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Why Monero

benkaiser.dev

341–350 of 394 posts

Re: Why Monero

#341
post #257

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In a few decades, when the block subsidy dwindles to insignificance, Bitcoin relies on a constant backlog of high fee paying transactions to provide security. If that cannot be maintained and Bitcoin becomes prone to 51% attacks, then one can imagine Bitcoin adding a tail emission. A cryptocurrency with a fixed emission of 1 coin per second forever is more guaranteed never to change, as it is already as simple, non-a…

No, Bitcoin will never add tail emission, because 21m cap is the very definition of Bitcoin. If enough transaction fees won't come then Bitcoin would have failed. Monero is changing (hard-forking) regularly, so your point is broken on arrival - and I am saying this as Monero proponent . I love Monero but it is easy to change.

Then question is who/what will be providing the large number of paid on chain transactions required to maintain mining operations if Lightning takes over the majority of transactions? Your answer is kind of having it both ways Lightning makes transactions instant for users but there’s still enough transactions and thus fees on chain to provide enough mining revenue to protect against 51% attacks.

Re: Why Monero

#342

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Isn’t a stable price a good thing? If I had a dollar that would triple it’s value in a week “just because” I would be suspicious.

Do you search out stocks that have a stable price?

Are ‘cryptocoins’ currency or speculative assets. Both ideally need some diametrically opposed properties; stability vs increasing value at the very least.

Re: Why Monero

#343
post #267

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Mining hardware just means commodity electronics; the guys with ASICs may be faster but they can't shut you out entirely, and the miners don't generally control the people who make hardware (even the specialised ASICs). Whereas the stakers inherently control the supply of the crypto in question (and they can can e.g. cut off people who sell large amounts to outsiders, in a way that they couldn't cut off hardware make…

> and they can can e.g. cut off people who sell large amounts to outsiders, in a way that they couldn't cut off hardware makers How would they do that?

In theory couldn’t they exclude any transactions made by an ‘exile’ from the chain? I’m not sure how much that differs from doing the same thing on a PoW coin. It is harder to start as a PoS miner but to have the kind of iron control over a coins distribution means you’d have to make it effectively worthless because only the current owners could be ‘trusted’ to be the receivers of transactions. So while it’s theoretically possible for a miners cabal to lock out a new entrant it seems pretty opposed to the value of their own holdings so it’s left to something like a country that wants to shut it down through throwing money at the problem then I guess?

Re: Why Monero

#344
post #223

Bitcoin is totally useless as a currency because it’s slow, has high transaction fees, and easy to trace. So it’s bad for both regular consumers and criminals alike. Monero is a solid improvement because it has low fees (so far) and is very hard to trace. So it’s popular for criminals or intense privacy types. It’s still far too slow and hard to use to ever be accepted in your local grocery store. It’s also hard to b…

You are correct on the Bitcoin-is-easy-to-trace point but transactions in the Bitcoin Lightning Network are instant and very cheap. Bitcoin is the only cryptocurrency with guaranteed-not-to-change monetary policy and supply cap. That's because Bitcoin as a whole is uniquely hard to change. Monero is great but easy to change and so not a reliable store of value. Bitcoin and Monero need each other badly.

For lightning network to serve more or less realistic amount of people and businesses, it needs to either have inordinate amount of channels (one-to-one) or it will have routing and fees may go up then, several times up. Lightning network transactions may end up not as cheap as they are right now.

Re: Why Monero

#345
post #271

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Monero (and others) does make ransom collection much more convenient/safe to do. Isn't it its main use case, with probably purchasing drugs and arms? I'm not saying that in theory people wouldn't want to privately purchase their baguette (sorry I'm French), it's just that in practice they generally don't care, unless they are doing something illegal. I'm curious, for those of you who do, what do you actually purchase…

You want to tip people on Twitter with BTC and have your address exposed to everyone? You want people to be able to trace how much you have in that wallet? Why not let people see the transactions going through your checking account? You got nothing to hide, right?

It's a good point, but I was not thinking of using some other crypto currency instead, but just normal money (I don't have to make the amount on my account public to pay by credit card)

Re: Why Monero

#346
post #271

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Monero (and others) does make ransom collection much more convenient/safe to do. Isn't it its main use case, with probably purchasing drugs and arms? I'm not saying that in theory people wouldn't want to privately purchase their baguette (sorry I'm French), it's just that in practice they generally don't care, unless they are doing something illegal. I'm curious, for those of you who do, what do you actually purchase…

What if your wife hates your baguette habit and she reads your joint bank statements.

Well I would use my personal account for my baguette :)

Also I'm not sure she would like my purchasing of cryptocurrency much more ;)

Re: Why Monero

#347
post #330
post #202

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This shows how little cryptocurrency users know about how governments collect taxes. The government doesn't go around checking people's bank accounts in order to get tax information. This would be terribly inefficient. What they do instead is pass laws that require employers to disclose how much they pay their employees and to collect taxes on their behalf, before the taxpayer even receives the money. Therefore priva…

For salary or wage payments, kind of. If you received your normal wages in XMR then the government would have a hard time proving anything illegal is happening, even if both your employer and you are breaking the law.

If your employer wants to help you committing tax fraud, they would have to cook the books, which is a lot of work and entails a considerable amount of risk. Whether they pay you with a cryptocurrency or real money doesn't make any difference, as far as I can see.

Re: Why Monero

#348
post #294
post #278

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Exactly. Crypto largely removes the need for institutions, and with anonymous wallets it would be very difficult to link a specific person to one. Edit: I am again talking about capital gains. Yes, the money has to come from somewhere, but you can break the traceability easily by using non-kyc means of getting crypto. E.g. bitcoin ATMs.

A bitcoin ATM is an interface with an institution that is selling/dispensing dollars, so you're still dealing with an institution.

Yeah, but you don't need a bitcoin ATM. The grocery store could accept monero and there would be no need for fiat currency.

Re: Why Monero

#349

Earlier quoted context omitted.

GNU Taler is trash as it has built in taxation. Something crypto tries to abolish as taxation is theft.

wow! much edgy, such badboy!

I take it you're happy paying taxes for shit that doesn't benefit you, like useless school systems?

Re: Why Monero

#350
post #346

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What if your wife hates your baguette habit and she reads your joint bank statements.

Well I would use my personal account for my baguette :) Also I'm not sure she would like my purchasing of cryptocurrency much more ;)

10 years later, wife believes I have acquired a mistress. She files divorce, and my bank statements are entered into the court as part of the divorce proceedings. The baguette vendor I visit every night when i sneak out to buy a baguette happens to be located next to the alleged mistresse's address (wife believes I was banging her and eating baguettes, in reality the only temptress was the baguette's vendor's sweet sweet tales of doughy goodness), and now in a number of US states I now owe her increased alimony for a "fault" divorce.

I walk sadly down to the baguette shop, sobbing into my smartphone, where I beg using my tiny remains after the divorce proceeding to buy just one stale baguette. The shopkeep takes pity and pulls last weeks remains out of the trash bin.

As the salt of my tears mix with the mold of the stale baguette, I sit in torment "why didn't I pay in Monero!"

-------- Epilogue -------

3 months later, I join the legion etrangere, the last respite for a soul with no money, no skills, and no baguettes. I have no family to miss me, and any wages I get in the civilian life are garnished. I'm deployed to Mali, a land of no baguettes. 5 more days until I finally get my 200 Euro's pay -- I finally can order a baguette. I hear a loud sound. Several tribesman surround me with pointed sticks. My FAL jams, and I feel the warm fiery sensation of the sticks piercing my organs, as the life force drains out of me. One more baguette was all I wanted. If only I had bought my baguettes with a fungible untraceable currency.

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