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U.S. Secret Service Launches Cryptocurrency Awareness Hub

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Re: U.S. Secret Service Launches Cryptocurrency Awareness Hub

#51

Post by vmception »

lupire wrote: post #25
vmception wrote: post #21

The state could use public resources better by providing uniform education on cryptocurrencies. Most of the terms aren't standardized and even their use isn't. For example, if you put up a Google Form and asked for people's Ethereum addresses, many will provide the 0xAbc123 version and many others will provide the Abc123 version without the 0x. Both audiences may not realize that the 0x is purely cosmetic and address…

From the USG perspective, no good smart contracts exist, because good contracts are impossible to create on the existing Blockchain architecture. From USG perspective, a good blockchain requires all nodes to be registered banks with KYC. But that's not important because no one is really interested in those, because the purpose of Blockchain is to avoid regulation.

There is no amorphous opinion of the US government. It is many entities and many offices and many representatives, and there is no consensus amongst them on what you wrote. Not even close. There are representatives that understand and like smart contracts, there are delegates from states that have enshrined smart contracts into their legal code, there are agencies staffed and headed by individuals that are well educated on smart contracts and how to use them favorably, and so on and so forth. There are still influential adversaries also part of that institution.

Re: U.S. Secret Service Launches Cryptocurrency Awareness Hub

#52

Post by nrzd »

I’m blown away by how anti-crypto this discussion is. I hadn’t realized how negative the prevailing sentiment is on Hacker News.

One argument seems to be that cryptocurrency is purely speculative, which is apparently a dirty word. What about the stock market? What about any kind of investment? If you truly believe that cryptocurrency is the basis for a superior economic system, isn’t it rational and wise to put some of your savings there?

Another argument is that crypto enables ransomware attacks. This to me sounds akin to saying “encryption enables child exploitation”. I.e. it focuses on one abhorrent element of society that would take place no matter what and blames its existence on a system which has great potential for good, a kind of propagandist thinking.

Another argument is that Banks will be hurt by crypto. Good! Any epochal transition can be tumultuous, but in my view disrupting the basis of the greatest wealth inequality known to history is a good start. We’re not talking about “banks” that operate on a local or regional basis — these can adapt to using new technology and serve the same people — we’re talking about multinational Banks which went beyond skimming the cream long ago and don’t aparently have people’s best interests in mind.

Re: U.S. Secret Service Launches Cryptocurrency Awareness Hub

#54

Post by xibalba »

howmayiannoyyou wrote: post #16

> safeguarding the integrity of the nation’s economy Without question crypto, now +2 trillion in market cap, is a systemic risk to the US economy, notwithstanding serious policy mistakes the Congress, Treasury & the Fed have made since QE1. I'm hoping USSS and other entities cleans house. USDT fully diluted market cap is about equal to that of PNC Bank, America's 7th largest bank. If PNC Bank's reserves and market ac…

How is crypto a systemic risk?

From my recollection of the 2008/09 financial crisis, systemic risks were those in which entities were deeply intertwined with one another on a massive scale, such that there failure would potentially bring down the entire system of finance. We're talking: retail banking (payments, savings, lending), commercial banking (idk?), public debt markets (bigco and gov funding), but most especially short term commercial funding. Again, going on memory, failure of short term funding (repo (?)) markets would have caused real, non-finance companies to become insolvent or at the very least massively impair their working capital positions. This has the knock on effect of reducing demand throughout their supply chains and major cost cutting (job loss). Etc etc. In other words, massive recession or even deep depression.

Crypto, on the other hand, seems to be mostly a casino, a big one, yes. But one that is not deeply intertwined with other parts of the financial system. Coinbase, for instance, is not systemically important. It doesn't (yet) have tendrils in so many important lines of business as did the megabanks of yesteryear.

Re: U.S. Secret Service Launches Cryptocurrency Awareness Hub

#55

Post by vmception »

mellavora wrote: post #38
vmception wrote: post #21

The state could use public resources better by providing uniform education on cryptocurrencies. Most of the terms aren't standardized and even their use isn't. For example, if you put up a Google Form and asked for people's Ethereum addresses, many will provide the 0xAbc123 version and many others will provide the Abc123 version without the 0x. Both audiences may not realize that the 0x is purely cosmetic and address…

> The state could use public resources better by providing uniform education on cryptocurrencies. Most of the terms aren't standardized and even their use isn't. I'm not sure that the USG defining standard terms of use would mean that those terms become adopted by the entire crypto ecosystem. I'm also not sure how a USG regulated contract market would play in a space whose main attraction seems to be "no regulations"

The same way the IETF started out as a US Government supported activity.

The same way Tor started out as a US Government funded activity.

The similarity being that they are just standards, not required by anyone. For anyone passing by, analogies exclusively compare similarities, not dissimilarities. Here we are exclusively comparing similarities.

In this case the US government would be helping with optional standards that help provide the glue between market participants faster.

The ethos of the space has nothing to do with the technology. I don't even get what the no regulation meme even means to you as a government helping contract formation and lending credence to one path while showing why is not regulation. Its freedom of association all the way down. Everyone is free to associate with a state contributed contract standard, and free to associate with a random one.

It is noteworthy that I used the words "help" and "collaborate" and you read "USG defining" and "USG regulate". Its the allergy to the word government that has room for re-evaluation. The concept of an adversarial state is familiar, but not all that there is, governments can also be gigantic nonprofits actually functioning in collaboration with the public. Sometimes I use them that way.

Re: U.S. Secret Service Launches Cryptocurrency Awareness Hub

#56

Post by afpx »

nrzd wrote: post #52

I’m blown away by how anti-crypto this discussion is. I hadn’t realized how negative the prevailing sentiment is on Hacker News. One argument seems to be that cryptocurrency is purely speculative, which is apparently a dirty word. What about the stock market? What about any kind of investment? If you truly believe that cryptocurrency is the basis for a superior economic system, isn’t it rational and wise to put some…

Bitcoin was some neat tech. But, in case you haven’t noticed it’s been taken over by finance bros. Now, it’s just a scam to prey on the poor and ignorant.

Re: U.S. Secret Service Launches Cryptocurrency Awareness Hub

#57

Post by ianai »

SamoyedFurFluff wrote: post #46
nivenkos wrote: post #41

Why can't they just ban the crypto exchanges already? If Canada is willing to freeze the bank accounts of protesters, it's definitely possible.

I think Canada was only willing to do this under overwhelming popular support(popular support to shut the protest down), of which I don’t think crypto exchanges have a similar amount of public and sustained animosity towards.

Unfortunately, the adults in the room have to be unpopular when particularly dangerous situations arise.

Re: U.S. Secret Service Launches Cryptocurrency Awareness Hub

#58

Post by danuker »

afpx wrote: post #56
nrzd wrote: post #52

I’m blown away by how anti-crypto this discussion is. I hadn’t realized how negative the prevailing sentiment is on Hacker News. One argument seems to be that cryptocurrency is purely speculative, which is apparently a dirty word. What about the stock market? What about any kind of investment? If you truly believe that cryptocurrency is the basis for a superior economic system, isn’t it rational and wise to put some…

Bitcoin was some neat tech. But, in case you haven’t noticed it’s been taken over by finance bros. Now, it’s just a scam to prey on the poor and ignorant.

How is it a scam? Does it not still offer the same tech? In fact, with Lightning, even more advanced tech.

Re: U.S. Secret Service Launches Cryptocurrency Awareness Hub

#59

Post by thrwyoilarticle »

nrzd wrote: post #52

I’m blown away by how anti-crypto this discussion is. I hadn’t realized how negative the prevailing sentiment is on Hacker News. One argument seems to be that cryptocurrency is purely speculative, which is apparently a dirty word. What about the stock market? What about any kind of investment? If you truly believe that cryptocurrency is the basis for a superior economic system, isn’t it rational and wise to put some…

>What about the stock market? What about any kind of investment?

You mean the kind that pay dividends?

Re: U.S. Secret Service Launches Cryptocurrency Awareness Hub

#60

Post by johndevor »

afpx wrote: post #56
nrzd wrote: post #52

I’m blown away by how anti-crypto this discussion is. I hadn’t realized how negative the prevailing sentiment is on Hacker News. One argument seems to be that cryptocurrency is purely speculative, which is apparently a dirty word. What about the stock market? What about any kind of investment? If you truly believe that cryptocurrency is the basis for a superior economic system, isn’t it rational and wise to put some…

Bitcoin was some neat tech. But, in case you haven’t noticed it’s been taken over by finance bros. Now, it’s just a scam to prey on the poor and ignorant.

Wait until you hear about fiat currencies.
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