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Bitcoin rises from $14 to $40 in two months

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Re: Bitcoin rises from $14 to $40 in two months

#61

http://unqualified-reservations.blogspot.dk/2011/04/on-monet... Finally, we examine a new contender - the mysterious and awesome Bitcoin. I'll be frank with you, dear reader. When I came up with the MoMT, my first thought was: how can I, Mencius Moldbug, make some damned money from this? As system software is my first love, it was not that hard to think of an answer. In some ways Bitcoin is actually much better desig…

"Bitcoin exchanges violate the critical know-your-customer rule" Not any more. Bitcoin-central.net in France already has all the licenses for exchange and knows its customers. MtGox is moving USD operations to US with Coinlab.

MtGox already knows its customers for deposits and withdrawals. I'm Australian and had to hand over lots of important documentation to allow for a bank transfer.

Re: Bitcoin rises from $14 to $40 in two months

#62
post #33
post #21

But how will the Federal Reserve be able to allocate new blocks of bit coins to give to one of the 12 federal reserve banks so we can fund more trillion dollar packages of spending borrowed money if all they can do is try to acquire bitcoins from other people who have them? In theory, would inflation be impossible with bitcoin provided that the number of humans who are willing to exchange labour for coins always incr…

You mean how will a central authority with the economic stability of the country as its central aim be able to help provide that stability? Yeah, not so much. Which is a shame because that's a feature of the current monetary systems that I like.

I don't think that is currently the central aim of the Federal Reserve, if it ever was.

Re: Bitcoin rises from $14 to $40 in two months

#63

What is the price of tulip bulbs in the Netherlands these days? What have been the ups and downs in that commodity over the years?

I'll always up-vote these comments, I have invested a small amount in Bitcoin but am fully aware the whole thing could tank and never return, I consider it to be an interesting experiment for myself. People do need to know how risky this is though.

Re: Bitcoin rises from $14 to $40 in two months

#64
post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not when it's also the medium of exchange, and not when its got a fixed supply.

Used iPhones have some liquidity and a market price. Should I be forced to not hold mine for a very long time? At what point the good becomes a "medium of exchange" in your view, so you allow yourself using force to extract it?

Force?

LOL. Inflation is force, currency is force, but let me guess - property rights aren't a form of force right?

Sorry, but bringing the use of force into this is the first sign I'm talking to a libertarian, and one that is not open to any form of reason.

Hoarding the primary means of exchange (what BTC advocates would really like BTC to become) is a negative for society. As the hoarding increases so does the value of the item, encouraging more hoarding and less lending and concentrating wealth in the hands of those that already have it. Not really a recipe for a healthy economy.

Re: Bitcoin rises from $14 to $40 in two months

#66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Bitcoin exchanges violate the critical know-your-customer rule" Not any more. Bitcoin-central.net in France already has all the licenses for exchange and knows its customers. MtGox is moving USD operations to US with Coinlab.

MtGox already knows its customers for deposits and withdrawals. I'm Australian and had to hand over lots of important documentation to allow for a bank transfer.

Thanks for clarifying that. I just wanted to point out that the exchanges are moving towards compliance with regulations, not from them.

Re: Bitcoin rises from $14 to $40 in two months

#67
post #62
post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You mean how will a central authority with the economic stability of the country as its central aim be able to help provide that stability? Yeah, not so much. Which is a shame because that's a feature of the current monetary systems that I like.

I don't think that is currently the central aim of the Federal Reserve, if it ever was.

Wikipedia's page on the Federal Reserve, particularly the section on 'Purpose' would seem to disagree with you. But it is only wikipedia and may well be inaccurate.

Re: Bitcoin rises from $14 to $40 in two months

#68
post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We're no longer on the gold standard because it lead to hoarding and economic inflexibility. It doesn't destroy wealth, however when gold is your currency and people hoard gold (for any reason be it economic instability or as an investment in the future price increases) the economy loses that amount of circulating money and moving money is what makes an economy work, not stagnant saved money. So by signing that execu…

Yes all monetary value is ephemeral, intangible and based on the belief and good will of the market That's an overly simplistic view of the value of money. If the value of money were only based on belief, then one would except sudden collapses of monetary value without any connection to the real economy quite regularly. In a sense, money would be like the cartoon character who defies gravity until he looks down. In r…

A decent point but the government accepting payment in a certain currency requires that they are sure/believe that they will be able to use that currency to pay their debts. Same thing applies to the debt argument both rely on a communal acceptance that a dollar/euro/ruby/piece of eight/bitcoin/kongbuck will be accepted as payment.

I suppose it'd be clearer if I said it's exchange value is ephemeral, ie completely determined by the faith that currency X is worth/will be accepted in exchange for some amount of currency or product Y.

Re: Bitcoin rises from $14 to $40 in two months

#69
post #12

If it ever becomes successful, we will marvel that individuals could ever afford a bitcoin. 21 million is a tiny number for a currency when compared to $40 trillion in global currency ($6000 per person). ~$1.25 billion spend on Cyber Monday ~$8 billion are traded for oil every day ~$150 billion NYSE daily If bitcoin became the trusted currency for any of these activities what would it be worth? If bitcoin became the…

as someone who has been mining since mid 2011 on a 450 dollar PC...this would make me very happy. I have already done very well on that investment.

And again: electricity was free?

Re: Bitcoin rises from $14 to $40 in two months

#70
post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

it's the same with stock price. say there's a giant correction. the value disappears. it wasn't stolen from anyone. the same way the global economy has grown over thousands of years, and people are much wealthier - that isn't because they stole from anyone but the total value of the entire economy grew and "everyone" became wealthier.

Hmm I think I understand. It's hard to wrap my head around though: I gained socks (and didn't loose money), the sock maker gained money but lost time and resources, but nobody's money was stolen.

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