons of energy. Tons of computational power to mine one Bitcoin. But once mined, it consumes none.
I have a few - in my own posssession. They consume zero energy, and only a tiny bit if I sell them or parts of them.
Typical inaccurate article.
BLOAT
Most of the energy used by Bitcoin is renewable or surplus.
It would be nice if the writers for that blog did 2 minutes worth of research.
Land and ammunition. What do I win?
The mining of Bitcoin requires much computing power. Right now, decent video cards are almost impossible to find and when you do, they cost twice as much as the rest of a computer. The Bitcoin miners have grabbed them all up and use them in mining computer farms. I have wanted to build a new desktop gaming machine for two years but I’m not going to pay $1,500 for a video card.